Parent-son-provider Decision-making About HPV Vaccination
Condition: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination
Study type: Observational

Summary: 
      The objectives of this study are:

        1. To better understand factors associated with acceptance and refusal of HPV vaccine among
           parent-son pairs and the process of parent-son decision-making with respect to
           vaccination.

        2. To evaluate health care providers (HCPs) attitudes, implementation intentions, and
           planned communication strategies with respect to HPV vaccination of adolescent boys.

      Hypothesis 1: Sons will have a significant role in the process of parent-son decision-making
      about HPV vaccination. The relative importance of this role will increase with the son's age.

      Hypothesis 2: Pediatric HCPs will be unsure about vaccinating males and will lack knowledge
      about issues related to male HPV infection and vaccination.
    

Detailed description: 
      This protocol will involve individual semi-structured qualitative interviews with 30
      parent-son dyads and 20 pediatric health care providers. Parent-son pairs will be recruited
      from IUMG primary care adolescent health clinics. Recruitment will occur and consent/assent
      for participation obtained during the visit with the health care provider, with the physician
      out of the room. Interviews with parents and sons will take place after the health care
      appointment and after HPV vaccine acceptance/refusal. Parents and sons will be administered a
      brief questionnaire that will cover socio-demographic and other background information. The
      parent-son interviews will be separate, simultaneous one-on-one ethnographic interviews
      (30-60 min) that focus on the decision making process regarding HPV vaccination (yes/no).
      Each interview will consist of 8-10 open-ended questions, serving as an elicitation device.
      Sample questions include: (1) Tell me what you understand about the HPV vaccine? (2) Tell me
      what happened when you were in the examination room and your doctor asked you and your
      parent/son about getting the vaccine? (3) Was the decision made quickly, or did you have a
      conversation about it first? (4) Who had the most influence on the decision, you or your
      parent/son? (5) Why did you decide to get (or not to get) the vaccine? The interviewer will
      ask participants to elaborate on the meaning and contexts of their responses, and look for
      organization in what the participant is saying, developing and testing hypotheses during the
      interview. Each interview will be conducted by a trained, gender-matched research assistant.

      Health care providers will be interviewed at a different time, and the interviews (25-30 min)
      will focus on HPV vaccine related attitudes, supply, costs, communication and perceived
      benefits associated with vaccinating adolescent males, rather than care to specific patients.
      Sample questions include: (1) How do you inform patients about the HPV vaccine? (2) What is
      the specific wording that you use when you offer HPV vaccine? Be very specific. Don't leave
      out any detail.
    

Sampling method: Non-Probability Sample
Study population: 
        Parent-Adolescent pairs attending community-based adolescent health primary care clinics
      
Keywords: HPV Vaccines; Attitude to Health; Decision Making; Qualitative Research