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Survey: Parents support routine vaccination checks in daycare centers
Many parents feel that daycare centers should require children to be up-to-date on vaccines and that vaccine records should be reviewed every year, according to study findings from the University of Michigan’s C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health.
Sarah J. Clark, MPH, of the University of Michigan, and colleagues administered a household survey in June 2014 to a randomly selected, stratified group of 614 adults with a child aged 0 to 5 years. The study cohort represents the US population and was weighted to reflect population figures based on the Census Bureau.
Sarah J. Clark
Fifty-nine percent of parents strongly agreed that children in daycare centers should be vaccinated; 22% agreed. When surveyed on whether children attending home-based child care should be vaccinated, 47% of parents strongly agreed and 24% agreed.
Additionally, 52% of parents strongly agreed and 22% agreed that daycare providers should review children’s vaccination status. Sixty-six percent of parents felt they should be informed of the number of children at their daycare center who were not up-to-date on vaccines.
When presented with a scenario in which 1 in 4 children in their daycare center were not current with their vaccinations, 74% of parents reported that they would consider removing their child from the center. Eleven percent of parents would consider removing their child only if an outbreak occurred.
“This scenario mirrors the national statistics that show approximately 25% of preschool children in the United States are not fully vaccinated,” Clark said in a press release. “Parents may not realize that so many children are not up-to-date; in some daycares, this scenario is a reality.”
When asked how daycare centers should handle children who are not current with their vaccinations:
- 41% parents said under-vaccinated children should be excluded from daycare until vaccinated;
- 28% said children should be given a grace period to get vaccinated;
- 21% felt daycares should require a waiver from a physician; and
- 10% felt children could attend daycare regardless.
Two-thirds of parents in the survey felt they should be informed of the number of under-vaccinated children at their daycare center, while 25% of polled parents felt they should receive the names of under-vaccinated children.
Daycare vaccination requirements in all US states require that children be up-to-date on vaccines, according to Fowler and colleagues. However, some state requirements apply only for daycare entry.
“Results of this poll indicate that most parents want strong policies around making sure children in daycare are up-to-date on vaccines,” Clark said in the release. “Checking vaccination records every year is beyond the scope of many state requirements, and may represent a significant change in practice at many daycares.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
