Perceived safety, usability, and acceptability of microarray patches for vaccination among key populations: A mixed methods study

Matthew N Berger¹, Cristyn Davies², Erin Mathieu³, Josh Harmer-Ross⁴, Ramon Z Shaban⁵, Chenoa Cassidy-Matthews⁶, Brittany Wilson⁷, Shopna Bag⁸, S Rachel Skinner⁹

Affiliations

¹ Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, North Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Office of the Chief Medical Health Officer, Vancouver Coastal Health, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Electronic address: matthew.berger@sydney.edu.au.
² Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
³ Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁴ Nepean Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Nepean, New South Wales, Australia.
⁵ Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, North Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia; New South Wales High Consequence Infectious Diseases Specialist Service, New South Wales Biocontainment Centre, Western Sydney Local Health District, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia.
⁶ Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver Coastal Health, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
⁷ National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia.
⁸ Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, North Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁹ Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Kids Research, Children's Hospital Westmead, Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia.

PMID: 40494226
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127387

Perceived safety, usability, and acceptability of microarray patches for vaccination among key populations: A mixed methods study

Matthew N Berger et al. Vaccine. 2025.

. 2025 Aug 13:61:127387.

doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127387. Epub 2025 Jun 9.

Authors

Matthew N Berger¹, Cristyn Davies², Erin Mathieu³, Josh Harmer-Ross⁴, Ramon Z Shaban⁵, Chenoa Cassidy-Matthews⁶, Brittany Wilson⁷, Shopna Bag⁸, S Rachel Skinner⁹

Affiliations

¹ Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, North Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Office of the Chief Medical Health Officer, Vancouver Coastal Health, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Electronic address: matthew.berger@sydney.edu.au.
² Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
³ Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁴ Nepean Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Nepean, New South Wales, Australia.
⁵ Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, North Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia; New South Wales High Consequence Infectious Diseases Specialist Service, New South Wales Biocontainment Centre, Western Sydney Local Health District, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia.
⁶ Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver Coastal Health, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
⁷ National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia.
⁸ Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, North Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁹ Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Kids Research, Children's Hospital Westmead, Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia.

PMID: 40494226
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127387

Abstract

Introduction: Vaccination is crucial for public and population health. Microarray patches (MAPs) could enhance vaccine uptake through reduced pain, no needles, improved thermostability and self or lay administration, but there is limited evidence. We aimed to investigate the perceptions of the general public and healthcare professionals (HCPs) aged 18 years and older about MAP vaccination.

Methods: This mixed-methods study was part of a project to validate a scale measuring MAP vaccination's safety, usability, and acceptability. Online surveys and semi-structured interviews were conducted in Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and New Zealand. 7-point Likert scale items were scaled from "strongly disagree" to "strongly agree" and analysed using descriptive statistics (e.g., means and confidence intervals (CI)). Interviews were transcribed verbatim, coded, and analysed using thematic analysis.

Results: In the survey group, 403 general public and 184 HCPs responded. We interviewed 27 participants (12 general public and 15 HCPs). The general public and HCPs perceived MAPs as safe and efficacious, with means of 5.00 (95 % CI: 4.85-5.14) and 4.92 (95 % CI: 4.71-5.12) respectively. The general public (mean = 5.58, 95 % CI: 5.46-5.70) and HCPs (mean = 5.75, 95 % CI: 5.59-5.92) perceived MAPs as usable. Lastly, the general public (mean = 5.49, 95 % CI: 5.37-5.61) and HCPs (mean = 5.30, 95 % CI: 5.12-5.50) perceived MAPs as acceptable. Participants widely perceived MAPs as safe and easy to use due to their 'straightforward' instructions, including for self-administration. All participants regarded MAPs as advantageous for children and needle-phobic individuals. Some HCPs were concerned about possible adverse events at home (i.e., anaphylaxis), but were interested in incorporating MAPs in their clinical practice.

Conclusion: Microarray patches (MAPs) MAPs are viewed by the general public and HCPs as safe, user-friendly, and well-received as alternatives to needle and syringe vaccination for greater acceptability among consumers. MAPS may also improve access to vaccination in priority populations and areas with limited resources.

Keywords: Acceptability; Microarray patch; Safety; Usability; Vaccination.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Cristyn Davies reports a relationship with Vaxxas Pty Ltd. that includes:. S Rachel Skinner reports a relationship with Vaxxas Pty Ltd. that includes:. MNB received an NSW Health PhD Partnership Scholarship to investigate the usability and acceptability of High-Density Microarray Patches (HD-MAP) in development by Vaxxas Pty Ltd. CD and SRS are investigators on the usability and acceptability of the Vaxxas HD-MAP. EM, RZS, CCM, BW, and SB declare no conflicts of interest. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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Perceived safety, usability, and acceptability of microarray patches for vaccination among key populations: A mixed methods study

Affiliations

Perceived safety, usability, and acceptability of microarray patches for vaccination among key populations: A mixed methods study

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

MeSH terms