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Access to the internet may contribute to further inequality in MMR use
- Christopher J Hodcroft (25 January 2006)
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Use of website to provide parents with information about immunisations
- Ann McPherson, Aidan Macfarlane (2 February 2006)
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Christopher J Hodcroft, Foundation year 2 doctor University Hospital of Wales, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XW
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Editor—Wallace et al.1 have shown that a web-based decision aid summarising the available evidence on the subject improves parental attitudes towards measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination. They further surmise that their aid could potentially increase the uptake of MMR vaccine amongst the children of parents who have concern regarding its safety. In England there has been an inequality in the uptake of MMR vaccination with children in affluent populations more likely to be immunised than those in deprived populations2. There also exists a correlation between social class and Internet use with professional people over twice as likely to have Internet access than unskilled individuals3. Although the authors observe that their study lacks demographic information on many of the respondents it appears possible that their decision aid could contribute to a widening of social class inequality in the uptake of MMR vaccination. Any measure that increases the vaccination rate is of course to be welcomed by those of us who support the use of MMR. However, until Internet access is near-universal additional methods will be required to ensure that all parents have access to the relevant information and that social inequality does not increase further.
Competing interests: None declared |
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Ann McPherson, lecturer University of Oxford, GP, medical director of DIPEX Department of Primary Care,University of Oxford, Old Road Campus, Headington. OX3 7LF, Aidan Macfarlane
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Dear Editor, the internet has proved to be a powerful potential tool for providing medical information to the general population. However trying to assess just how valuable a tool it is - has proved difficult. The authors of the paper 'Effects of a web based decision aid on parental attitudes to MMR vaccination:a before and after study' are to be congratulated in doing this. We have have, as of 2nd February 2006 launched another type of decision aid for parents about immunising their children - based on a qualitative research study. This is now up on the internet www.dipex.org/immunisation . On this website, you can watch videos, listen to audio clips or read the written extracts from interviews with over 40 parents of children under the age of five explaining how they made decisions about their child’s immunisation including the MMR vaccine. These parents from different backgrounds and living in different parts of the UK, have a broad range of experiences, including the many who have chosen to have their children immunised as well as those who have not. Topics covered include where they got information, how different information sources influenced them, and which sources they trusted and why; how they assessed risk, their concerns about immunisations including MMR, their experiences of childhood diseases and their attitudes to childhood immunisation in general. Reasons for their decision, their child's reactions after immunisations and their feelings about the decision they made are also included. Evaluation of the website will include the questionnaire available on the site for parents to fill in; along with how the site is used in terms of hits and visitors. The site will also be used for training health professionals by prepared teaching packages using parent's views expressed on the site. Competing interests: Researching similar area of work. e.g. Parent's experiences of having their children immunised and outcomes - published on the internet. |
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