Understanding the Impact of Approved but Unfunded Vaccine Status on Parental Acceptance of an Adjuvanted Seasonal Influenza Vaccine for Infants: Results from the Pediatric Influenza Vaccination Optimization Trial (PIVOT)-III

William A Fisher; Vladimir Gilca; Michelle Murti; Alison Orth; Hartley Garfield; Paul Roumeliotis; Emmanouil Rampakakis; Vivien Brown; John Yaremko; Paul Van Buynder; Constantina Boikos; James A Mansi

doi:10.3390/vaccines10101769

Understanding the Impact of Approved but Unfunded Vaccine Status on Parental Acceptance of an Adjuvanted Seasonal Influenza Vaccine for Infants: Results from the Pediatric Influenza Vaccination Optimization Trial (PIVOT)-III

Vaccines (Basel). 2022 Oct 21;10(10):1769. doi: 10.3390/vaccines10101769.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Western University, London, ON N6A 3K7, Canada.
² Département de Médecine Sociale Et Préventive, Faculté de Médecine, Institut Nationale de Sante Publique du Québec, Université Laval, Québec City, QC G1V 5B3, Canada.
³ Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5T 3M7, Canada.
⁴ Fraser Health Authority, Vancouver, BC V3T 0H1, Canada.
⁵ The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada.
⁶ Eastern Ontario Health Unit, Cornwall, ON K6J 5T1, Canada.
⁷ JSS Medical Research, Montreal, QC H4S 1N8, Canada.
⁸ Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1V7, Canada.
⁹ The Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada.
¹⁰ Department of Pediatrics, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 0G4, Canada.
¹¹ School of Medicine, Griffith University, Perth, WA 6009, Australia.
¹² Seqirus, Montreal, QC H9H 4M7, Canada.

Abstract

The adjuvanted trivalent influenza vaccine (aTIV) provides enhanced protection against influenza for infants but is not publicly funded (NPF). The objective of this prospective cohort study of parents with children 6 through 23 months of age was to understand how NPF status influences parental perceptions of approved but unfunded vaccines and their intentions to vaccinate. At healthy baby visits, clinicians provided parents with information about influenza and vaccination. Before and after these interactions, a research nurse assessed parents' intentions to vaccinate their children and their beliefs about the safety, efficacy, and necessity of vaccinating their children with aTIV in both publicly funded (PF) and NPF settings. Overall, 15 community practice clinics (n = 15 physicians) and nine public health clinics (n = 9 nurses) recruited 207 parents. The percentage of parents intending to immunize their children with aTIV decreased from 72% (vaccine PF, free of charge), to 42% (NPF, $25 per dose), to 27% (NPF, $50 per dose). Funding status strongly influenced whether parents perceived immunization with aTIV to be necessary, safe, and effective. Information on influenza and influenza vaccines should be provided to parents routinely to allow for well-informed decisions on the suitability of specific influenza vaccines for their child.

Keywords: approved vaccine; influenza; parental acceptance; unfunded vaccine; vaccine hesitancy.

Grants and funding

This study was funded by Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics, Inc. and Seqirus Inc. Of note, Novartis’ influenza vaccine business was acquired by the CSL group on 31 July 2015, and currently operates as Seqirus, Inc. The sponsor had primary responsibility for study design, protocol development, development, study monitoring, data management, and statistical analyses.