KEYWORD1:
Barriers to Vaccination and under vaccinated Populations.

BACKGROUND:
Webster (1996) reported that the immunization rate in Norfolk was 48% in 1993. In 1996, Household Survey data revealed that the Norfolk immunization rate was 60% among 2-year-old children, a significant (17%) increase since 1993 (Rosenthal, Morrow, Butterfoss, & Stallings, 1998). Although Norfolk’s immunization rate increase was higher than elsewhere in the state it was still below national immunization goals.

OBJECTIVE:
Through the Parent Education and Incentive Program the objective will be:
to reduce immunizations barriers and
to increase parental knowledge

METHOD:
Record review of 471 children in 22 licensed Norfolk day care centers was entered into CASA for data evaluation. A major immunization up date-conference was advertised and was held in the Norfolk Public Library, which extended to all Norfolk Day Care administrators, teachers, staff and parents. Parental immunization knowledge was assessed by pre and post education intervention.

RESULT:
Twenty two day care centers were assessed. Of the 471 records reviewed, 141 children had not received immunizations for their age. Two day cares were 100% age appropriately up to date, 3 day cares were in 99-90 percentile, 8 in 89-80 percentile, 6 in the 79-70 percentile, and zero in the less than 70 percentile.

CONCLUSION:
The Parent Education and Incentive Program was an effective way of raising immunization rates in the Norfolk day care centers.
LEARNINGOBJECTIVES:
Identify immunization compliance barriers for parents.
Identify specific needs to increase immunization rates in day care centers.
Identify strategies to enhance immunization compliance in a diverse urban population