Influenza infection leads to significant morbidity and mortality each year. Influenza vaccines can reduce the risk of flu and the severity of flu illness, In addition, flu vaccinations can reduce flu complications such as pneumonia or worsening of chronic heart or lung disease. Each year, Kaiser Permanente of Colorado offers influenza vaccines to patients at no cost either at primary care clinic appointments or flu walk-in clinics in the fall prior to the upcoming flu season. In addition, as part of clinic appointment reminder text messages, there is a message to get the flu vaccine for patients who have not received the vaccine prior to the clinic visit. Building on these flu reminder text messages for patients who have not received a flu vaccine, this study will test different behavioral nudge text messages to improve influenza vaccination rates.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
100,000
We will use positive framing and convenience framing as our 2 behavioral text messages to improve flu vaccination rates.
Institute for Health Research
Aurora, Colorado, United States
Receive flu vaccine
Did the patient receive a flu vaccine as denoted from the EMR. The vaccine could have occurred within Kaiser Permanente Colorado or outside of Kaiser Permanente Colorado and in which Kaiser received information about the flu vaccination during the flu season 2025-2026.
Time frame: 12 weeks following receipt of first text message reminder
Time to flu vaccination
Time from primary care clinic visit that triggered the flu reminder text message and date of flu vaccination as denoted in the EMR.
Time frame: 12 weeks following receipt of 1st text message reminder
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