Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Adolescent vaccinations provide fundamental disease prevention, yet their uptake is waning. Community-based strategies that reinforce confidence in vaccines and ensure families receive clear, accurate information during moments of uncertainty, as well as personalized recommendations from their health care providers is essential. This article discusses how school nurses can communicate evidence-based adolescent immunizations recommendations to students and families using existing public health messaging.

Keywords

adolescents immunizations school nurses vaccine hesitancy parent engagement collaboration

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Baisch

M. J.

Lundeen

S. P.

Murphy

M. K.

(2011). Evidence-based research on the value of school nurses in an urban school system. The Journal of School Nursing, 27(2), 74–80. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059840510390936

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2025). Vaccination coverage among adolescents aged 13–17 years—National Immunization Survey–Teen (NIS-Teen). https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/coverage/teenvaxview.html

Council on School Health. (2023). Role of the school nurse in providing school health services. Pediatrics, 147(4), e2021052178. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2016-0852

Fischhoff

(2019). Evaluating science communication. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(16), 7670–7675. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1805863115

Grohskopf

L. A.

Blanton

L. H.

Ferdinands

J. M.

Chung

J. R.

Broder

K. R.

Talbot

H. K.

Morgan

R. L.

Fry

A. M.

(2022). Prevention and control of seasonal influenza with vaccines: Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices—United States, 2022-23 Influenza Season. MMWR: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 71(1), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.rr7101a1

Leidner

A. J.

Maughan

E. D.

Bjork

Black

Mazyck

Underwood

J. M.

(2020). Vaccination-Related activities at schools with kindergartners: Evidence from a school nurse survey. The Journal of School Nursing, 36(6), 464–471. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059840519847730

MacNeil

J. R.

Rubin

Folaranmi

Ortega-Sanchez

I. R.

Patel

Martin

S. W.

(2015). Use of Serogroup B Meningococcal vaccines in adolescents and young adults: Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, 2015. MMWR: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 64(41), 1171–1176. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6441a3

McNally

Roess

Weinstein

Lindley

Wallin

(2024). School nurses’ experiences and roles in promoting and administering the HPV vaccine: A systematic review using the socioecological framework. The Journal of School Nursing, 40(1), 43–57. https://doi.org/10.1177/10598405231206109

National Association of School Nurses (NASN). (2025). Position statement: Immunization and vaccination requirements. The Journal of School Nursing, 42(1), 104–106. https://www.doi.org/10.1177/10598405251386074

10.

National Cancer Institute. (2025). Human papillomavirus (HPV) and cancer. https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/infectious-agents/hpv-fact-sheet

11.

O’Leary

S. T.

, & AAP Committee on Infectious Diseases. (2026). Recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule: United States [Policy statement]. Pediatrics. e2025075754. https://www.doi.org/10.1542/peds.2025-075754

12.

Patton

G. C.

Sawyer

S. M.

Santelli

J. S.

Ross

D. A.

Afifi

Allen

N. B.

Arora

Azzopardi

Baldwin

Bonell

Kakuma

Kennedy

Mahon

McGovern

Mokdad

A. H.

Patel

Petroni

Reavley

Taiwo

, . . . Viner

R. M.

(2016). Our future: A Lancet commission on adolescent health and wellbeing. Lancet, 387(10036), 2423–2478. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)00579-1

13.

Rand

C. M.

Humiston

S. G.

Schaffer

S. J.

Albertin

C. S.

Shone

L. P.

Blumkin

A. K.

Stokley

Szilagyi

P. G.

(2011). Parent and adolescent perspectives about adolescent vaccine delivery: Practical considerations for vaccine communication. Vaccine, 29(44), 7651–7658. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2011.08.002

14.

Unity Consortium. (n.d.-a). Statement from Unity Consortium on announced changes to the U.S. childhood and adolescent immunization schedule. https://www.unity4teenvax.org/resource/statement-from-unity-consortium-on-announced-changes-to-the-u-s-childhood-and-adolescent-immunization-schedule/

15.

Unity Consortium. (n.d.-b). The 3 Cs program. https://www.unity4teenvax.org/3cs/

Protecting Adolescents,Strengthening Communities: Advancing Evidence-Based Adolescent Immunization Recommendations Through School Nurses and Trusted Public Health Messaging

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References