Promotora Outreach, Education and Navigation Support for HPV Vaccination to Hispanic Women with Unvaccinated Daughters

Cervical cancer disparities persist in the predominantly Hispanic population of South Texas, and Hispanic girls are less likely to initiate and complete the three-dose human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine series. Culturally relevant interventions are needed to eliminate these disparities and improve HPV vaccine initiation and completion. We enrolled 372 Hispanic women from South Texas’ Cameron and Hidalgo counties with a daughter, aged 11–17, who had not received HPV vaccine. All participants received an HPV vaccine educational brochure in their preferred language (English or Spanish) and were invited to participate in the Entre Madre e Hija (EMH) program, a culturally relevant cervical cancer prevention program. EMH participants ( n = 257) received group health education, referral and navigation support from a promotora (a trained, culturally competent community health worker). Those who declined participation in EMH received the brochure only ( n = 115). Eighty-four percent of enrolled participants initiated the HPV vaccine, and no differences were observed between EMH program and brochure-only participants. Compared to brochure-only participants, EMH participants were more likely to complete the vaccine series [adjusted odds ratio (adj. OR) = 2.24, 95 % CI (1.25, 4.02)]. In addition, participants who were employed and insured had lower odds of completing the vaccine series [adj. OR = 0.45, 95 % CI (0.21–0.96); adj. OR = 0.36, 95 % CI (0.13–0.98), respectively]. All enrolled participants had high vaccine initiation rates (>80 %); however, EMH program participants were more likely to complete the vaccine series. HPV vaccine promotion efforts that include referral and navigation support in addition to education show promise.