Information needs of vaccine-hesitant parents for user-centered design of a consumer vaccine management application

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Project Summary/Abstract In the United States, the incidence of vaccine preventable diseases is on the rise as evidenced by a large outbreak of measles in 2019. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the majority of cases occurred in unvaccinated individuals. The rise in unvaccinated and under-vaccinated individuals can be partly attributed to parental vaccine hesitancy. The World Health Organization identified vaccine hesitancy as a threat to global health. High levels of consumer technology acceptance in the U.S. make technology an excellent vehicle to deliver vaccine information to parents of young children. This research will characterize the vaccine information needs of vaccine-hesitant parents as the first step in the design of a consumer vaccine management (CVM) mobile app to influence immunization rates of children 7 years and younger. The proposed research is consistent with the National Institute of Nursing Research’s mission of promoting health and preventing illness. The specific aims of this user-centered design project are (Aim 1) to characterize the information needs of vaccine-hesitant parents for design of a CVM mobile app to influence immunization rates of children 7 years and younger and (Aim 2) to design and evaluate low-fidelity prototypes of a mobile app interface for perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of proposed features. Parents seeking vaccine exemptions and those who wish to delay or refuse certain vaccines mandatory for school enrollment will be recruited from the Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Services. We will use Facebook and targeted advertising to recruit a diverse sample and to enroll hard to reach groups. Semi- structured interviews with vaccine-hesitant parents will identify information needs as part of the CVM user- centered design effort. Information needs identified will guide the design for wireframes of CVM mobile app interfaces. Aim 2 will consist of user evaluations by presenting CVM mobile app wireframes to participants in a second round of interviews. During user evaluation sessions, participants will be asked questions to understand perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of proposed features of the CVM mobile app. Results from the evaluation sessions will be used to develop a high-fidelity prototype in future research. This comprehensive training plan consisting of coursework, professional development opportunities, and a formal mentoring plan with senior researchers will provide the applicant with experience and training to launch her career and program of research. Specifically, the applicant will develop expertise in in user-centered design, qualitative, and mHealth methodologies and knowledge of biobehavioral interventional research. The training environment consists of immersive field and on-campus research experiences guided by the trainee’s sponsors. The skills and knowledge gained from the training plan will provide a sound foundation for the applicant’s future research goals of development of a CVM mobile app for vaccine-hesitant parents and tailoring of the app for different populations and new vaccines for emergent diseases like COVID-19.