Electronic Health Record Clinical Decision Support to Close the Human Papillomavirus Vaccination Gender Disparity in Children Aged 9 and 10 Years

Abstract

We performed a quality improvement project (31 clinics; July 2021 to October 2023) to increase human papillomavirus vaccination initiation frequency and decrease gender disparity in children aged 9 and 10 years. The 11 process changes included electronic health record clinical decision support (CDS) tools for providers, staff, and parents and medical assistant participation. In phase 1 (preparation), initiation frequency was lower in boys (250 of 1688 visits, 15%) than girls (289 of 1549 visits, 19%; P = .003). In phase 2 (CDS alerts; recommended initiation age lowered from 11 to 9 years), initiation frequency was increased and similar between boys (906 of 1847 visits, 49%) and girls (867 of 1740 visits, 50%; P = .64). In phase 3 (patient portal outreach), initiation frequency was increased further for boys and girls. The multifaceted intervention, including CDS tools and lowering the initiation age, was associated with increased initiation frequency and decreased gender disparity.