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Vaccine Conversations
Rethinking Vaccine Conversations: A Patient-Centered Approach

Released: January 22, 2025

Expiration: January 21, 2026

Ruth Carrico
Ruth Carrico, PhD, DNP, APRN, FAAN
Activity Information

Activity

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Key Takeaways
  • Healthcare professionals should focus on creating a culture of patient safety by addressing patients’ concerns and emphasizing the safety and benefits of vaccines.
  • Effective vaccination discussion requires updating traditional discussion methods to align with contemporary vaccine safety and efficacy concerns.
  • Engaging the entire care team ensures consistent, high-quality communication, helping patients feel supported throughout the vaccination process.

As healthcare professionals (HCPs), most of us have encountered patients asking, “Will this vaccine make me sick?” or sharing experiences that made them hesitant about future vaccination. That’s why I believe creating a culture of patient safety is meaningful, particularly regarding vaccines and vaccination. As part of this culture of patient safety, we should consider concerns about both vaccine safety and effectiveness as integral to discussions with patients, parents, and others involved in vaccination activities.

Initiating Patient Conversations
To best initiate vaccination conversations, we should recognize that our approach must align with the patient’s perspective. The way we might have approached discussions in the past may need adaptation for today’s concerns. 

Most HCPs have heard vaccine safety concerns from various people, including patients, parents, community members, and even healthcare personnel. Therefore, our strong recommendations must be grounded in addressing the safety concerns these patients express.

Understanding Patient Terminology
We must become proficient in conducting our discussions of adverse events within the context of patient understanding. “Adverse events” describes experiences during clinical trials and appears in prescribing information and guidelines but patients may see the word “adverse” as indicating harm rather than indicating a consequence that is undesirable, but not necessarily harmful. Regardless of the terms used during discussion, we need to develop effective methods to prepare patients for common postvaccination experiences and situations that require immediate medical attention and/or reporting.

These discussions should address immune response–related effects, including fever, headache, fatigue, myalgias, nausea, and injection-site pain. Discussion of serious adverse events that require immediate medical attention, though rare, warrant risk-benefit discussion, with depth varying by individual patient needs.

Communicating Vaccine Benefits
Many patients question vaccine benefits, particularly those who do not feel at risk for serious outcomes from specific diseases. As we learn more about impacts and vaccine benefits, these conversations become increasingly important. 

Initial discussion may include brief explanations of how a vaccine works. For example, patients should understand that although vaccines may not prevent all infections, they are designed to prevent serious consequences. Understanding patient perspectives about vaccine effectiveness is crucial for productive dialogue.

Clinical Team Integration
The fundamental questions—“Will the vaccine help me?” and “Will the vaccine hurt me?”—require both knowledge and expertise in patient communication. Everyone in our clinical setting must be prepared to discuss these concerns and listen effectively to patients.

Like Olympic relays, how we transfer information between team members helps ensure optimal patient care at every encounter. 

My Recommendations
Initiate vaccine conversations by understanding patient concerns about vaccination risks and benefits. Recognize that patient perspectives must be our starting point. Rethinking our methods may achieve our shared goal: appropriate vaccination utilization and patients who feel engaged in their immunization process.

Your Thoughts?
How do you approach conversations about vaccine safety and benefits with your patients, and what strategies have you found most effective in addressing their concerns? Join the discussion by posting a comment below.