ABSTRACT
Background: India accounts for the highest number of under-five deaths in the world. Estimates claim that 89 lakh children in India receive fewer vaccines or no vaccine at all. One out of every three children in India does not receive all vaccines under the universal immunization programme. 5% children in urban and 8% children in rural areas remain unimmunized. According to NFHS-4 data complete vaccination coverage in India stands at 62%. The objectives of this study were to evaluate complete vaccination coverage, dropout rate and identify factors for failure of vaccination coverage in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir, state of India.Methods: A cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted to evaluate the complete vaccination coverage by using an interview schedule devised as per WHO-UNICEF coverage cluster survey reference manual and National Immunization Schedule. A pre-determined sample size according to the WHO-UNICEF coverage cluster survey reference manual was adopted for the purpose of the study.Results: Of the total 207 children included in the study 66.2% (n=137) were fully immunized. 19.8% of the children had dropped out and did not receive the recommended dose of pentavalent vaccine. Among the reasons for low complete vaccination coverage, lack of awareness, mother too busy and vaccinator being absent were identified as the major reasons.Conclusions: Complete vaccination coverage has shown an increase with an increase in the coverage of the individual vaccines. But the coverage is still low and more efforts are needed to further improve the vaccination coverage.
ABSTRACT
Background: Immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of vaccine. If exposure to a disease occurs in a community there is a little to no risk of an epidemic if people have been immunized. This study was to assess the immunization status among children up to 5 years in rural Mangaluru.Methods: A community based cross sectional study was conducted among children of 0-5 years of age group (n=93) in rural Mangaluru using convenient sampling technique. After obtaining oral consent from parents, immunization status of children was assessed using validated questionnaire and details of child found to be partially immunized or not at all, reasons for not giving the vaccine were also collected.Results: 52.7% of the study population was partially immunized and 46.2% were fully immunized; only 83.9% possessed an immunization card. Majority of them have not taken measles/MR (55.9%) and also IPV 1 (46.2%) and Vitamin A2 (61.3%) because of unaware need for further immunization (58%).Conclusions: According to the survey, conducted in rural fields, we found that half of the population was partially immunized. Reasons being lack of awareness, negligence of parents, unaware of 2nd and 3rd dose of vaccines.
ABSTRACT
Background: Immunization is the cost-effective public health intervention that prevents and protects against vaccine preventable diseases. The objective was to estimate the timeliness in receiving age appropriate vaccines and to study selected factors influencing the timeliness of age appropriate vaccines as per national immunization schedule among children aged 0 to 23 months in a rural area of Pondicherry. Methods: A retrospective study was done at a Community Health Centre, Karikalampakkam, Pondicherry using data from immunization registers of children aged 0 to 23 months, who were born between July 01, 2013 to July 31, 2015. If the child was vaccinated within 7 days of the scheduled time, it was considered as timely vaccination. Results: Out of 679 children, 52% were males and 48% were females. The median days of delay in vaccination were ranged from 1-171 days. The proportion and the median days of delay were increased progressively as the age of the child increased. The place of delivery was significantly associated with birth doses of OPV, Hepatitis B and BCG vaccination. There was a significant difference in timeliness of vaccination across the birth order of the children for the first, second and third doses of OPV and Pentavalent vaccines (p=0.02). Birth weight of the children was not statistically associated with vaccination delay. Conclusions: Delay in vaccination in varying frequency was observed for the vaccines administered under the national immunisation schedule. Hence, the age-appropriate vaccinations should be given up-to-date as well as on time.