Abstract

Background: Invitation letters and text reminders are sent to parents as part of the UK national childhood influenza programme. We examined parents’ perceptions of common message components and their immediate impact on willingness to vaccinate.
Methods: We recruited n=102 vaccine hesitant parents living in England for a cross-sectional online survey using an Ipsos market research panel. Baseline parental beliefs about influenza, the flu vaccine (necessity beliefs and concerns) and trust in pharmaceuticals were measured. The Necessity-Concerns Differential (NCD) was used to provide a measure of how participants judged the need for the vaccine relative to their concerns. We tested 12 message components commonly used for the UK national programme. After reading each message component, participants rated its impact on willingness to vaccinate on an 11-point scale.
Results: At baseline, intention to vaccinate was positively correlated with necessity for vaccination (r=0.91; p<0.001), NCD (r=0.69, p< 0.001) and trust in pharmaceuticals (r= 0.43; p<0.001). Messages resulted in a positive shift in willingness to vaccinate in 26.5 - 43.1% of participants. The most persuasive message was a gain-framed description of the administration of the nasal spray as a simple and painless experience. Messages were most effective in parents with an overall positive mindset about the vaccine (NCD).
Conclusion: Pre-existing beliefs about the flu vaccine determined how parents immediately responded to public health messages designed to support vaccination uptake. Our findings suggest that tailored messaging that takes into account these background beliefs may be needed to support informed decision making in these parents.