Because our study included a follow-up survey we were able to link intention with actual vaccination behaviour. Intention was a good predictor of HCP’s vaccination behaviour, exceeding the average explained variance of intention-behaviour relationships as stated in a meta-analysis by Sheraan [31]. The majority of HCP who had a high intention to get vaccinated actually did get vaccinated, but only 15% of the HCP who indicated being unsure about vaccination got vaccinated. HCP in the latter category might be a promising
group to target in future intervention programs to increase vaccination uptake. They have the highest potential of Doxorubicin cost eventually making a transition to the high intention group, when the right determinants are targeted. The current study had some limitations. We reduced the survey length in an attempt to improve response rates among HCP by measuring some constructs with only one item, which could have lowered measurement specificity. Another limitation of this study is a possible response bias. HCP who completed the follow-up survey likely expected to be asked about their vaccination status. Consequently, vaccinators may be overrepresented in our sample due to self-selection.
Moreover, nursing staff and HCP working in hospitals are slightly underrepresented in our sample, which might reduce the representativeness of Dutch HCP as a whole. Finally, because of anonymity and confidentiality reasons we did not collect detailed data about BI 6727 purchase the different occupational groups and specifics about participants’ patient contact. This information could have been helpful in further stratifying the findings. In conclusion, this study replicated one of our previous studies by showing that different factors are influential for immunizers and non-immunizers. A number of the social-cognitive variables we investigated contribute largely to the explanation of HCP’s motivation to get
vaccinated against influenza, and intention was a strong predictor of actual vaccination behaviour. We plan to use these determinants to develop a second program to promote influenza vaccination in HCP using the Intervention Mapping approach [32]. All authors declare that they have no competing interests. This study was funded by an unrestricted educational grant from Abbott Health Care Products B.V. “
“Children in all countries are routinely immunised against major diseases, and vaccination has become central to global public health efforts [1]. The impact of vaccines can be measured not just in terms of public health, but also in economic terms: reducing the cost of healthcare, decreasing lost labour force productivity and contributing to social and economic development.