Empowering nurses and healthcare professionals to promote vaccination and tackle vaccine hesitancy
▶Summary
The project directly addresses the challenges of vaccine hesitance by focusing on training health professionals to become reliable sources of vaccine information. It aims to empower them with the ...
▶Objectives
The project aimed to empower healthcare professionals to promote vaccination and combat vaccine hesitancy through various strategies: 1. Increase healthcare professionals' knowledge on vaccines and vaccination, providing reliable information sources and tools tailored to disadvantaged groups and vaccine-hesitant individuals to overcome fears and strengthen confidence in vaccines. 2. Enhance aspects related to vaccination in healthcare training curricula by developing an innovative Training Curriculum focused on promoting vaccination and addressing vaccine hesitancy. 3. Bridge gaps in knowledge, skills, and competences of nurses and healthcare professionals through Bite-sized Learning Tools for self-learning, enabling them to update their knowledge and skills to combat vaccine hesitancy. 4. Improve the quality of continuing and initial training programs for healthcare workers involved in vaccination by creating an innovative Training Course on vaccination, utilizing digital learning and online methodologies (MOOC). 5. Enhance the European dimension and quality in education and training activities, preparing learners, trainers, and staff to effectively promote vaccination and address vaccine hesitancy.
▶Activities
The project commenced with research on vaccination and immunization to identify key issues, followed by mapping informative resources online for healthcare staff. Partners created informative materials translated into multiple languages and organized campaigns targeting vulnerable and hesitant groups. Utilizing the PPT/IENE Model, partners developed a training curriculum for healthcare professionals addressing hesitancy and improving communication skills with hard-to-reach groups. 20 Bite-sized learning tools were created and posted on a web platform in multiple languages for self-learning. A Training Course on vaccination, including an Online Course (MOOC), was developed , with 16 trainers trained during a European joint workshop. A number of 210 healthcare professionals, nurses, school nurses, community nurses, and others working with vulnerable groups, were trained in the online course. increasing their knowledge about vaccination, cultural awareness, and skills in informing, advising, and promoting vaccination while combating myths and misunderstandings. To disseminate project results, National Seminars in Romania, Greece, Cyprus, and a European Conference in Spain were organized.
▶Impact
The project created several tangible outputs and results: 1. A database of reliable sources and tools on vaccine and vaccination issues, accessible in English and partners' languages, aimed at updating public and healthcare professionals' knowledge. 2. An Informative Kit providing essential vaccination information targeting hesitant individuals and disadvantaged groups, aiding healthcare professionals in promoting vaccination and combating misinformation. 3. An innovative Training Curriculum enhancing nurses' and healthcare professionals' knowledge, communication, cultural, and social competences. 4. Bite-sized Learning tools available on the website for healthcare workers' self-learning, downloadable PDF compendia for offline learning in multiple languages. 5. An online course methodology for training healthcare workers on vaccination, piloted with 175 professionals, These educational resources are available on the project website www.iene11.eu and can be transferred and exploited across European countries to prepare confident healthcare workers to advise on vaccination, address hesitancy, and deliver immunization effectively.