An archived version of the CDC webinar “Strengthening Vaccine Confidence in Pediatric and Family Practice Offices During the COVID-19 Pandemic” is available to stream online. This webinar was originally hosted by the Public Health Foundation on August 19, 2020. Slides are available to download.
Speakers are:
CAPT Sarah Schillie, MD, MPH, MBA – Team Lead, Education Team, Communication and Education Branch, Immunization Services Division, CDC/NCIRD
Jessica MacNeil, MPH – Deputy Executive Secretary, Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, Immunization Services Division, CDC/NCIRD
This archived webinar with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), discussed how to strengthen vaccine confidence among parents and ensure safe well visits.
Objectives:
By the end of this archived webinar, participants will be able to:
- Describe trends in vaccine hesitancy among American parents
- Describe CDC’s Vaccinate with Confidence framework
- Identify strategies for reducing vaccine hesitancy and addressing vaccine myths
- Describe CDC guidance for immunization during the COVID-19 pandemic, including strategies for ensuring safe well-visits
- Locate CDC communication resources for providers and parents
The webinar begins by reporting the data demonstrating the rise in vaccine hesitancy. It then discusses the CDC’s Vaccinate with Confidence framework. This framework consists of addressing pockets of low vaccination, vaccine access, and myths and misinformation. The three tenets of the framework are:
- Protect communities: Use every tool available to find and protect communities at risk using tailored, targeted approaches.
- Empower families: Ensure parents are confident in decision to vaccinate by strengthening provider-parent vaccine conversations.
- Stop myths: Use local partners and trusted messengers, establish new partnerships to contain the spread of misinformation, and educate critical stakeholders about vaccines.
Next, the presenters instruct providers on how they cab empower families and create a culture of immunization in their practices. Strategies that are effective in vaccine communication include: a team approach, presumptive recommendation, tailored education materials, building trust, and reminder/recall systems. All these strategies are discussed in detail. In addition, there is guidance on effectively addressing myths and avoiding common communication traps.
The second part of the webinar explains why strengthening vaccine confidence and acceptance is more important than ever. Routine immunizations are down since the start of the pandemic, yet immunization infrastructure remains strong. The presentation addresses catch-up vaccination strategies as well as strategies to prevent COVID transmission while administering vaccines. The presentation ends with a collection of additional resources for providers and parents.