More Mothers Intend To Vaccinate Girls Than Boys For HPV, And Many Are Undecided – New Study Shows

New research published today has shown that mothers are more likely to have decided to have their girls immunised for HPV than their boys, and more than 45% percent are undecided about their children having the HPV vaccine at all.

The research, funded by the Ministry of Social Development’s Children and Families Research Fund, sought to understand mother’s intentions to vaccinate their children against human papillomavirus (HPV).

The research drew on information from nearly 4,500 mothers and their eight-year-olds in the Growing Up in New Zealand longitudinal study.

The findings come amidst growing concern about low rates of HPV vaccine uptake in Aotearoa New Zealand, despite proven efficacy in cancer prevention and demonstrated vaccine safety.

According to Professor Cameron Grant, a paediatrician at Auckland’s Starship Children’s Hospital and a research lead for Growing Up in New Zealand, it was concerning that such a high proportion of mothers were undecided about the vaccine as parental intent is closely linked with vaccine uptake.

“We found a significant number of mothers undecided about the HPV vaccine. The percentage of mothers who were undecided was larger for boys (50%) than girls (43%), but high for both. The research showed seven percent of mothers hadn’t even heard of the vaccine. A larger proportion of Māori (12%) and Pacific (14%) mothers than non-Māori and non-Pacific mothers (6%) had not heard of the HPV vaccine, which is concerning as these groups have higher rates of cervical cancer and mortality.”

Professor Grant says there needs to be increased public awareness of the efficacy and safety of the HPV vaccine.

“The HPV vaccine can help save lives and protect children now for their future. Our research shows that for New Zealand to increase HPV vaccine rates more needs to be done to improve the delivery of information to caregivers about the efficacy and safety of the HPV vaccine with a particular focus on the mothers of boys, and mothers of Māori and Pacific children.”

The research showed:

• The proportion of mothers who stated they would vaccinate their 8-year-olds against HPV was higher for girls than boys (41% vs 32%), whereas the proportion of mothers who were undecided about HPV vaccination was higher for boys than girls (50% vs 43%).
• Mothers whose daughters were of Māori or Pacific ethnicity or whose sons were of Pacific ethnicity were less likely to have decided about vaccinating their child against HPV.
• For mothers of both daughters and sons, receipt of previous scheduled childhood vaccines was associated with the intentions for their child to receive the HPV vaccine.

Professor Grant hopes the findings will help primary healthcare organisations and vaccine delivery services develop context-specific interventions to increase awareness of and improve confidence in HPV vaccination, and for community specific engagement strategies be developed.

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