Health visitors are being asked by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to share their experiences and thoughts on vaccination via an anonymous questionnaire.
The aim of the survey – which is being conducted in collaboration with the Institute of Health Visiting (iHV) and University College London Institute of Child Health – is for the UKHSA to learn more about health visitors’ experiences, how they currently work and their thoughts on possible new immunisations.
‘We know that parents and other members of the public greatly value and trust their advice and we will use information from this short 15- minute anonymous survey to identify ways in which we can better support health visitors in their work,’ said Dr Helen Campbell, lead scientist at UKHSA.
‘This is important as uptake of the childhood immunisation programmes has worryingly been declining over the past decade, and the survey findings will help inform the delivery of existing and new immunisation programmes,’ she added.
Earlier this year, the UKHSA said it had become ‘seriously concerned’ about the ongoing downward trend in uptake of childhood vaccinations – with no vaccines meeting the World Health Organization 95% uptake target in England in 2022/23.
Members of the iHV have been sent an email with a link to the UKHSA survey, which closes on 22 December 2023. However, it is also open to health visitors who are not members of the iHV, and they can email the organisation at [email protected] to receive the link.
UKHSA also undertakes annual attitudinal surveys with parents of young children, teenagers and their parents to understand how they feel about the routine vaccination programmes and any barriers that might affect uptake.
