A simple SMS reminder could improve vaccination of children by 6%, according to new research.
The Kids Research Institute Australia carried out the research, which saw the AuTOMATIC trial send more than 20,000 text messages to parents between 2021 and 2024. Some 10,000 parents took part in the trial.
The results, published in the Lancet Regional Health, described how sending a text message ‘nudge’ reminding parents of upcoming vaccinations could potentially see an additional 35,000 children nation-wide receive their 18-month and four-year-old vaccines on time.
Professor Tom Snelling, Head of Infectious Disease Implementation at the Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases based at The Kids, said about 20% of Australian children were usually late in receiving critical vaccinations.
“Previous research has shown us that parents are very supportive of vaccination and are most likely to complete the schedule on time through to 12 months old, but by 18 months and four years, many children begin to fall behind,” he said.
“We understand that family lives are very busy, so we partnered with 20 general practice clinics across Australia to see if simple text message reminders could be an effective tool for prompting parents to book in for their child’s vaccinations.”
“A unique aspect of this study was that every single element was designed to be digitally automated, from sending the SMS reminders right through to the data analysis – making this a simple, effective and low-cost strategy that could be easily implemented at GP clinics,” Professor Snelling said.
Researchers evaluated the effectiveness of sending reminders at different times before and after vaccinations were due, as well a different types of message content. All were successful in increasing timely vaccination rates.
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“The SMS reminders came directly from the GP clinics, and I believe this played an important role in the successful outcome as parents respond positively to a trusted, credible source of information,” Professor Snelling added.
“These results also suggest potential for using SMS reminders to improve health behaviours for other GP-led public health programs, like reminding people to undergo blood pressure checks or cancer screening.”
The system also proved cost effective.
“At an assumed incremental cost of issuing SMS reminders of $0.20 per SMS, a 6% improvement would equate to a cost-benefit ratio as approximately $4 per additional on-time vaccination in the study setting,” researchers concluded in the report.
Catherine Hughes, executive director of the Immunisation Foundation of Australia, said many parents were unaware of the importance of vaccinating their children on time.
“Australia’s National Immunisation Program has been expertly designed to ensure children receive maximum protection at the exact time they need it most, so delaying scheduled immunisations by weeks or months can leave a child at serious risk of life-threatening diseases,” she said.
“This is more important than ever in the current global situation, where vaccine hesitancy is growing and many countries around the world are losing their measles-free status – Australian toddlers receive full protection against measles at their 18-month immunisations so it is essential they receive it on time.”
Mrs Hughes, who is also an Honorary Community Co-Researcher at the Wesfarmers Centre, said she would like to see this strategy used to ‘nudge’ parents into accessing the flu vaccine, not just for their children but for adults as well.
“This would go a long way in tackling the dangerously low uptake rates we are currently seeing,” she said.
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