Emergency department messaging doesn’t increase COVID vaccine uptake, study finds

Emergency department (ED) patients who received tailored messages or a simple inquiry about the COVID-19 vaccine were no more likely to take the vaccine than patients who didn’t receive interventions, according to a recent study published in JAMA Network Open.

“Tailored messaging alone, even when built with personalization and thoughtful ethical considerations, is likely not enough. Less than 6% of patients in the intervention arms received the booster,” note Anish K. Agarwal, MD, MPH, and Raina M. Merchant, MD, both of the University of Pennsylvania, in a commentary published alongside the study. “By contrast, the effect size nearly tripled in EDs where the vaccine was readily available,” suggesting that opportunity and convenience play a role in vaccine uptake.