Increasing the comfort of vaccine delivery at school is needed to improve the immunization experience for students. We created the CARD™ (C-Comfort, A-Ask, R-Relax and D-Distract) system to address this clinical care gap. Originally designed for grade 7 students, this study examined the perceptions of grade 9 students of CARD™. Grade 9 students who had experience with school-based immunizations, either as recipients or onlookers (n = 7; 100% females 14 years old) participated. Students answered pre-post surveys, reviewed CARD™ educational materials and participated in a semi-structured focus group discussion. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) was used as the framework for analysis of qualitative data. Participants reported positive perceptions of CARD™ educational materials and that CARD™ could fit into the school immunization process. CARD™ improved knowledge about effective coping interventions and was recommended for education of both nurses and students. The results provide preliminary evidence that CARD™ is acceptable and appropriate for implementation in grade 9 school-based immunizations.
Keywords: adolescent; child; fear; pain; patient education; school immunizations; vaccine hesitancy.