Your role in reducing vaccination gaps

Just understanding the impact of social determinants of health will not help eliminate health disparities. Let’s explore tools, techniques, and proven strategies you can implement to help reduce vaccination gaps and advocate for adult and pediatric vaccination in your practice.²⁶

The CDC recommends that all health care professionals²⁷:

Assess immunization status of all patients at every visit
Recommend vaccines that patients need
Administer needed vaccines or refer to a provider who can immunize
Document vaccines received by your patients

Share the reasons why a vaccine is right for the patient
Highlight positive experiences with vaccines to reinforce benefits and build vaccine confidence
Address patient questions and any concerns they may have about vaccines, including side effects, safety, and vaccine effectiveness
Remind patients that vaccines help protect them and their loved ones from potentially serious illness
Explain the potential cost of getting the disease, including serious health effects, time lost (missing work or family obligations), and financial costs

Be mindful of SDOH by employing greater sensitivity & cultural competence

What is cultural competence?²⁸

A set of skills, values, and principles that acknowledge, respect, and work toward optimal interactions between an individual and people who have a different culture, race, ethnicity, or religion than they do.

Key components²⁸:

Awareness–Being aware of your own individual biases and reactions.
Knowledge–Understanding if your values and beliefs about equality line up with your actual behaviors.
Skills–Taking practices of cultural competency and incorporating effective and respectful communication, whether within an organization or between individuals.

Note: Adapted from https://www.humanservicesedu.org/cultural-competency.html

Some populations may be more likely to be unvaccinated or undervaccinated due to religious teachings, historical trauma, systemic racism, and/or other societal factors.²⁸

Try these tactics²⁸

Listen, acknowledge, and accept that mistrust is present and valid.
Offer a strong vaccine recommendation that is based on  vaccine safety and effectiveness.
Look for opportunities (eg, surveys, focus groups, community meetings) to better understand your community’s vaccine hesitancy concerns.
Engage community leaders to help reach populations at risk for vaccine-preventable diseases.
Partner with community members to develop culturally relevant messages about vaccination.
Translate materials to reflect local dialects and consider the literacy level of those you hope to reach.

Create a culture of vaccination acceptance and encouragement

The environment you establish within your practice plays a critical role in maintaining and increasing vaccination coverage. A setting of acceptance and encouragement helps ensure vaccines are delivered to appropriate patients and on time.²⁶

Encourage all employees within the health care setting to recommend vaccination at all stages of a medical visit²⁸
Provide consistent messaging about the importance of vaccines and about vaccine and potential adverse events at all levels²⁶
Implement effective workflow processes to take advantage of every opportunity to vaccinate²⁶
Designate a vaccine champion to help providers identify, implement, and sustain vaccine delivery improvements²⁹
Adhere to proper vaccine storage, handling, and administration procedures²⁶

Find more support for your efforts to help close the vaccination gap.