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How to Talk with Patients About Vaccines

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Abstract

Talking about vaccines with patients who have concerns or questions can be difficult, given the abundant misinformation surrounding vaccines in the media and communicated by peers. A presumptive approach to vaccinating on time should be the framework you use when you approach vaccination. When you encounter a patient who is hesitant about receiving vaccines, whether he/she has just a few specific questions or seems more reluctant overall, how you discuss vaccines is very important. We provide a five-step strategy to work with vaccine hesitant patients: 1) Establish empathy and credibility; 2) Briefly address specific concerns, if any; 3) Pivot to disease risk; 4) Convey vaccine effectiveness; 5) Give a strong and personalized recommendation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Epidemiologist, Institute for Vaccine Safety, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Matthew Z. Dudley PhD, MSPH

  2. Professor, Departments of International Health and Health, Behavior and Society, Director, Institute for Vaccine Safety, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Daniel A. Salmon PhD, MPH

  3. Professor Emeritus, Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Professor Emeritus, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Director Emeritus, Institute for Vaccine Safety, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Neal A. Halsey MD

  4. Professor of Medicine, Pediatrics, Global Health, and Epidemiology, Emory University, Associate Director, Emory Vaccine Center, Director, Center of Excellence for Influenza Research and Surveillance (Emory-UGA CEIRS), Former President, National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), Atlanta, GA, USA

    Walter A. Orenstein MD, DSc (Hon)

  5. Associate Director for Behavioral Research, Institute for Vaccine Safety, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Rupali J. Limaye PhD, MPH, MA

  6. Associate Professor, Pediatrics-Infectious Diseases, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Denver, CO, USA

    Sean T. O’Leary MD, MPH

  7. William H. Foege Professor of Global Health, Professor of Epidemiology and Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Saad B. Omer MBBS, PhD, MPH

Authors
  1. Matthew Z. Dudley PhD, MSPH
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  2. Daniel A. Salmon PhD, MPH
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  3. Neal A. Halsey MD
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  4. Walter A. Orenstein MD, DSc (Hon)
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  5. Rupali J. Limaye PhD, MPH, MA
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  6. Sean T. O’Leary MD, MPH
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  7. Saad B. Omer MBBS, PhD, MPH
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Additional information

Contributions to this chapter were made by Allison Chamberlain, PhD, MS (Emory University Rollins School of Public Health).

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Dudley, M.Z. et al. (2018). How to Talk with Patients About Vaccines. In: The Clinician’s Vaccine Safety Resource Guide. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94694-8_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94694-8_2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-94693-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-94694-8

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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