Barriers to vaccinating the elderly with H1N1 vaccine.

Introduction: The development of a monovalent 2009 H1N1 influenza (swine flu) vaccine for the 2009-2010 season prompted a nationwide campaign of vaccination. The authors assessed the frequency of influenza vaccine usage among 3858 elderly patients with their practice and the most common barriers to receiving vaccine.

Methods: The authors calculated the usage of seasonal and 2009 H1N1 vaccines among seniors with their university practice and surveyed a cohort of 64 patients to determine whether they had received the 2009 H1N1 vaccine and their reasons for not receiving it.

Results: Of the 555 elderly vaccinated with seasonal influenza vaccine, only 18% were vaccinated with 2009 H1N1 vaccine. Among the survey cohort, 72% had not received the 2009 H1N1 vaccine; 39% of them offered no reason for refusing and 22% stated they were unaware of the need for it.

Conclusions: Acceptance rates of seasonal influenza vaccine among elderly were low, and a significant proportion did not receive the 2009 H1N1 vaccine because it was unclear that they should receive it. Unambiguous education of patients and physicians is needed to achieve high rates of influenza vaccination among the elderly.