big cold: Health beliefs of elderly Haitians related to influenza immunizations

Influenza is responsible for 20,000 deaths per year in the United States, with adults 65 and older accounting for most of these deaths. In this qualitative study, ten Haitian elders were interviewed in Creole and data were hand-written and simultaneously translated in English, to better understand their health beliefs regarding influenza immunizations. Purnell's model (1998) of Cultural Competence was utilized as organizing framework for description of the sample, analysis and discussion. Several themes emerged during thematic analysis of the participants' responses. Participants identified influenza as a "big cold" which can initially be prevented with traditional home remedies and practices as well as with prayers. Lack of knowledge of the vaccine, uncertainty of the effectiveness of the vaccine, reliance on the recommendations of their children, doctors, and as well as the researcher, and lack of access were all factors reported as affecting their acceptance of the vaccine.