Abstract

Objective: This study was conducted to examine the reasons for refusal among families who declined the newborn heel prick screening; to determine the relationship between heel prick screening and childhood vaccination; and to identify the factors influencing this situation.
Materials and Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted between January and February 2026. The study included 171 parents who refused heel prick screening in XXX province in 2024-2025. Data were collected using a 14-item structured information form. The analysis used descriptive statistics, univariate analyses, Chi-square tests (Pearson Chi-square, Continuity Correction, Fisher Chi-square), and a Logistic Regression model.
Results: Childhood vaccinations were not administered to 54.4% of infants who did not undergo heel prick testing. 84.0% of parents stated that vaccines were not safe, and 70.2% expressed concern about the vaccine content. 63.2% of families who refused heel prick screening did not have heel prick screening performed on their other children. The most common reason for refusing the heel prick test was suspicion about its purpose. According to the logistic regression model, the decision to vaccinate the current child was positively influenced by the vaccination status of other children by a factor of 51.2. The vaccination variable positively influenced heel screening for other children by a factor of 8.6 (p

Key words: Newborn screening; vaccine refusal; attitude; preventive health services