The Ethnographic Evaluation of Michigan's High-Risk Hepatitis B Vaccination Program

Abstract

This paper discusses the evaluation of Michigan's High-Risk Hepatitis B Vaccination Program using ethnographic methods. Ninety-six face-to-face interviews were conducted in Family Planning, Sexually Transmitted Disease, and Adolescent Health clinics throughout Michigan. The purpose of this evaluation was to determine why many Michigan residents who sought care at these clinics refused free hepatitis B vaccines and others failed to complete the vaccination series. Key reasons for refusal included lack of knowledge about hepatitis B, lack of knowledge about vaccines, and inconvenience. This paper explores how using ethnographic research methods—one—on—one interviews and participant—observation—captured data from this population that would likely have not been discovered using quantitative research methods.