RESEARCH & INNOVATION
Lack of Knowledge Limits Vaccine Uptake During Pregnancy
L ack of information has been singled out as a major hindrance to vaccine uptake for seasonal influenza by pregnant Barbadians. Family physician and Cave Hill alumna Dr. Tina Ifill said some expectant mothers were not even aware that taking the World Health Organization-recommended vaccines would limit serious illness or prevent death. Pregnant women have been deemed high-risk and were up to five times more likely to develop serious illness as a result of the influenza infection. To determine the uptake rate of the seasonal influenza vaccine among a sample of pregnant women and whether perception, lack of knowledge, or physician inertia were affecting vaccine uptake, Dr. Ifill conducted a study entitled “The Knowledge, Attitudes, Practices and Barriers with Respect to Seasonal Influenza Vaccine in Pregnant Women in Barbados” . One hundred and sixty-three individuals, who were 18 years and older and attended the public antenatal clinic at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital , completed the self- administered questionnaire. Based on the results, many respondents were under the misconception that persons who contract
suggest that providing patients with specific information or knowledge regarding vaccine safety in pregnancy would return in a higher uptake rate.” For those unwilling to take the vaccine, the main reasons given were the perception it was harmful to the baby (36.2 percent), was not recommended by their doctor (25.2 percent), and they did not feel at risk (12.9 percent). “The results showed there was no statistically significant correlation between patients’ perception of the dangers of the influenza virus in pregnancy for themselves or their fetus and their inclination to be vaccinated. Only 13.6 percent of the participants who perceived the influenza virus as a danger to them if contracted in pregnancy were willing to be vaccinated and only 10 percent of those who thought it would be a danger to their fetus said they would be willing.” To boost vaccine uptake, Dr. Ifill has recommended that the Government fund influenza vaccine campaigns and healthcare providers recommend the vaccines far more to patients. The details of her study were presented during the 22 nd Annual Professor E R Walrond Scientific Symposium held on 22 July 2022. l
Dr. Tina Ifill Family physician
the virus never got sick enough to go to the hospital and were unaware the vaccine was recommended during pregnancy. “Patient vaccine willingness was also analysed before and after they read a short paragraph recommending the vaccine in pregnancy. It was noted that of the respondents who said ‘no’ prior to reading the paragraph, 14.1 percent changed their answer to ‘yes’ after they read the recommendation and 23 percent who said ‘I don’t know’ prior said ‘yes’ afterwards. These findings were expected based on previous literature and further confirms that knowledge about vaccine safety and recommendations is a positive cue to action for vaccine willingness,” said Dr. Ifill. Overall, she said persons who thought the vaccine was safe were six times more likely to be vaccinated: “These findings
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