Parents Who Accepted the Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccine Were More Aware of the Severity of the Disease and Risks.

Abstract

Aim: Bacterial meningitis, including meningococcal meningitis, poses a significant global health threat for children. This study aimed to identify the key reasons why parents accepted meningococcal vaccines. It also wanted to promote wider meningococcal vaccination efforts.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with the parents of children who visited a university hospital's paediatric outpatient clinic in Turkey between 20 August 2015 and 30 May 2016. The parents provided sociodemographic information and responded to a questionnaire about the meningococcal conjugate vaccination (MCV), based on the Health Belief Model.

Results: The parents of 302 children (52.3% girls), with a mean age of 6.77 ± 4.77, participated in the study. Mothers accounted for 80.1%. Sociodemographic factors, including the parents' education and the mother's occupation, were significant factors in accepting the vaccine. So were recognizing the severity of the disease and the perceived susceptibility and risks. Vaccine uptake also increased if the parents received concise and timely information from doctors. However, some parents were uncomfortable with the number of injections their children would receive and larger families were also a barrier.

Conclusion: Factors that affected parents' acceptance of the MCV included sociodemographic factors, awareness of the severity of the disease and perceived susceptibility and risks.