A medical professional giving a vaccination to a patient indoors, emphasizing healthcare.

When the Burden Shifts: Equipping Healthcare Providers to Combat Vaccine Hesitancy

By Hilton Hudson II,MD. CEO of HPC International Inc.

In June, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed the 17 sitting members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). The ACIP studies vaccines — those in the regulatory pipeline and those recently licensed by the FDA — and advises the CDC on who should be offered them once they have been approved.  

In gutting the committee, the federal government effectively put the onus on healthcare providers to educate patients about the efficacy of vaccines.  

A variety of research-backed strategies have been developed to equip clinicians with the knowledge needed to educate patients. Here are a few examples: 

  • Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, implemented an educational strategy in the emergency department that increased patients’ willingness to receive the influenza vaccine from 29% to 72%. The intervention involved providing a provider recommendation and an educational handout to low-acuity patients waiting for care, effectively reaching underserved populations. 
  • The Unity Consortium launched the 3Cs program (Confident, Concise, and Consistent) to help healthcare providers deliver strong vaccine recommendations to adolescents and young adults. The program includes video vignettes demonstrating how providers can use motivational interviewing and shared decision-making strategies to address concerns and build confidence in vaccination. 
  • A quality improvement project in an emergency department setting found that providing patients with educational materials and addressing their concerns directly led to a 29% improvement in vaccine hesitancy scores. This approach also resulted in 38% of patients agreeing to schedule a vaccine appointment during the intervention. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the independent American Medical Association issued physician tips on how to talk to patients about vaccines. Even after the pandemic ended, many of these lessons could be applied — and expanded upon — in the context of continuing medication education (CME) for today’s clinicians. 

The Stanford Center for Continuing Medical Education offers an online course on vaccine hesitancy, based on research from Kaiser Permanente, the California Department of Health, and the California Coronavirus Testing Task Force. Similarly, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has an online course that teaches how to discuss evidence-based best practices for addressing vaccine hesitancy. The physician-led American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine offers CME for healthcare professionals in Occupational and Environmental Medicine, specifically designed to address vaccine hesitancy in the workplace.  

The gap between providers who are knowledgeable about vaccines and vaccine efficacy and patients whose resistance is based on misinformation is a significant obstacle to overcome. However, by educating themselves on research-backed techniques, clinicians can increase their chances of helping patients receive potentially life-saving medication. 

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