Vaccine mistrust among family healthcare professionals and vaccine hesitancy in the communities they serve in Turkey in 2019: a cross-sectional study

Validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Parent Attitudes About Childhood Vaccines (PACV) scale

AIMS

This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the "Parental Attitudes toward Childhood Vaccines" (PACV) scale.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A two-stage observational validation study was conducted. A back-translation technique was used and then the scale was validated with a sample of 343 parents with children aged 0-72 months. The test-retest method, Cronbach's alpha coefficient, Split-half analysis, and item analysis methods were used to determine the reliability of the scale, factor analyses were run to determine construct validity. Explanatory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were applied to assess construct validity.

RESULTS

Cronbach's alpha coefficient was measured as .84. The Spearman-Brown coefficient was .82 and the Guttman Split-half coefficient was .81. According to the item-total correlation and Cronbach's alpha values when the item was deleted, no item was deleted from the scale. The intraclass correlation coefficient between the test-retest measurements was .79. The three-factor structure consisting of 15 items explained 51.6% of the total variance. As a result of the confirmatory factor analysis, a sufficient fit of the model to the model proposed in the original version of the scale was evident (χ²/sd=2.214, RMSEA=.06).

CONCLUSION

The Turkish version of the PACV is a valid and reliable scale and can be used to identify parental attitudes toward childhood vaccines.

Evaluation of Influenza Patients Admitted in 2019–2020 Flu Season

Objective Influenza viruses are among the most common respiratory pathogens for all age groups, and may cause seasonal outbreaks. The aim of our study was to describe the clinical characteristics of influenza cases in the 2019–2020 flu season and to study the risk factors for hospital admission and complications.

Methods This was a retrospective study in 251 children (group 1: nonhospitalized; group 2: hospitalized) with influenza in the 2019–2020 flu season. Data on demographic features, influenza type, complaints, complications, and hospitalization length were collected and recorded.

Results Influenza A was detected in 199 (79.3%) patients, and influenza B was detected in 52 (20.7%); 43.4% of patients were girls and 56.6% were boys. The mean age of the patients was 3.91 ± 3.3 years (16 days to 18 years). A total of 52 (20.7%) patients were hospitalized. The age of the patients in group 2 was lower than that in group 1 (3.1 vs. 4.2 years, p = 0.03). Group 2 patients were more likely to have creatine kinase (CK) elevation, febrile seizures, and physical examination abnormalities. Group 2 patients were also more likely to have influenza A. Patients with febrile seizures, chronic diseases, abnormal physical examination findings, developed complications, and additional drug use apart from oseltamivir in the treatment were also more likely to require hospitalization.

Conclusion Infants and children with chronic diseases, history of febrile seizures, complications, and the use of drugs other than antiviral drugs should be carefully evaluated in case they need hospitalization. Increasing vaccination rates, initiation of antiviral treatment for selected patients, and close monitoring of patients in risk groups can decrease morbidity and mortality. Myalgias are a common complaint in patients with acute influenza infection. Previous studies suggest CK measurement be part of the work-up for the hospitalized patient with acute influenza infection.

Factors associated with pediatric vaccine hesitancy of parents: a cross-sectional study in Turkey

Aim: This study aims to determine the prevalence and associated factors of vaccine hesitancy in females with children aged 12 months to 6 years who receive service from the antenatal class of a tertiary hospital in Turkey.Method: The study group includes 370 parents receiving service from a tertiary hospital. The data collection tools of the study were a descriptive data form and the Parent Attitudes about Childhood Vaccines survey.The data were analyzed using chi-square analysis and logistic regression analysis.Results: In our study, the prevalence of vaccine hesitancy was determined as 13.8% and vaccine refusal prevalence as 4.8%. In univariate analysis, vaccine hesitancy was found to be significantly higher in mothers with a university education, who got pregnant with treatment, who were not trained about pediatric vaccines in the antenatal follow-up, who followed anti-vaccine groups on social media, and who did not use vitamin D and iron supplements regularly or never used for their child. Vaccine hesitancy was significantly higher in parents who stated that their information sources of vaccines were not scientific, who were worried about vaccine ingredients (aluminum, mercury, pig gelatine) and who used alternative medicine practices (p < .05). In multivariate analysis, the risk of vaccine hesitancy increases 3.05 times in pregnancies with treatment, 3.74 times in those who did not use vitamin D or iron preparations, 3.01 times in those who followed anti-vaccine groups on social media,2.93 times in parents who were worried about the vaccine ingredients.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the prevalence of vaccine hesitancy and risk factors should be monitored closely in the following years.