A qualitative study to assess the perceived benefits and barriers to the pneumococcal vaccine in hospitalised older people

Pneumococcal vaccine is now recommended for all people aged 65 years and over in Australia, yet many in this age group remain unvaccinated, especially those from Non-English Speaking Backgrounds (NESB).AimOur aim was to assess some of the perceived beliefs, benefits and barriers to pneumococcal immunisation in older people.Design and settingWe conducted qualitative open-ended interviews among elderly hospital inpatients aged receiving care in the geriatric, cardiology, and orthopaedic departments of a large, 800-bed tertiary referral hospital.Methods24 participants who had not received pneumococcal immunisation, and who were aged 60 years and over, were mentally competent and well enough to be interviewed were selected for our study.ResultsThree topics were addressed: patient attitudes towards vaccination, knowledge of vaccines and their purpose, and accessibility of patient education materials about vaccines and their purpose. Patients who accepted pneumococcal immunisation (acceptors) generally were unaware of the vaccine or did not know it was recommended for them.Patients who refused the pneumococcal vaccine (refusers) either would not consider it without the recommendation of their general practitioner or they maintained the belief that the vaccination would cause illness or symptoms. Knowledge about the availability and purpose of the pneumococcal vaccine was poor amongst our group.ConclusionPoor knowledge of the availability and purpose of pneumococcal immunisation was prevalent in our subjects. Appropriate education campaigns and trusting and positive relationships with the general practitioners are likely to improve immunisation uptake.