Between trust, doubt, and obligation: how Danish nurses address vaccine hesitancy in early childhood

Childhood vaccinations are frequently characterised as important health-promoting and risk-averting technologies and form central parts of both national and international public health policies. However, much literature presents the field of vaccination as contested, involving both scientific and political controversies over health risks and effects. Anti-vaccine movements draw attention, but more subtle concerns among citizens and health professionals also deserve scrutiny. While the role of health professionals as experts and facilitators of national guidelines is widely recognised as vital, interactions between these professionals and parents seeking clarity on the benefits of vaccination remain under-analysed. This article draws on interviews with 15 Danish nurses who advise parents on childhood vaccination. The analysis uses the theoretical framework of risk work, and explores how different professional roles allow the nurses to adapt their practices when interacting with parents about childhood vaccination in a context of various types of knowledge, interests, and obligations. The nurses demonstrate a situated capacity and willingness to position themselves as either messenger of official vaccine recommendations, partners supporting informed choice or experts engaging in interpretive dialogues about vaccines risk and effects. Thus, the study contributes to our understanding of the enactments of healthcare policies, professional authority, and knowledge within a field marked by societal controversy.