RCHC Community Project Abstracts

Vaccination Hesitancy in Lebanon, OR
Date of project: 2/9/2009

Increasingly more Oregonian parents are hesitant to adhere to physician-recommended vaccination schedules for their children. This student attempted to a) accurately describe the rate of vaccine hesitance and b) define reasons behind this hesitancy in Lebanon, OR. Rates of non-vaccination in Lebanon were computed by data from the Linn County Public Health Office. Patient opinions regarding vaccines were collected from 30 patient interviews. The interviews were formatted on a questionnaire created by the investigator. In addition, conversations were conducted with pediatricians and DHS officials regarding this subject. Based on the data from Linn County Public Health, Lebanon has a lower rate of vaccine refusal than the state average. Parental concerns regarding vaccines appear to reflect those expressed in a large-scale statewide study, chiefly among them 1) the belief that children are generally vaccinated at too young an age and 2) concern for a link between vaccines and autism.

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