Elderly people who refuse to get flu shots cause distrust of the vaccine

According to a study by the National Institute of Health Ricardo Jorge, those people over 65 who decided not to get the flu shot in the 2020/2021 season noted their lack of confidence in the vaccine and low susceptibility to the disease.

According to researchers from the Department of Epidemiology at the National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge (INSA), “These results suggest possible gaps in public knowledge about the vaccine and the disease.”

The researchers note that seasonal influenza vaccination (VAGS) is “a primary public health intervention to reduce the incidence of influenza virus infection and its complications”, with one of the target groups identified with the recommendation for this vaccine being the population aged 65 years and older, for whom the vaccine is free.

“Therefore, it is important to identify the most important aspects in the behavior of non-compliance with this vaccine in order to be able to develop more effective vaccination campaigns,” they emphasize in a study published in the “Epidemiological Observation Bulletin” from INSA.

In this sense, the researchers designed the ECOS (We Watch for Health at Home) study to analyze the reasons for non-compliance with seasonal influenza vaccination in the 2020/2021 season in people aged 65 years and older, according to data to the parameters of the Health Belief Model ( susceptibility, heaviness, obstacles, benefits, and cues to action).

The data was obtained through a telephone survey of a random sample of accommodation units stratified by NUT II region with a homogeneous distribution. Data was collected through a structured questionnaire through a computer-assisted telephone interview between July and September 2021.

The findings of the investigation show that “Portuguese aged 65 and over not complying with CAV appear to have done so not because they were unaware of the recommendation, but because they did not trust the vaccine and did not consider themselves vulnerable to contracting the flu.” .

In the study, the non-compliance rate for influenza vaccination was 33.8% for the population aged 65 years and over living in Portugal in 2021, which is comparable to estimates obtained in the 2013/2014 season (31.3%).

The dimensions “Barriers” and “Susceptibility” were the most frequently cited parameters regarding the possibility of not taking the influenza vaccine in the population aged 65 years and older, which is consistent with other studies in vaccination target populations, especially due to the importance of “susceptibility” .

The importance of “Barriers” was also noted, especially the perception of side effects that may result from taking the vaccine, as well as perceptions and beliefs about the disease itself, given that this population is “not very susceptible”.

“These results suggest possible gaps in public knowledge about the vaccine and the disease, and vaccination campaigns can increase adherence to them if the factors that matter most to the population in decision making are taken into account,” they argue. , investigators.