Beliefs Act as Barriers to Getting Flu Shots.(Brief Article)

2001 JAN 10 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Certain individuals may avoid getting a flu shot because of beliefs they hold, such as concern about unknown ingredients in the vaccine, suggest the results of a small study of elderly low-income community residents.

"The potential impact of alternative beliefs and mistrust of the health care system on health behavior has only begun to be recognized over the last several years," said lead author Katrina Armstrong, MD, MSCE, of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. "Despite decades of effort, underutilization of influenza immunization remains an important public health issue in minority populations," she added.

Yearly immunization - recommended for individuals over 65 - decreases flu mortality by more than 50%. Yet more than one-third of elderly Americans are not immunized each year, according to the study.

Twenty percent of the nearly 500 elderly individuals Armstrong and colleagues interviewed said they were concerned about unknown ingredients in the flu shot. These individuals were less likely to be vaccinated than those who were unconcerned about the contents of the shot, the researchers found. The study results are published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

"Directly addressing concerns about the contents of the influenza vaccine in outreach efforts and physician patient interactions offers a new approach to increasing influenza immunization rates among low income ...