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. 2015 Jun 26;33(29):3377-83.
doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2015.04.089. Epub 2015 May 21.

Barriers to childhood immunisation: Findings from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children

Anna Pearce  1 , Helen Marshall  2 , Helen Bedford  3 , John Lynch  4
Affiliations

Barriers to childhood immunisation: Findings from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children

Anna Pearce et al. Vaccine. .

Abstract

Objectives: To examine barriers to childhood immunisation experienced by parents in Australia.

Design: Cross-sectional analysis of secondary data.

Setting: Nationally representative Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC).

Participants: Five thousand one hundred seven infants aged 3-19 months in 2004.

Main outcome measure: Maternal report of immunisation status: incompletely or fully immunised.

Results: Overall, 9.3% (473) of infants were incompletely immunised; of these just 16% had mothers who disagreed with immunisation. Remaining analyses focussed on infants whose mother did not disagree with immunisation (N=4994) (of whom 8% [398] were incompletely immunised). Fifteen variables representing potential immunisation barriers and facilitators were available in LSAC; these were entered into a latent class model to identify distinct clusters (or 'classes') of barriers experienced by families. Five classes were identified: (1) 'minimal barriers', (2) 'lone parent, mobile families with good support', (3) 'low social contact and service information; psychological distress', (4) 'larger families, not using formal childcare', (5) 'child health issues/concerns'. Compared to infants from families experiencing minimal barriers, all other barrier classes had a higher risk of incomplete immunisation. For example, the adjusted risk ratio (RR) for incomplete immunisation was 1.51 (95% confidence interval: 1.08-2.10) among those characterised by 'low social contact and service information; psychological distress', and 2.47 (1.87-3.25) among 'larger families, not using formal childcare'.

Conclusions: Using the most recent data available for examining these issues in Australia, we found that the majority of incompletely immunised infants (in 2004) did not have a mother who disagreed with immunisation. Barriers to immunisation are heterogeneous, suggesting a need for tailored interventions.

Keywords: Health inequalities; Infants; Population health; Social disadvantage; Vaccination.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Indicators of barriers and facilitators to immunisation in mothers who did not disagree with immunisation: description and prevalence (N = 4994).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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