Do postcard reminders improve influenza compliance? A prospective trial of different postcard "cues".
A randomized trial of various postcard reminder "cues" was performed to improve understanding of health-related behavior and to find better strategies for improving influenza vaccination compliance. Data were gathered on 283 high-risk patients (92 per cent response rate) who received: 1) a "neutral" cue simply announcing the availability of vaccine; 2) a "Health-Belief-Model" card written to take advantage of the association between certain health beliefs and vaccination behavior; 3) a "personal" card signed by the patient's physician; or 4) no postcard. The highest rate of vaccination occurred among recipients of the Health-Belief-Model postcard (51.5 per cent vs. 20.2 per cent for control, p less than 0.001). Linear logistic regression analysis found that age, prior vaccination history and experimental group had a significant effect on likelihood of being vaccinated. After adjusting for age and prior vaccination experience, the vaccination rate was found to be significantly higher for persons receiving the Health-Belief-Model postcard compared with persons receiving no postcard or a neutral postcard. We conclude that reminder postcards emphasizing elements of the health belief model may help increase vaccination rates.
D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003463:Cues; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007252:Influenza Vaccines; D008297:Male; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011177:Postal Service / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012044:Regression Analysis; D014611:Vaccination; D014861:Washington
D007252:Influenza Vaccines