Rural parents’ attitudes and beliefs on the COVID-19 pediatric vaccine: An explanatory study

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) first came to the Unites States in January 2020. Though adult and pediatric vaccines became available to the public, vaccine uptake among youth and particularly younger children has been gradual. This explanatory study aimed to better understand parents’ attitudes and beliefs of the pediatric COVID-19 vaccine and the barriers and facilitators to vaccine uptake in a rural community through a brief, online demographic survey, and in-depth qualitative interviews. Forty-one in depth interviews were conducted with parents (31-English and 10-Spanish-speaking) residing in rural and frontier counties in Colorado between September 2021 and February 2022. Six emergent themes related to COVID-19 pediatric vaccine uptake were identified among the population. These themes spanned the three levels of influence in the Social Ecological Model (individual, interpersonal, and community levels). The six themes were identified as such; 1) Vaccine accessibility was associated with pediatric COVID vaccine uptake in rural communities, 2) Previous pediatric vaccine behaviors were not associated with COVID-19 pediatric vaccine uptake, 3) Perceived health status of a child or family member influenced pediatric COVID-19 vaccine uptake, 4) COVID-19 health seeking behaviors, like COVID pediatric vaccine uptake, are influenced by an individual’s prosocial or individualistic perspectives, 5) Child autonomy and “age of consent” frames vaccine decision making behaviors in parents, and lastly 6) Social networks impacted COVID-19 pediatric vaccine decision making. These findings inform next steps for COVID-19 pediatric vaccine uptake including targeted and tailored messaging for communities (cues to actions), engaging youth stakeholders, and identifying trusted sources to build rapport and trust between health professionals and community members. The growing vaccine hesitancy among parents has serious implications for disease eradication and future viral outbreaks. Understanding the perceived barriers and facilitators to pediatric vaccine uptake is important to maintain the health of our youth and communities.