Healthcare provider perspectives on the uptake of the human papillomavirus vaccine among newcomers to Canada: a qualitative study

Abstract

Human papillomavirus is among the most common sexually transmitted infections in the world. Newcomers, defined in Canada as foreign-born individuals who are either immigrants or refugees, but may also include students and undocumented migrants, face numerous barriers to HPV vaccination. This study sought to understand, from the perspective of healthcare providers, barriers and facilitators to HPV vaccination, and recommendations to improve HPV vaccine uptake among newcomers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 healthcare providers between March and April 2018. Data were analyzed at the manifest level using a Qualitative Content Analysis approach. Categories of barriers to vaccination included: access, communication, knowledge, culture, and provider-related factors. Facilitators included targeted health promotion; understanding the relevance of HPV vaccination; trusting the healthcare system; and cultural sensitivity. Two overarching recommendations were to publicly fund the HPV vaccine, and enhance language- and culturally-appropriate health promotion activities. Further research should explore informational desires and needs from the perspective of newcomers to inform strategies to promote equitable HPV vaccine coverage.

Keywords: HPV; Human papillomavirus; healthcare providers; immunization; newcomers; qualitative methods; vaccination.

Figure 1.

Comparison of barriers to HPV vaccination reported by newcomers vs. healthcare providers.