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Strengthen the Evidence for Maternal and Child Health Programs

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Evidence Tools
MCHbest. Childhood Vaccination with MMR, Flu, and HPV.

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Strategy. Parental Education

Approach. Provide parent education to increase childhood vaccination rates.

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Overview. Providing parent education on the importance of childhood vaccines involves creating informative resources and implementing communication strategies to address parental concerns and increase understanding of vaccine safety and efficacy.[1] This approach is crucial to dispel myths and misinformation, fostering trust in the importance of childhood immunization for individual and community health.[1] A successful public health approach requires a multifaceted strategy. First, educational materials should be developed using clear, concise language and address common vaccine hesitancy themes, such as safety concerns or potential side effects.[1] Second, utilizing various communication channels like informational websites, social media outreach, and educational materials distributed through pediatric offices can maximize reach and usability.[1] Finally fostering opportunities for open dialogue through workshops or Q&A sessions with healthcare professionals allows parents to address specific questions and build confidence in vaccine recommendations.[1] Examples of successful public health programs providing parental education include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's. (CDC) "Vaccination for Your Child" website with comprehensive information sheets and infographics, and similar initiatives by state health departments offering educational workshops and online resources translated into multiple languages.[2] Peer-reviewed research suggests this approach can be effective. Studies have shown that well-designed parent education programs can improve vaccine knowledge, reduce vaccine hesitancy, and increase childhood immunization rates.[3]

Evidence. Moderate Evidence. Strategies with this rating are likely to work...

Access the peer-reviewed evidence through the MCH Digital Library or related evidence source.

This strategy is also supported as "Clinic-Based Interventions for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccination" in the What Works for Health database.

Potential Data Sources. Data to support this strategy can be accessed through:

  • Parent/caregiver knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs surveys
  • Parent/caregiver-reported vaccination history surveys
  • School Immunization survey data

Outcome Components. This strategy has shown to have impact on the following outcomes (Read more about these categories):

  • Access to/Receipt of Care. This strategy increases the ability for individuals to obtain healthcare services when needed, including preventive, diagnostic, and treatment services.
  • Utilization. This strategy improves the extent to which individuals and communities use available healthcare services.

Detailed Outcomes. For specific outcomes related to each study supporting this strategy, access the peer-reviewed evidence and read the Intervention Results for each study.

Intervention Type. Health Teaching (Education and Promotion) (Read more about intervention types and levels as defined by the Public Health Intervention Wheel).

Intervention Level. Community-Focused

Examples from the Field. There are currently no ESMs that use this strategy. Search similar intervention components in the ESM database.

Sample ESMs. Here are sample ESMs to use as models for your own measures using the RBA framework (see The Role of Title V in Adapting Strategies).

Quadrant 1:
Measuring Quantity of Effort (“What/how much did we do?”)

  • Number of parents and caregivers reached with education about the importance and safety of childhood vaccines. (Measures exposure to education)
  • Number of educational materials on childhood vaccines distributed to parents through various channels. (Assesses dissemination of information)

Quadrant 2:
Measuring Quality of Effort (“How well did we do it?”)

  • Percent of vaccine education materials that are developed in partnership with parents. (Measures relevance)
  • Percent of parents who receive vaccine education through their preferred and trusted sources of health information. (Shows reach through appropriate channels)

Quadrant 3:
Measuring Quantity of Effect (“Is anyone better off?”)

  • Number of parents who feel confident in their ability to make informed decisions about vaccinating their children after receiving education. (Measures impact on self-efficacy)
  • Number of vaccine-hesitant parents who change their attitudes and choose to vaccinate their children after receiving tailored education. (Shows persuasive impact of education)
  • Number of parent ambassadors and champions who actively promote vaccination within their social networks and communities. (Measures impact on peer influence and social norms)
  • Number of communities that achieve and sustain high childhood vaccination rates through effective parental education and engagement strategies. (Shows population-level impact)

Quadrant 4:
Measuring Quality of Effect (“How are they better off?”)

  • Percent of parents who feel confident in their ability to make informed decisions about vaccinating their children after receiving education. (Measures impact on self-efficacy)
  • Percent of vaccine-hesitant parents who change their attitudes and choose to vaccinate their children after receiving tailored education. (Shows persuasive impact of education)
  • Percent of parent ambassadors and champions who actively promote vaccination within their social networks and communities. (Measures impact on peer influence and social norms)
  • Percent of communities that achieve and sustain high childhood vaccination rates through effective parental education and engagement strategies. (Shows population-level impact)

Note. When looking at your ESMs, SPMs, or other strategies:

  1. Move from measuring quantity to quality.
  2. Move from measuring effort to effect.
  3. Quadrant 1 strategies should be used sparingly, when no other data exists.
  4. The most effective measurement combines strategies in all levels, with most in Quadrants 2 and 4.

Learn More. Read how to create stronger ESMs and how to measure ESM impact more meaningfully through Results-Based Accountability.

References

[1] Parent Information | CDC. (2023b, February 14). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/parents/index.html

[2] Commonwealth of Massachusetts. (n.d.-b). Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS). Mass.gov. https://www.mass.gov/massachusetts-immunization-information-system-miis

[3] Brown, K. F., Kroll, J. S., Hudson, M. J., Ramsay, M., Green, J., Long, S. J., ... & Sevdalis, N. (2010). Factors underlying parental decisions about combination childhood vaccinations including MMR: a systematic review. Vaccine, 28(26), 4235-4248.

This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number U02MC31613, MCH Advanced Education Policy, $3.5 M. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.