Taking a Shot at Immunization Adherence Group Visits for Vaccine-Averse Parents

Decreased vaccination rates in children have played a role in the deaths of several children in the United States over the last decade. Interventions to date have been ineffective at changing vaccination patterns. No studies have evaluated a conciliatory patient-centered approach where parent concerns were acknowledged and addressed in a group setting.

Vaccine-averse parents with incompletely vaccinated children were recruited from a family medicine practice. These parents attended three group visit sessions centered on vaccine safety and efficacy. Pre and post surveys were given at each session. The children's vaccination records were examined in the year prior and the year following the groups. One year after the group visits, parents were interviewed about their attitudes toward vaccination.

There were no significant attitude changes in parents attending the group visits. In the year following the visits, the percentage of recommended vaccines that children had received did not increase. Interviews with parents revealed a broad range of concerns about vaccines and a widespread desire for a longer-term study designed to address these concerns.

Surveys and vaccination records revealed no significant change in attitudes or behavior after three group visit sessions, consistent with other research on interventions with vaccine-averse parents. The phone interviews demonstrated a desire for further research into long-term effects of vaccines, with most parents stating that they would consider changing their beliefs if the research was free from commercial bias, addressed their concerns, and was extended out over a long period of time.