Marion Le Maréchal1, Nelly Agrinier, Lisa Fressard, Pierre Verger, Céline Pulcini. 1. From the *EA 4360 APEMAC, Université de Lorraine, and †Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale, CIC-1433 Epidémiologie clinique, Centre Hospitalier Régional Universitaire de Nancy, Nancy, France; ‡Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale, UMR_S912, Sciences Economiques and Sociales de la Santé et Traitement de l'Information Médicale (SESSTIM), §Aix Marseille Université, UMR_S912, Institut de recherche pour le développement, and ¶Observatoire Régional de la Santé Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (ORS PACA), Marseille, France; ‖Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale, French Clinical Research Infrastructure Network, Innovative clinical research network in vaccinology (I-REIVAC), Paris, France; and **Centre Hospitalier Régional Universitaire de Nancy, Service de Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales, Nancy, France.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Meningococcal C glycoconjugate vaccine (MenCV) has been recommended in France since 2010, but its uptake remains low (64% coverage among 2-year-olds in 2014). Because general practitioners (GPs) are the cornerstone of the French vaccination program, we sought to assess their perceptions, attitudes, practices and recommendations to patients for this vaccine. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey in 2014 asked a national sample of 1582 GPs if they would recommend MenCV for patients 12 months of age (routine vaccination) and 2-24 years of age (catch-up vaccination) and explored the barriers to vaccination. RESULTS: Overall, 52% of GPs (800/1547) reported they always recommend routine MenCV vaccination and 33% (523/1572), catch-up vaccination. The most frequently reported barriers to vaccination were that parents have never heard of this vaccine (72%, 1094/1523), underestimate the risk of contracting meningococcal disease (69%, 1049/1514) and are unaware of its seriousness (55%, 838/1537). In multivariate analyses, GPs recommended routine and catch-up vaccination significantly more often when they had no doubt about the utility and safety of this vaccine, when they thought that the official MenCV recommendation was clear and when their own children were vaccinated. GPs who reported that their patients either were unaware of the severity of bacterial meningitis (P = 0.012) or had no doubts about the efficacy of MenCV recommended catch-up vaccination more often (P = 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: GPs did not appear to recommend MenCV often enough. Our results suggest that clearer recommendations and a better communications campaign directed at patients and healthcare workers could be useful.
BACKGROUND: Meningococcal C glycoconjugate vaccine (MenCV) has been recommended in France since 2010, but its uptake remains low (64% coverage among 2-year-olds in 2014). Because general practitioners (GPs) are the cornerstone of the French vaccination program, we sought to assess their perceptions, attitudes, practices and recommendations to patients for this vaccine. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey in 2014 asked a national sample of 1582 GPs if they would recommend MenCV for patients 12 months of age (routine vaccination) and 2-24 years of age (catch-up vaccination) and explored the barriers to vaccination. RESULTS: Overall, 52% of GPs (800/1547) reported they always recommend routine MenCV vaccination and 33% (523/1572), catch-up vaccination. The most frequently reported barriers to vaccination were that parents have never heard of this vaccine (72%, 1094/1523), underestimate the risk of contracting meningococcal disease (69%, 1049/1514) and are unaware of its seriousness (55%, 838/1537). In multivariate analyses, GPs recommended routine and catch-up vaccination significantly more often when they had no doubt about the utility and safety of this vaccine, when they thought that the official MenCV recommendation was clear and when their own children were vaccinated. GPs who reported that their patients either were unaware of the severity of bacterial meningitis (P = 0.012) or had no doubts about the efficacy of MenCV recommended catch-up vaccination more often (P = 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: GPs did not appear to recommend MenCV often enough. Our results suggest that clearer recommendations and a better communications campaign directed at patients and healthcare workers could be useful.