SYRACUSE, NY (WSYR-TV) - Jennifer Rost admits she didn't keep up with her vaccinations until she had a child.
"Basically until I had a reason to, I wasn't really thinking about getting an adult vaccination," said Rost. "It wasn't on my radar."
Rost joins a long list of people who aren't sure which shots they need or when.
The latest study by the Centers for Disease Control found that adult vaccination rates must improve substantially in order to reduce preventable diseases.
While some vaccines showed small increases in 2010, overall coverage remained low: Only 18.5% of high risk adults got a vaccination that protects against pneumonia. The adult rate for Hepatitis A shots was just 10.7%. Doctors have seen scattered pertussis outbreaks, but only an 8.2% adult Tdap vaccination rate.
Dr. Luis Castro of Westside Family Health Center isn't surprised.
"For most adults, it is sort of an optional vaccine and adult patients are technically pretty leery of vaccines because they are concerned about possible side effects," explained Dr. Castro.
Keeping track of what you need is another challenge. While children are on a clear schedule with regular doctor visits, guidelines for adults are more complicated. Different people have different recommendations, depending on age, occupations or risk factors for certain diseases.
"With adults, it is a matter of people making the effort to get to the physician's office," said Dr. Kaushal Nanavati.
The CDC called for more efforts to raise awareness and educate patients. Jennifer agrees.
"It had never been part of the conversation I had with the doctor as an adult and it wasn't until I started asking questions that I got some really good information about it," said Rost.
