Peer-reviewed article
Optional Vaccines in Children—Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices in Romanian Parents
Victor Daniel Miron, Andrei Răzvan Toma, Claudiu Filimon, Gabriela Bar, Mihai Craiu ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study surveyed Romanian parents about their knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding optional vaccines for children. Most parents (55.1%) had good knowledge about vaccination, and 76% had given at least one optional vaccine to their children, most commonly rotavirus vaccine. Parents with higher knowledge were more likely to accept optional vaccines, though knowledge did not correlate with acceptance of mandatory vaccines. The majority of parents (77.6%) believed optional vaccines provide additional health benefits.
Key points
- 55.1% of parent respondents demonstrated very good knowledge about vaccination and vaccine-preventable diseases
- 76.0% of parents reported giving at least one optional vaccine to at least one child
- Rotavirus vaccine was the most commonly administered optional vaccine
- 77.6% of parents believed optional vaccines provide additional health safety benefits to children
- Parental knowledge level was associated with compliance with optional vaccination, but not with acceptance of mandatory national immunisation program vaccines
Limitations
This was a cross-sectional survey using online questionnaire distribution, so it cannot establish causality or measure actual vaccination outcomes. The sample may not be representative of all Romanian parents, as online survey respondents may differ systematically from the general population.
Abstract
Vaccination is one of the most useful medical interventions for controlling certain infectious diseases. The aim of current research is to identify some of the drivers of vaccine hesitancy or acceptance in a rather skeptical European population by addressing parental perception on optional vaccination (OV) perception. Novel tools, delivered by social media, were used in our research attempt. A validated questionnaire was distributed online among parents. Parental knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of OV were analyzed. The majority of parent respondents (55.1%) showed very good knowledge about vaccination and vaccine-preventable diseases, and 76.0% stated that they had given at least one optional vaccine to at least one of their children. The most common optional vaccine administered was the rotavirus vaccine. The level of knowledge appeared to be related to compliance with OV. Concurrently, the rate of vaccine acceptance in the NIP (National Immunization Program) was not correlated with the level of parental knowledge. In total, a high percentage of parents (77.6%) believed that OV can bring an additional health safety benefit to their children. This study shows the need to involve the medical community in a steady dialogue with parents about OV. Raising awareness by presenting clear and understandable information could be a game-changing intervention in mitigating the public health impact of OV-preventable diseases.