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Introduction: The number of people refusing to vaccinate their children is growing in Poland every year. Anti-vaccine organisations lead very fierce disinformation campaigns. The incidence of vaccine preventable diseases is on the rise. Monitoring of parents’ attitudes towards preventive vaccinations and gauging the level of their understanding of the issue may enable more effective actions of organisations responsible for public health. Aim: The objectives of the study included finding out about parents’ opinions and views as well as evaluating their knowledge about vaccinations in Poland. The study was also to define a parents’ assessment of the range of campaigns promoting vaccination and actions of anti-vaccine movements. Material and method: The studies were carried out with a survey conducted among 233 parents or legal guardians of the children being under the obligation of vaccinations. Results: Nearly 90% of respondents are proponents of vaccinations, one-third of them consider some vaccinations unnecessary, and almost 7% of the surveyed describe themselves as opponents of vaccinations. 78% among the parents surveyed encountered campaigns promoting the Childhood Immunisation Programme, and most of them regard such campaigns as useful. Anti-vaccine movements were heard of by 62.4% of all the surveyed parents or legal guardians. 60% of respondents regard their own knowledge of the issue of vaccinations as sufficient. However, only 35% of respondents provided correct answers to the control questions about preventive vaccinations. People with higher education have better knowledge on vaccinations, whereas those with primary education have the best opinion on their own knowledge. Conclusions: Parents’ knowledge in terms of preventive vaccinations seems inadequate. The number of opponents of preventive vaccinations is systematically growing. The paediatrician being the main source of information on the issue of vaccinations for the parents. Monitoring of parents’ attitudes and opinions about the issue of preventive vaccination will be useful in better directing promoting campaigns in social media, and in adjusting healthcare workers’ activities to specific social groups.

Vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV) is an effective primary prevention measure for HPV-related diseases. For children and young adolescents, the uptake of the vaccine is contingent on parental consent. This study sought to identify key differences between parents who obtain (acceptors) and parents who refuse (non-acceptors) the HPV vaccine for their daughters. In the context of a free, universal, school-based HPV vaccination program in Quebec, 774 parents of 9-10 year-old girls completed and returned a questionnaire by mail. The questionnaire was based on the theoretical constructs of the Health Belief Model (HBM), along with constructs from other theoretical frameworks. Of the 774 parents, 88.2% reported their daughter having received the HPV vaccine. Perceived susceptibility of daughters to HPV infection, perceived benefits of the vaccine, perceived barriers (including safety of the vaccine), and cues to action significantly distinguished between parents whose daughters had received the HPV vaccine and those whose daughters had not. Other significant factors associated with daughter vaccine uptake were parents' general vaccination attitudes, anticipated regret, adherence to other routinely recommended vaccines, social norms, and positive media influence. The results of this study identify a number of important correlates related to parents' decisions to accept or refuse the HPV vaccine uptake for their daughters. Future work may benefit from targeting such factors and incorporating other health behavior theories in the design of effective HPV vaccine uptake interventions.

Vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV) is an effective primary prevention measure for HPV-related diseases. For children and young adolescents, the uptake of the vaccine is contingent on parental consent. This study sought to identify key differences between parents who obtain (acceptors) and parents who refuse (non-acceptors) the HPV vaccine for their daughters. In the context of a free, universal, school-based HPV vaccination program in Québec, 774 parents of 9–10 year-old girls completed and returned a questionnaire by mail. The questionnaire was based on the theoretical constructs of the Health Belief Model (HBM), along with constructs from other theoretical frameworks. Of the 774 parents, 88.2% reported their daughter having received the HPV vaccine. Perceived susceptibility of daughters to HPV infection, perceived benefits of the vaccine, perceived barriers (including safety of the vaccine), and cues to action significantly distinguished between parents whose daughters had received the HPV vaccine and those whose daughters had not. Other significant factors associated with daughter vaccine uptake were parents’ general vaccination attitudes, anticipated regret, adherence to other routinely recommended vaccines, social norms, and positive media influence. The results of this study identify a number of important correlates related to parents' decisions to accept or refuse the HPV vaccine uptake for their daughters. Future work may benefit from targeting such factors and incorporating other health behavior theories in the design of effective HPV vaccine uptake interventions.