THE ATTITUDE OF PARENTS OF PRESCHOOL CHILDREN TO VACCINATION ACCORDING TO EPIDEMIC INDICATIONS AND THE REASONS FOR REFUSING VACCINATIONS

Abstract

Despite the stability of global vaccination coverage, more than 19 million children worldwide are currently not receiving basic vaccines. Over the past few years, there has been a sharp decline in vaccinated children. The increase in the number of unvaccinated children is probably due to parents' concerns about the alleged negative impact of vaccines on health, as well as the presence of false information disseminated by the anti-vaccination movement. The purpose of our study was to assess the attitude of parents to preventive vaccinations according to epidemic indications, to identify the main reasons for refusals to vaccinate children. An anonymous survey was conducted of 250 parents of preschool children attending the children's polyclinic department of the medical and diagnostic complex (LDC "MedGard"), medical and rehabilitation centers "MedGard" (LRC "MedGard") in Samara in the period from September 2022 to March 2023. The study analyzed the knowledge of parents about preventive vaccinations for epidemic indications (against meningococcal infection, influenza, human papillomavirus, chickenpox, tick-borne encephalitis virus, rotavirus, hepatitis A). The article presents data on the sources of obtaining information about vaccination from parents, about the side effects of previously administered vaccines in this category of children. The study revealed the relationship between the source of knowledge and knowledge about preventive vaccinations in respondents. It is concluded that people who receive knowledge directly and from reliable sources, i.e. from medical personnel, demonstrate a higher level of knowledge and are less likely to worry about vaccination compared to those who receive information from other sources. Thus, the lack of sufficient information about preventive vaccinations often explains the distrust of vaccination programs for children, and the lack of knowledge about the etiology of infectious diseases contributes to the development of so-called anti-vaccination movements.