UTHealth researchers receive $1.5 million to increase HPV vaccine rates

Researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston recently received an influx of funding for their attempt to increase HPV vaccination rates in local youths.

The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas awarded $1.5 million to researchers from the UTHealth School of Public Health for a project designed to provide HPV vaccinations for minority youth in medically underserved areas of Houston, according to a news release.

In Texas, HPV vaccination rates are slightly lower than the national average. According to the release, 40.9% of girls and 24% of boys in the state have completed the two-dose vaccination series.

“The HPV vaccine is not required for school the way other vaccines are, but it is still a recommended vaccine,” Paula M. Cuccaro, PhD, assistant professor of health promotion and behavioral sciences at the UTHealth School of Public Health, said in the release. “We are trying to change the language health professionals use when discussing the vaccine with parents.”

The project, which is expected to take 3 years, began March 1 with a social marketing campaign aimed at parents to increase knowledge, positive attitudes and intentions regarding the HPV vaccine, according to the release.
public school-based vaccination clinics for adolescents. All recommended vaccinations will be offered at the clinics, giving parents an opportunity to get their children vaccinated without having to take time off work, Cuccaro said.

The last step involves devising continuing education opportunities so school nurses can increase their knowledge about how to communicate effectively with parents about the HPV vaccine.