WASHINGTON — Teen vaccine educational material must be quick, accurate, understandable, and relevant, said Dr. Sharon Humiston at a meeting of the National Vaccine Advisory Committee.
The bottom line is that no single information source will hit everyone in a target audience, and some sources will hit unexpected targets, said Dr. Humiston, a pediatrician at the University of Rochester (N.Y.).
Dr. Humiston presented data to NVAC on behalf of the subcommittee on Communications and Public Engagement, and she cited results from a survey of 150 adolescents conducted by Parents of Kids with Infectious Diseases, a national nonprofit group. The goal of the survey was to determine where and how teens get their health information, and the data can be used to develop educational strategies for adolescent vaccination.
Surprisingly, some adolescents surveyed said that they actually read the one-page vaccine information statements available in many physicians' offices. “Most parents don't look at those information sheets,” Dr. Humiston noted. The survey results included responses from 150 adolescents, 53% of whom were male.
Half of the adolescents said that they had talked with parents about immunizations within the past year and that parents had initiated the conversation in 70% of the cases. In addition, 70 of 150 (47%) reported having talked with a health professional about immunizations.
Although 91% of the respondents said that they had ever been immunized, only 16% believed that they knew all their necessary immunizations.
The adolescents were asked to choose all sources from which they remembered receiving any health information.
A doctor's office was the most popular resource, chosen by of 80% of the respondents, followed by school (78%) and home (75%). In addition, 57% reported receiving health information from the Internet at home.
For the complete survey results, visit www.pkids.org/pdf/pkidstvireport.pdf