Parental attitudes towards measles vaccination in the canton of Aargau, Switzerland: a latent class analysis.

Carine Weiss,Sonja Merten,Daniel Schröpfer

doi:10.1186/s12879-016-1747-0

Abstract

BackgroundDespite the successes of routine national childhood vaccination programmes, measles remains a public health concern. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how patterns of parental attitudes are linked to the decision-making process for or against MMR vaccination. This exploratory study was designed to identify distinct patterns of attitudes towards or against measles vaccination through Latent Class Analysis (LCA) in a sub-sample of mothers living in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland.MethodsParents of young children below 36 months of age were randomly selected through parents’ counsellors’ registries. Among other questions, respondents were asked to state their agreement in response to 14 belief statements regarding measles vaccination on a 5-point Likert scale. To identify groups of parents showing distinct patterns of attitudes and beliefs regarding measles vaccination, we used Latent Class Analysis (LCA).ResultsThe LCA showed three classes of parents with different attitudes and believes towards measles vaccination: The biggest group (class 1) are those having positive attitudes towards immunisation, followed by the second biggest group (class 2) which is characterised by having fearful attitudes and by showing uncertainty about immunisation. The third group (class 3) shows distinct patterns of critical attitudes against immunisation. Within this group over 90 % agree or totally agree that immunisation is an artificial intrusion into the natural immune system and therefore want to vaccinate their children only if necessary.ConclusionWe find that parents in the Canton Aargau who hesitate to vaccinate their children against measles, mumps and rubella show distinct opinions and attitudes. Health professionals should be aware of these perceptions to tailor their messages accordingly and positively influence these parents to vaccinate their children. Special attention needs to be given to those parents who are planning to vaccinate their children but are not following the national guidelines.

Highlights

Despite the successes of routine national childhood vaccination programmes, measles remains a public health concern
The Latent Class Analysis (LCA) led to the identification of three latent classes characterized by distinct patterns of the 14 variables measuring parental attitudes
The third group shows distinct patterns of critical attitudes against immunisation (n = 25). Within this group over 90 % agree or totally agree that immunisation is an artificial intrusion into the natural immune system and want to vaccinate their children only if necessary

Summary

Introduction

Despite the successes of routine national childhood vaccination programmes, measles remains a public health concern. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how patterns of parental attitudes are linked to the decision-making process for or against MMR vaccination This exploratory study was designed to identify distinct patterns of attitudes towards or against measles vaccination through Latent Class Analysis (LCA) in a sub-sample of mothers living in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. The measles vaccine has been part of routine national childhood vaccination programmes for more than 20 years, measles remains a public health concern. Following the sharp decline in the incidence of the majority of vaccine-preventable childhood diseases a number of parents emerged who perceive little risk associated with these infections. In response to the unsatisfactory vaccination coverage Switzerland developed a national strategy 2011–2015 aimed at the elimination of measles in the country [4]

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