Influenza Vaccination Receipt in Pediatric Patients With Cancer or Sickle Cell Disease

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Oncology
• Pediatric Hematology
• Infectious Disease Prevention

Background:

• Influenza poses significant risks to children with cancer or sickle cell disease (SCD).
• Limited data exist on influenza vaccination rates within these high-risk pediatric groups, especially in low-vaccination states.
• While outpatient interventions boost vaccine uptake, the effectiveness of inpatient strategies remains unexamined.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate influenza vaccine receipt among children with cancer or SCD.
• To assess the impact of an inpatient clinical decision support intervention on influenza vaccination rates in these cohorts.
• To compare vaccination rates against state and national benchmarks.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of influenza vaccine records for children with cancer or SCD at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta over three seasons.
• Implementation of a clinical decision support intervention during one influenza season.
• Comparison of pre-intervention and post-intervention vaccination rates among admitted pediatric patients.

Main Results:

• Oncology and SCD cohorts demonstrated vaccination rates comparable to or exceeding US and Georgia averages.
• The inpatient intervention did not yield a statistically significant improvement in influenza vaccine receipt for admitted children with cancer or SCD.
• Regression analysis confirmed no significant increase in vaccine uptake across various cancer types or for SCD patients post-intervention.

Conclusions:

• Children with cancer and SCD exhibit robust influenza vaccination rates, often surpassing state and national levels.
• An isolated inpatient intervention strategy proved ineffective in enhancing influenza vaccine uptake in these pediatric populations.
• Further research is necessary to develop and validate alternative, effective approaches for improving influenza vaccination in children with cancer and SCD.