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Recommend HPV Vaccine at Every Visit!

Recommend HPV Vaccine at Every Visit!

During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a decrease in HPV doses administered in the United States.

Here in Philadelphia, there was a 29% decrease in the total number of HPV doses administered in 2020 compared to 2019. This decrease affected every eligible age group:

  • 9-13 year olds: HPV doses administered decreased by 17.5% from 2019 to 2020.
  • 13-17 year olds: HPV doses administered decreased by 41.7% from 2019 to 2020.
  • 18-26 year olds: HPV doses administered decreased by 53.7% from 2019 to 2020.

March 4 is International HPV Awareness Day!

To help bring HPV vaccination rates back to pre-pandemic levels, recommend HPV vaccine at every visit for 9-26 year olds who have not begun or completed their series. 

Register for this CME webinar on March 2 from 1-2pm EST! Dr. Danielle Casher (Attending Physician, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia) will join cancer survivor Megan Lesar to discuss improving HPV vaccine rates in Pennsylvania.

On March 4, watch and share this video from the Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) to promote timely, complete HPV vaccination.

Steps to Recommend HPV Vaccine to Hesitant Parents

Announce: 

  • Your child is __ years old.
  • Today, they are eligible to receive Tdap, HPV, and MCV vaccine.
  • We will make sure they get all these shots to keep them safe and healthy.

If parent hesitates:

Connect and Counsel:

  • What’s your main concern?
  • Counsel using a research-tested method (ex.”Over 30,000 Americans get cancer from HPV every year. Most could be prevented with the HPV vaccine.”)

If parent declines:

Try Again: 

  • Almost 70% of parents who initially declined later agree to HPV vaccine or plan to vaccinate soon.

Resources

Print:

Online:

Have questions? Reach out to our team at vaccines@phila.gov. Thank you for all that you do to keep Philadelphia safe and healthy!