(1162) Determining Marketing Strategies and Patient Motivators to Receiving the Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Vaccine in the Community Pharmacy Setting

Objectives: The primary objective of this study is to determine which marketing methods are the main factors that impact patients’ decision to receive the RSV vaccine. The secondary objective is to determine which marketing methods influence certain demographics of patients receiving the RSV vaccine.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common respiratory virus that can cause mild, cold-like symptoms in people of all ages. While symptoms can be mild, those with comorbid conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, heart failure, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, or are immunocompromised, and especially older adults may be at risk for more serious illness. Annually, 60,000 - 160,000 older adults are hospitalized for RSV and 6,000 - 10,000 die from the disease.

Currently there are two RSV vaccines on the market that are both indicated for individuals 60 years and older with a shared clinical decision-making discussion between the patient and the healthcare professional.

There are a variety of marketing methods used by manufacturers and pharmacies to advertise services and products. Current marketing methods for vaccinations include television commercials, internet advertisements, in-store announcements, social media posts, and provider recommendations. There are limited studies regarding the impact of vaccine marketing and which methods may be more effective at motivating patients to receive vaccines.

The purpose of this research is to determine which marketing methods have the most impact on a patient’s decision to receive the RSV vaccine.

Methods: This is a prospective single-site survey study that will be conducted at a chain grocery store-based pharmacy. The target population will be those who present to the pharmacy to receive RSV vaccine. Participants will receive an investigator-developed paper survey while completing a vaccine consent form. The survey will be anonymous, kept separate from the consent forms, and will not contain any patient identifiers. The study is aiming to collect 100 completed surveys.

Eligible participants are aged 60 - 89 years of age, receiving RSV vaccine, and fluent in English.

The survey will collect basic demographic information such as age, gender, education level, and comorbid conditions. It will also gather patient motivators to receive the RSV vaccine, such as how patients learnedabout the vaccine and what ultimately influenced them to come to the pharmacy to receive the vaccine.

Descriptive statistics will be used to describe survey results. Depending on submitted responses and potential comparisons, Fisher’s exact or Chi Squared test will be used to evaluate data for any associations.

Results: This study is still in progress and results are to be determined.

Conclusions: This study could help determine which marketing methods have the most impact on a patient's decision to receive the RSV vaccine.