This large-scale qualitative project aimed to provide insight into motivators and barriers to taking part in Scotland’s vaccinations and screening programmes, identify reasons for hesitancy among groups with lower uptake, and make recommendations to help address inequalities in uptake and attendance. The research focused on the information provided to help people decide to attend, and whether current materials provide the right information, through the right channels, to help people make informed choices about taking part in vaccinations and screenings.
We talked to over 100 people, using a combination of focus groups and in-depth interviews. The research included a wide range of audiences based on eligibility for vaccines and screening programmes (based on age, gender, health conditions, pregnant women, parents), also ensuring we talked to minority ethnic groups, people on low incomes, those experiencing homelessness and some with more negative attitudes towards vaccinations. The sessions included a review of current information materials such as letters, leaflets and web pages about vaccines and screening, and we also included a short pre-research task to review some example documents to help prompt the discussion.
Our research has provided Public Health Scotland with valuable insight about the factors affecting uptake, and how information might be best provided to support participation in vaccination and screening programmes. These findings will be used to develop future communication strategies to ensure that people have access to the right information, in a format which meets their needs, to help make an informed choice about accepting vaccine and screening appointments.
“PHS has commissioned Progressive Partnership on a number of occasions and most recently we worked with the team to enable us to have access to the latest public insights across the communication and marketing elements of the immunisation and screening programmes that are delivered nationally. We worked with the team to help identify any particular information gaps that could be contributing to some groups being hesitant in taking up their offer. Progressive designed and delivered a highly focussed research strategy that enabled us to gain feedback and perspectives from a diverse range of audience groups and provided us with a range of recommendations that we’re now implementing. Much care and attention went into searching out the views and experiences of groups who can be much harder to access and reach – and these research results are all the more meaningful for that”.
Euan MacKay, Organisational Lead, Marketing Services, Public Health Scotland
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