Informed consent for HPV vaccination: a relational approach

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Nursing Ethics
• Pediatric Healthcare

Background:

• The HPV vaccination consent process in schools involves complex ethical considerations.
• Understanding the perspectives of school nurses is crucial for optimizing consent procedures.
• Relational autonomy theory offers a framework for analyzing consent in healthcare settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore school nurses' experiences with the consent process for HPV vaccination.
• To examine the relational aspects of consent, considering the involvement of children and parents.
• To investigate how relational autonomy can inform consent practices in school-based vaccination programs.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study utilizing focus groups with 30 Swedish school nurses.
• Interviews conducted prior to the implementation of a school-based HPV vaccination program.
• Analysis of empirical data through the lens of relational autonomy theories.

Main Results:

• School nurses perceived parental consent as necessary for vaccinating 11-year-old girls.
• Challenges were identified in determining a child's autonomy and managing disagreements between children and parents.
• Nurses expressed a willingness to engage in dialogue and negotiation with parents.

Conclusions:

• Informed consent for HPV vaccination should be viewed as a deliberative process involving the child, parents, and nurse.
• Adopting a relational autonomy approach can foster a more dialogical consent process.
• This approach may enhance child autonomy and mitigate power inequalities in school vaccination programs.