Nationwide Poll Measures Parents’ Concern Children Will Get H1N1 Flu

A nationwide poll conducted on behalf of a hospital belonging to the University of Michigan Health System found 40 percent of parents intended to get their children vaccinated against pandemic H1N1 influenza, while 54 percent would have their children vaccinated against seasonal flu.

The poll for the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor found that among parents not planning to get their children vaccinated against H1N1, 46 percent indicated they were not worried about their children contracting pandemic flu, and 20 percent believed H1N1 flu is not a serious illness.

In a news release issued Thursday, the hospital said the poll found parents planning to have their children vaccinated differed by racial and ethnic groups. More than half of Hispanic parents said they’d have their children vaccinated, compared to 38 percent of white parents and 30 percent of black parents.

Dr. Matthew Davis, director of the poll and associate professor of pediatric and internal medicine at the University of Michigan’s Child Health Evaluation and Research Unit, said the percentage of Hispanic parents who intended to have their children vaccinated may have reflected a higher perceived risk in their communities because the H1N1 flu’s initial outbreak occurred in Mexico.

In its release, the hospital said the lack of concern by parents to the risk of their children acquiring pandemic flu contrasts with information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggesting that — unlike what is typically seen with seasonal flu — rates of illness and hospitalizations for children infected with H1N1 are higher than for other age groups.

Among parents who did not plan to get their children vaccinated against H1N1 flu, or who were unsure, about half were worried about possible side effects of the vaccine.

Among parents who did plan to get their children vaccinated, about 4 in 5 believed H1N1 is a serious disease and were worried their children might contract it.

The poll, which was conducted by the survey research firm Knowledge Networks, surveyed 1,678 parents across the U.S. from August 13 to 31. It was funded by the University of Michigan Health System’s Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases and the CDC.