Health care provider challenges for reaching Hispanic immigrants with HPV vaccination in rural Georgia

John Luque,Mary Weaver,Swati Raychowdhury

doi:10.22605/rrh1975

Abstract

The objective of this pilot study was to understand, from the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program provider's perspective, issues relating to vaccine access and compliance for Hispanic adolescents in a rural setting. Researchers conducted individual structured interviews with VFC providers and focus groups with Hispanic immigrant parents in rural southern Georgia. Overall, the VFC providers said that their Hispanic patients were very positive toward vaccines in general, but there were cost issues related to stocking the vaccine and reaching the Hispanic population. The focus group discussions revealed that most Hispanic parents were not aware of the existence of the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine, nor had they heard about the VFC program. Numerous vaccination barriers continue to impact HPV vaccine uptake in the Hispanic immigrant population in the US South.

Highlights

The objective of this pilot study was to understand, from the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program provider’s perspective, issues relating to vaccine access and compliance for Hispanic adolescents in a rural setting
Increasing humanpapilloma virus (HPV) vaccination rates for Hispanic adolescents is an important public health priority because Hispanic women have been found to have high incidence and mortality rates from cervical cancer compared with other groups for multiple reasons, including lack of a regular healthcare provider and convenient access to timely screening and follow up[15]
Policy changes at the state level, such as HPV vaccine mandates for school entry, are both acceptable to Hispanic parents and the most likely upstream approach to increase overall HPV vaccination rates[16]

Summary

Introduction

The objective of this pilot study was to understand, from the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program provider’s perspective, issues relating to vaccine access and compliance for Hispanic adolescents in a rural setting. Methods: Researchers conducted individual structured interviews with VFC providers and focus groups with Hispanic immigrant parents in rural southern Georgia. Results: Overall, the VFC providers said that their Hispanic patients were very positive toward vaccines in general, but there were cost issues related to stocking the vaccine and reaching the Hispanic population. The focus group discussions revealed that most Hispanic parents were not aware of the existence of the humanpapilloma virus (HPV) vaccine, nor had they heard about the VFC program. Unlike Hispanic populations in southwestern USA who have lived there for multiple generations, in Georgia, the Hispanic population consists of a higher percentage of more recent immigrants, primarily from Mexico. The VFC provider status is associated with consistent humanpapilloma virus (HPV) vaccine recommendation for early adolescents[3]. There are disparities in vaccine awareness among Whites and ethnic and racial minority groups, with Whites reporting greater awareness compared with other groups[4,5]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion