ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Infectious Diseases: Epidemiology and Prevention
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1606815
Parental doubts regarding childhood vaccinations after the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study from Poland
Provisionally accepted
- 1Ludwik Rydygier Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Bydgoszcz, Poland
- 2Institute of Sociology, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Torun, Poland
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Background: Vaccinations are one of the most effective methods of preventing infectious diseases. Data published in recent years indicate a decline in routine childhood vaccination rates. Vaccine hesitancy is an increasingly serious problem, recognized as one of the ten most significant threats to global health. Object: This study aims to identify the causes of parental hesitancy regarding childhood immunizations after the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We conducted 33 in-depth interviews with parents who were hesitant to vaccinate their children. We analyzed the data using qualitative content analysis. Results: The main themes identified included concerns about adverse events following immunization, unsatisfactory communication with healthcare providers, distrust in the recommended vaccination schedule, individual risk assessment, conspiracy theories/anti-system sentiments, and organizational/financial barriers. Conclusions: The leading causes of vaccine hesitancy were fear of adverse events following immunization and unsatisfactory communication with healthcare professionals. These findings underscore the urgent need for improved training in communication, empathy, and negotiation skills among healthcare providers, along with the delivery of consistent, evidence-based vaccine information across all levels of care.
Keywords: Vaccination hesitancy, adverse effect following immunization, parental attitudes, qualitative study, vaccine safety, healthcare communication
Received: 06 Apr 2025; Accepted: 14 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Janiak, Piszczek and Buczkowski. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Krzysztof Buczkowski, Ludwik Rydygier Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Bydgoszcz, Poland
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