A systematic review of barriers and enablers associated with uptake of influenza vaccine among care home staff

Faisal Alsaif; Michael Twigg; Sion Scott; Annie Blyth; David Wright; Amrish Patel

doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.08.082

A systematic review of barriers and enablers associated with uptake of influenza vaccine among care home staff

Vaccine. 2023 Oct 6;41(42):6156-6173. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.08.082. Epub 2023 Sep 4.

Authors

Faisal Alsaif¹, Michael Twigg², Sion Scott³, Annie Blyth⁴, David Wright⁵, Amrish Patel⁶

Affiliations

¹ School of Pharmacy, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK. Electronic address: f.alsaif@uea.ac.uk.
² School of Pharmacy, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK. Electronic address: m.twigg@uea.ac.uk.
³ School of Healthcare, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK. Electronic address: s.scott@leicester.ac.uk.
⁴ School of Economics, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK. Electronic address: a.blyth@uea.ac.uk.
⁵ School of Healthcare, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK. Electronic address: d.j.wright@leicester.ac.uk.
⁶ School of Economics, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK. Electronic address: amrish.patel@uea.ac.uk.

PMID: 37673716
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.08.082

Abstract

Barriers and enablers to vaccination of care home (CH) staff should be identified in order to develop interventions to address them that increase uptake and protect residents. We aimed to synthesis the evidence describing the barriers and enablers that affect the influenza vaccination uptake of care home (CH) staff.

Method: We searched PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, AMED, IBSS, SCOPUS to identify quantitative, qualitative or mixed-method studies. Data related to health or social care workers in CHs reported barriers or enablers were extracted and mapped to the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF); the data within each domain were grouped and categorized into key factors affecting influenza vaccine uptake among CH staff.

Results: We screened 4025 studies; 42 studies met our inclusion criteria. Thirty-four (81 %) were surveys. Five theoretical domains were frequently reported as mediators of influenza vaccine uptake: Beliefs about consequences (32 studies), Environmental context and resources (30 studies), Emotions (26 studies), Social influences (25 studies), Knowledge (22 studies). The low acceptance rate of the influenza vaccine among CH staff can be attributed to multiple factors, including insufficient understanding of the vaccine, its efficacy, or misconceptions about the vaccine (knowledge), perceiving the vaccine as ineffective and unsafe (beliefs about consequences), fear of influenza vaccine and its side effects (emotions), and experiencing limited accessibility to the vaccine (environmental context and resources).

Conclusion: Interventions aimed at increasing influenza vaccine uptake among CH staff should focus on addressing the barriers identified in this review. These interventions should include components such as enhancing knowledge by providing accurate information about vaccine benefits and safety, addressing negative beliefs by challenging misconceptions, managing concerns and fears through open communication, and improving accessibility to the vaccine through convenient on-site options. This review provides a foundation for the development of tailored Interventions to improve influenza vaccine uptake among CH staff.

Keywords: Barriers; Behaviour; Care homes; Influenza vaccine; Seasonal influenza; Staff; Systematic review.

Publication types

Review