Adolescent and parental decision-making for the MenACWY vaccination: influential predictors and parental-adolescent differences among households in the Netherlands

Abstract

Background: Between 2015 and 2018 The Netherlands experienced increases of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) serogroup W (MenW). Therefore in 2018 the MenACWY vaccination was introduced in the National Immunisation Programme (NIP) and a catch-up campaign was initiated targeting adolescents. This study aimed to gain insight into what factors played a role in the decision-making process regarding the MenACWY vaccination. The focus was on the differences in the decision-making of parents and adolescents in order to assess what factors influence the decisions made. Methods: An online questionnaire was offered to adolescents and one of their parents. We used random forest analyses to determine which factors best predict the outcome of the MenACWY vaccination decision. We carried out ROC (receiver-operator characteristics) analyses to confirm the predictive value of the variables. Results: Among parents several factors stand out, centring on the process of the decision, their attitude about the MenACWY vaccination, trust in the vaccination, and ideas of important people around them. Among adolescents the three stand-out predictors are the ideas of important people around them, the process of the decision and trust in the vaccination. Parents have prominent influence in the decision-making, while the adolescent’s influence in the household decision-making is more limited. Adolescents tend to be less engaged and spend less time thinking about the decision compared to parents. Opinions of parents and adolescents from the same households concerning the factors that are influential do not differ a lot in the final decision-making. Conclusions: Information about MenACWY vaccination might be mainly addressed to the parents of the adolescents and whereby the dialogue about MenACWY vaccination between parents and adolescents will be stimulated. With regard to the predictor trust in vaccination, raising the frequency of use of certain sources, especially those deemed very reliable among households such as conversations with a GP or the provider of the vaccination (GGD/JGZ), might prove a useful strategy to solidify vaccination uptake numbers.