In previous flu seasons, only about half of all Americans got the flu shot. Now we face pan-respiratory season, when we must worry about RSV, COVID, and the flu. The good news is these vaccines are lifesaving. The bad news is that if people don’t get them, they aren’t very effective and we might see fewer people get them at all.
As a clinical psychologist, I’ve spent my career thinking about what motivates people to take an active role in their health. And it really comes down to making it easier for those who intend to get a vaccine to follow through and actually get one. In my field, that’s called closing the intention gap.
This is not the same as addressing vaccine hesitancy, which is a real problem and requires its own solution. But we don’t want to get distracted by vaccine hesitancy at the expense of missing a real opportunity to support the people who want to be immunized and just need us to make it a little easier.
When it was only flu, it was simpler—one shot, every fall, available at the doctor’s office or pharmacy. It was easier to close the intention gap by nudging people to take one action.
This year the prospect of needing some combination of three shots could lead many people to stall or forego getting them altogether. People have a lot of questions about these vaccines: Which shots am I due for? Which ones are my kids due for? Where are they available? Can I get them all on the same day?
Our health system puts the entire burden on doctors to answer these questions and get people to take vaccines. We assume that talking to patients about this would only take a minute or two of a doctor’s visit. But communicating with patients about specific vaccination guidelines is much more time-consuming, and it isn’t realistic to expect providers to do this in a short appointment—and to do it consistently.
In fact, studies show the typical primary care provider would need 27 hours each day to give patients comprehensive care, which includes vaccinations and screenings, but also helps to manage chronic conditions and address concerns around medications.
This approach is not sustainable—so how do we break this cycle? How do we ensure that families get the vaccines they need to stay healthy this season, and that healthcare professionals can spend less time sending reminders and more time caring for patients?
It’s all about how we communicate with patients. Instead of relying on commercials and billboards for public health information about vaccines, it’s about reaching people at the times when they are thinking about their health, and, most importantly, when they can do something about it.
In my work with health systems across the country, we’ve studied what it is that drives patients to make healthcare decisions and how to do that at scale. We know from experience that the right tools can significantly reduce the provider burden and increase uptake of these critical vaccines.
For example, we’ve seen that digital messages prompting patients to ask about vaccines do tremendously well. In a recent analysis we conducted of more than 20 million vaccine messages, we found that explaining the risks of illnesses or reminding patients they’re due for a shot when they’re already in the doctor’s office, or just before they arrive, can increase vaccination rates by as much as 10 times.
A vaccination strategy that prompts more conversations between patients and their doctors succeeds because most patients trust their doctor. It succeeds because personalized outreach, facilitated by technology, doesn’t require anything additional from overworked providers—the patient who walks into their office is already primed to bring up vaccination.
That’s why I’m so excited the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services launched the Risk Less. Do More. campaign to deliver messages based on evidence and designed to help people protect themselves and their communities from respiratory viruses.
With the right messages delivered when patients are most receptive to them, we can relieve some of the burden on clinicians and help patients keep themselves and their families healthy.
Hilary Hatch is a clinical psychologist.
