Immunization coverage and its determinant factors among children aged 12-23 months in Ethiopia: a systematic review, and Meta- analysis of cross-sectional studies

Factors Associated with Vaccination Coverage among 0-59-Month-Old Children: A Multilevel Analysis of the 2020 Somaliland Demographic and Health Survey

Globally, there has been little growth in vaccination coverage, with countries in the Horn of Africa having the lowest vaccination rates. This study investigated factors associated with vaccination status among children under five years old in Somaliland. The 2020 Somaliland Demographic and Health Survey surveyed women aged 15-49 years from randomly selected households. This multilevel analysis included 2673 primary caregivers of children under five. Only 34% of children were ever vaccinated. Childhood vaccination coverage was positively associated with high-budget regions, high healthcare facility density, and children older than 23 months. Vaccination coverage was greater for urban and rural residents than for nomadic people. Children whose mothers could read part of one sentence or one complete sentence were more likely to be vaccinated than illiterate mothers. Children whose mothers received antenatal care (ANC) once, two to three times, or four times or more were more likely to be vaccinated than those whose mothers received no ANC. Childhood vaccination coverage in Somaliland is low. Promoting maternal ANC visits and increasing women's literacy may enhance vaccination coverage. Funds should be allocated to areas with low resources, particularly for nomadic people, to boost vaccination uptake.

The status of immunization program and challenges in Ethiopia: A mixed method study

Introduction

Immunization helps reduce morbidity and mortality attributable to severe vaccine-preventable childhood illnesses. However, vaccination coverage and the quality of immunization data remain challenging in Ethiopia. This has led to poor planning, suboptimal vaccination coverage, and the resurgence of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks in under-immunized pocket areas. The problem is further compounded by the occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the disruption of the health information system due to recurrent conflict. This study assessed the current status of the immunization service and its challenges in Ethiopia.

Methods

A mixed-methods study was conducted in three regions of Ethiopia from 21 to 31 May, 2023. A survey of administrative reports was done in a total of 69 health facilities in 14 woredas (districts). Nine KIIs were conducted at a district level among immunization coordinators selected from three regions to explore the challenges of the immunization program. Linear regression and descriptive statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data. Thematic analysis was applied to analyze the qualitative data. The findings from the qualitative data were triangulated to supplement the quantitative results.

Result

Two-thirds (66.4%) of the children were fully vaccinated, having received all vaccines, including the first dose of the MCV1, by 12 months of age, as reported through administrative reports collected from health facility records. Catchment area population size and region were significantly associated with the number of fully immunized children (p < 0.001 and p = 0.005, respectively). The vaccination dropout rates of the first to third dose of pentavalent vaccine and the first dose of pentavalent vaccine to the first dose of MCV1 were 8.6% and 7.4%, respectively. A considerable proportion of health facilities lack accurate data to calculate vaccination coverage, while most of them lack accurate data for dropout rates. Longer waiting time, interruptions in vaccine supply or shortage, inaccessibility of health facilities, internal conflict and displacement, power interruption and refrigerator breakdown, poor counseling practice, and caretakers' lack of awareness, fear of side effects, and forgetfulness were the reasons for the dropout rate and low coverage. The result also showed that internal conflict and displacement have significantly affected immunization coverage, with the worst effects seen on the most marginalized populations.

Conclusion

The study revealed low vaccination coverage, a high dropout rate, and poor quality of immunization data. Access and vaccination coverage among marginalized community groups (e.g., orphans and street children) were also low. Hence, interventions to address organizational, behavioral, technical, and contextual (conflict and the resulting internal displacement) bottlenecks affecting the immunization program should be addressed.

Population-based cross-sectional study of factors influencing full vaccination status of children aged 12- 23 months in a rural district of the Upper East Region, Ghana

BACKGROUND

Achieving universal health coverage includes ensuring that children have access to vaccines that are of high quality, safe, efficacious, and affordable. The Immunisation Agenda 2030 aims to expand services to zero-dose and incompletely vaccinated children and reduce immunisation rate disparities as a contribution to vaccination equity. This study explored the factors influencing full vaccination status among children aged 12 - 23 months in a rural district of the Upper East Region of Ghana.

METHODS

A population-based cross-sectional study was conducted among carers of children aged 12 -23 months in the Kassena Nankana West district. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 360 carers. Information regarding the vaccination status of children was gathered through a combination of children's health record books and carers' recollections. Information on potential determinants was also systematically collected for analysis in Stata version 15.0.

RESULTS

The results showed that 76.9% (95% CI: 72.3 - 81.0) of children had full vaccinations per the national schedule. All children received at least one vaccination. A higher percentage of carers with incompletely vaccinated children reported that they had travelled with their children as the primary reason for missing certain vaccine doses. Full vaccination status was significantly associated with secondary (aOR = 2.60; 95% CI: 1.20-5.63) and tertiary (aOR = 3.98, 95% CI: 1.34-11.84) maternal educational level, being in a partnership relationship (aOR = 2.09, 95% CI: 1.03-4.25), and residing in close proximity to healthcare facilities (aOR = 0.41, 95% CI: 0.21-0.80).

CONCLUSIONS

Our study found that nearly one-quarter of children aged 12-23 months in the study setting are underserved with vaccination services for a variety of reasons. Effectively reaching these children will require strengthening health systems, including eliminating vaccine shortages, addressing the unique challenges faced by unmarried women with children aged 12-23 months, and improving accessibility to vaccination services.

Immunization coverage and its associated factors among children aged 12-23 months in Ethiopia: An umbrella review of systematic review and meta-analysis studies

BACKGROUND

Immunization estimated to prevent 2 to 3 million children deaths every year from vaccine preventable disease. In Ethiopia, limited and inconclusive studies have been conducted on immunization coverage so far. Therefore, this umbrella review was intended to estimate the pooled national immunization coverage and its associated factors among children age 12-23 months in Ethiopia.

METHODS

This umbrella review included five systematic reviews and meta-analyses through literature search from PubMed, Science direct, and web of science, CINHALE, and data bases specific to systematic reviews such as the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and Prospero, the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews from May 1 to 30/ 2023. Only systematic reviews and meta-analyses published in English from inception to May 1, 2023, were included. The quality of each study was assessed using Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews. Data were extracted using Microsoft excel 2016 and analyzed using STATA 17.0 statistical software. Heterogeneity among studies was assessed using the Cochran Q statistics and I2 test. The pooled effect sizes were determined using pooled proportion for the full vaccination coverage and odds ratios for the associated factors with the corresponding 95% confidence interval were used to declare statically significance.

RESULTS

Five studies with 77,161 children aged 12-23 months were included. The overall pooled full vaccination coverage was 57.72% (95% CI 50.17, 65.28). Institutional delivery (OR: 2.12, 95% CI: 1.78-2.52), travel to vaccination site for <2 hours (OR: 2.43, 95%CI: 1.97-3.00), received at least one antenatal (ANC) visit (OR: 3.2, 95%CI: 2.46-4.1), good maternal knowledge of immunization (OR: 3.63, 95%CI: 2.82-4.67), being informed on immunization schedule (OR: 2.54, 95%CI: 2.02-3.2), living in urban areas (OR: 2, 95% CI: 1.54-2.6), and a household visit by health-care providers (HCP) during the postnatal period (OR: 2.23, 95%CI: 1.22-4.09) were the independent predictors of immunization coverage.

CONCLUSION

This study showed the full immunization coverage in Ethiopia was lower compared to the WHO-recommended level. Besides, the current umbrella review identifies several factors that contribute to higher immunization coverage. These includes; institutional delivery, near to vaccination site, having ANC visit, being urban residence, household visited by HCP, having good knowledge and informed on immunization schedule. Thus, the government should intensify the growth of immunization services by emphasizing outreach initiatives to reach remote areas and professionals must combine child immunization service with other medical services offered by health institutions.

Socioeconomic inequalities in vaccine uptake: A global umbrella review

This global umbrella review aimed to synthesise evidence of socioeconomic inequalities in the uptake of routine vaccinations and identify the mechanisms that may contribute to the association. To our knowledge, no attempt has been made to synthesise the global body of systematic reviews across a variety of vaccines, geographical locations, and measures of SES. The inclusion criteria were as follows: studies assessing vaccination uptake according to education, income, occupation/employment, and/or area-level deprivation; any country or universally recommended routine vaccination (according to the WHO); qualitative or quantitative reviews, published 2011-present. The searches were performed in eight databases. The screening process followed PRISMA-E guidelines, each stage was performed by one reviewer, and a 10% sample checked by a second for consistency. Included reviews underwent data extraction, quality appraisal (AMSTAR-2), and narrative synthesis according to country-context. After deduplication, 9,163 reports underwent title and abstract screening, leaving 119 full texts to be assessed for eligibility. Overall, 26 studies were included in the umbrella review. Evidence for lower uptake amongst disadvantaged SES individuals was found in all 26 reviews. However, 17 reviews showed mixed results, as inverse associations were also identified (lower uptake for advantaged SES, and/or higher uptake for disadvantaged SES). Those that explored high-income countries had a greater prevalence of mixed findings than those focusing on low/middle-income countries. The two most frequently cited mechanisms were vaccination knowledge, and confidence in vaccination or vaccination providers. These mechanisms were often understood by review authors as varying by level of education. We find socioeconomic differences in routine vaccination uptake, but the association did not always follow a gradient. Whilst education may be associated with uptake globally, our study indicates that its role varies by country-context. A limitation is the overlap of some primary studies across the included systematic reviews.

Maternal satisfaction on quality of childhood vaccination services and its associated factors at public health centers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

BACKGROUND

Vaccination is one of the most important public health interventions to reduce child mortality and morbidity. In Ethiopia, about 472,000 children die each year by vaccine-preventable diseases. A satisfied mother is assumed to use the services and complies with the service provider for better health care outcomes. However, there was no adequate evidence regarding maternal satisfaction with quality of childhood vaccination services. This study aimed to assess maternal satisfaction on quality of childhood vaccination services and its associated factors at public health centers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

METHODS

A facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted from 12 July to 12 August 2021 at public health centers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A total of 366 mothers (caretakers) of under one-year-old children participated in the study. A systematic sampling technique with an interviewer-administered questionnaire and inventory checklist were used to collect the data. A binary logistic regression model was fitted. Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) and p-value < 0.05 were used to identify the factors associated with the outcome.

RESULTS

Nearly two-thirds (61.2%) of mothers (caretakers) were satisfied with the quality of childhood vaccination services. Service providers' greeting [AOR = 1.60; 95%CI: 1.37-1.99] and information about the types of vaccines [AOR = 1.54; 95%CI: 1.32-1.89] were positively associated with maternal satisfaction. On the contrary, long waiting time of mothers (caretakers) to receive services [AOR = 0.29; 95%CI: 0.14-0.62] was negatively associated with services.

CONCLUSION

The overall maternal satisfaction towards the quality of childhood vaccination services in this study was found to be low. Minimizing waiting time at the health facility, enhancing greetings and providing adequate information regarding childhood vaccination for mothers (caretakers) improved their satisfaction with the services.

Childhood vaccination practices and associated factors among mothers/caregivers in Debre Tabor town, Northwest Ethiopia: A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Incomplete immunization and non-immunization increase the risk of disease and death among children. This study aims to assess childhood vaccination practices and associated factors among mothers and caregivers in Debre Tabor town, Amhara region, Ethiopia.

METHODS

A community-based cross-sectional study design was conducted between February 30 and April 30, 2022. The study participants were proportionally allocated to all six kebeles found in the town. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select the study participants. The collected data were checked and coded and then entered into EpiData Version 3.1 and exported into SPSS Version 26. The results were organized using frequency tables, graphs, and charts, and bivariate and multivariable logistic regression were used to test the association of covariates with childhood vaccination practices.

RESULT

Approximately 422 study mothers and caregivers participated in the study, with a response rate of 100%. The mean age was 30.63 years (11.74), which ranged from 18 to 58 years. More than half of the study participants (56.4%) expressed fears about the side effects of vaccination. A majority (78.4%) of the study participants availed of counseling services about vaccination, and 71.1% of them received regular antenatal care. This study found that approximately 280 [66.4%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 61.8-70.6] mothers/caregivers had a history of good childhood vaccination practices. The factors of the fear of side effects [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 3.34; 95% CI: 1.72-6.49], no workload (AOR = 6.08; 95% CI: 1.74-21.22), medium workload (AOR = 4.80; 95% CI: 1.57-14.71), being a mother of child/children (AOR = 2.55; 95% CI: 1.27-5.13), positive attitude (AOR = 2.25; 95% CI: 1.32-3.82), and sound knowledge (AOR = 3.88; 95% CI: 2.26-6.68) were significantly associated with childhood vaccination practices.

CONCLUSION

More than half of the study participants had a history of good childhood vaccination practices. However, the rate of such practices was low among mothers and caregivers. The fear of side effects, workload, motherhood, attitude, and knowledge were all factors associated with childhood vaccination practices. Awareness creation and a consideration of the workload of mothers would be helpful in dispelling fears and increasing the rate of good practices among mothers and caregivers.

Adherence to WHO vaccine storage codes and vaccine cold chain management practices at primary healthcare facilities in Dalocha District of Silt'e Zone, Ethiopia

Background

The main elements of effective vaccine cold chain management at the immunization service delivery point are well-trained vaccine cold chain handlers, vaccine storage equipment, and appropriate vaccine management procedures. Vaccine cold chain handlers must have enough expertise to provide the correct vaccine at the right time, maintain vaccine potency, and minimize vaccination failures. The study assessed knowledge of vaccine cold chain handlers on vaccine cold chain management, adherence to the WHO vaccine storage codes and vaccine cold chain management practice at primary health facilities in Dalocha district of Silt'e zone.

Method

Institutional-based cross-sectional study was done at twenty-eight primary health facilities. One hundred forty primary health workers were drawn from four health centers and twenty-four health posts operating in Dalocha woreda of Silt'e zone, SNNPR, Ethiopia. A self-administered questionnaires and on-spot observation checklists were adapted from the WHO and WHO-UNICEF-effective vaccine management assessment tools to collect data from cold chain unit of the primary healthcare facilities. Data were entered to EPI data version 3.1; exported and analyzed using SPSS version 22. Statistical analysis was carried out to determine the level of knowledge, adherence to WHO cold chain management guideline and vaccine handling practice. The relationship that the knowledge of primary healthcare workers, primary healthcare workers training status, primary healthcare facilities' adherence to WHO vaccine storage codes, and length of work experience of primary health care workers have with the vaccine management practice were also explored

Result

Above Half (54%) of the respondents have satisfactory knowledge of vaccine cold chain management. One hundred (71.4%) vaccine cold chain handlers did point correctly to the recommended range of temperature (2°C -8°C) for vaccine storage. Around two-thirds (63.6%) of them were aware of the twice-daily temperature recordings. Nearly half, (46.2%) of primary healthcare facilities have experienced poor adherence to the WHO storage practice codes. Around three-fifths of the observed primary healthcare facilities have registered undesirable vaccine management practices. The primary healthcare workers who received training on vaccine cold chain management (χ2 = 0.058, p=0.015), served at primary health care facilities for more five years (χ2 =18.545, p≤0.001), shown good adherence to WHO vaccine storage code (χ2 =18.545, p≤0.001), have sufficient knowledge on vaccine cold chain management (χ2=4.210, p≤0.031) were all significantly associated with desirable vaccine cold chain management practice.

Conclusion

There is a gap in vaccine cold chain handlers’ knowledge about vaccine cold chain management and less than desirable adherence to WHO vaccine storage codes at primary healthcare facilities in Dalocha district. The majority of the observed primary health facilities have registered poor vaccine management practices. Everyone who has a stake in the cold chain management of vaccines should do their share, individually and collectively, to guarantee that everyone reaps the benefits of an effective cold chain.

Trends, projection and inequalities in full immunization coverage in Ethiopia: in the period 2000-2019

BACKGROUND

Immunization is among the most cost-effective health interventions to improve child survival. However, many countries in sub-Saharan Africa failed to achieve their national and international coverage targets repeatedly. The present study investigated trends of coverage and inequalities in coverage in Ethiopia.

METHODS

This study used data from five rounds of the Demographic and Health Surveys conducted in Ethiopia in 2000, 2005, 2011, 2016, and 2019. The surveys used a multistage cluster sampling procedure to obtain a nationally and sub-nationally representative data. The outcome variables included in the study were full immunization coverage and inequality. The World Health Organization's Health Equity Assessment Toolkit was used to conduct the inequality analysis. Projections for 2025 were based on smoothed averages generated using the demographic and health survey data from 2000 to 2019.

RESULTS

The full (basic) immunization coverage in Ethiopia has increased steadily from 14.3% in 2000 to 44.1% in 2019. Based on the average past performance, the immunization coverage is projected to reach 53.6% by 2025, which will be short of the 75% national full (basic) immunization coverage target for the year 2025. Mothers with higher levels of education are more likely to get their children all basic vaccinations than those with lower levels of education. Similarly, the inequality gaps due to wealth and residency are significant; where children in the lowest wealth strata and those living in rural areas remained disadvantaged.

CONCLUSION

Despite a steady increase in immunization coverage in the past two decades the country is yet to achieve its immunization target. Thus, more efforts are needed to achieve the current and future national immunization targets. A more focused intervention targeting the disadvantaged groups could be an effective strategy to achieve coverage and minimize the inequality gaps in immunization.

Spatiotemporal distributions of immunization coverage in Ethiopia from 2000 to 2019

BACKGROUND

Vaccination is the most important mechanism to improve childhood survival. However, immunization coverage is very low and unevenly distributed throughout the country. Therefore, this study was aimed to investigate the spatiotemporal distribution of immunization coverage in Ethiopia.

METHOD

Immunization coverage data and geospatial covariates data were obtained from EDHS 2000 to 2019 and different publicly available sources. A Bayesian geostatistic model was used to estimate the national immunization coverage at a pixel level and to identify factors associated with the spatial clustering of immunization coverages.

RESULT

The overall immunization coverage in Ethiopia was 38.7%, 36.55%, 51.8%, 67.1% and 66.9% for 2000, 2005, 2011, 2016 and 2019 respectively. Spatial clustering of low immunization coverage was observed in Eastern, Southern, Southwestern, Southeastern and Northeastern parts of Ethiopia in EDHSs. The altitude of the area was positively associated with immunization coverage in 2000, 2005 and 2019 EDHS. The population density was positively associated with immunization coverage in 2000, 2005, 2011 and 2016. Precipitation is also positively associated with immunization coverage in 2016. Moreover, mean annual temperature was positively associated with immunization coverage in 2000, 2005 and 2019 EDHSs. Travel time to the nearest city is negatively associated with immunization coverage in 2000, 2005, 2011 and 2016. Likewise, distance to health facilities was negatively associated with immunization coverage in all the five EDHSs.

CONCLUSION

This study found that immunization coverage in Ethiopia substantially varied across the subnational and local levels. Spatial clustering of low immunization coverage was observed in Southern, Southeastern, Southwestern, Northeastern, and Eastern parts of the country. Altitude, population density, precipitation, temperature, travel time to the nearest city in minutes, and distance to the health facilities were factors that affect the spatial clustering of immunizations coverage. These findings can guide policymakers in Ethiopia to design geographically targeted interventions to increase programs to achieve maximum immunization coverage.

Bayesian Analysis of Predictors of Incomplete Vaccination against Polio among Children Aged 12-23 Months in Ethiopia

Background: The re-introduction of polio among children aged 12–23 months is likely to occur in Ethiopia due to the low vaccination rates against poliovirus. The study sought to examine the predictors of incomplete vaccination against polio among children aged 12–23 months in Ethiopia. Methods: The data used were obtained from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey. Binary and Bayesian logistic regressions were used for the data analysis, with parameters estimated using classical maximum likelihood and the Bayesian estimation method. Results: The results revealed that 43.7% of the children were not fully vaccinated against polio in Ethiopia. Maternal age, educational level, household wealth index, exposure to mass media, place of residence, presence of nearby healthy facility, counseling on vaccination, and place of delivery were significant determinants of incomplete polio vaccination among children aged between 12 and 23 months in Ethiopia. Conclusion: Considerable numbers of children are not fully vaccinated against polio in Ethiopia. Individual and contextual factors significantly contributed to incomplete polio vaccination among children in the country. Therefore, the government and other stakeholders should pay particular attention to maternal education to increase mothers’ educational level in all regions and give training and counseling in all urban and rural parts of the country on child vaccination to overcome the problem of children’s incomplete polio vaccination and/or vaccination dropout.

Child Vaccination Coverage, Trends and Predictors in Eastern Ethiopia: Implication for Sustainable Development Goals

Background

Every year, immunization prevents about 4–5 million child fatalities from vaccine preventable morbidities. Conversely, in Ethiopia, achieving full coverage of vaccination has continued to be challenging. Socio-demographic, caregivers and child related factors determine vaccination coverage. Therefore, this study aimed to find out recent coverage, trends in coverage, and its predictors in eastern Ethiopia.

Methods

A population-based longitudinal study design was conducted among 14,246 children aged 12–24 months from 2017 to 2021 in Kersa Health and Demographic Surveillance System site (KHDSS). The data were collected from caregivers of the child by face to face interview. Multinomial logistic regressions were used to identify predictors of vaccination. The association between vaccination coverage and its predictors was presented by adjusted odds ratio with 95% confidence interval. A p-value of <0.05 was used to establish statistical significance.

Results

From the 14,198 included children, only 39% of children were fully vaccinated, with highest proportion in 2020 (45%) and lowest proportion in 2019 (32%). In comparison to fully vaccinated, being partially vaccinated was positively associated with older maternal age, rural residence, unemployment, rich wealth index, no antenatal care, facility delivery, and birth order whereas negatively associated with semi-urban residence. In compared to fully vaccinated, being not vaccinated was positively associated with older maternal age, rural residence, maternal education, unemployment, and no antenatal care whereas negatively associated with semi-urban residence, poor wealth index, multipara, grand multipara, and facility delivery.

Conclusion

Less than two-fifths of children aged 12 to 24 months were fully vaccinated. Socio-demographic factors and maternity care utilization were found to be predictors of vaccination coverage. Therefore, strategies that emphasize women’s empowerment in terms of education, economy, and employment status, and enhancing maternal healthcare utilization may improve vaccination coverage.

A review of the BCG vaccine and other approaches toward tuberculosis eradication

Despite aggressive eradication efforts, Tuberculosis (TB) remains a global health burden, one that disproportionally affects poorer, less developed nations. The only vaccine approved for TB, the Bacillus of Calmette and Guérin (BCG) vaccine remains controversial because it's stated efficacy has been cited as anywhere from 0 to 80%. Nevertheless, there have been exciting discoveries about the mechanism of action of the BCG vaccine that suggests it has a role in immunization schedules today. We review recent data suggesting the vaccine imparts protection against both tuberculosis and non-tuberculosis pathogens via a newly discovered immune system called trained immunity. BCG's efficacy also appears to be tied to its affect on granulocytes at the epigenetic and hematopoietic stem cell levels, which we discuss in this article at length. We also write about how the different strains of the BCG vaccine elicit different immune responses, suggesting that certain BCG strains are more immunogenic than others. Finally, our review delves into how the current vaccine is being reformulated to be more efficacious, and track the development of the next generation vaccines against TB.

Cold Chain Maintenance and Vaccine Stock Management Practices at Public Health Centers Providing Child Immunization Services in Jimma Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia: Multi-Centered, Mixed Method Approach

Background

Cold chain maintenance is the spine of an immunization program.

Objective

To examine the status of cold chain maintenance and evaluate knowledge of cold chain handlers and practices of vaccine management at public health centers providing immunization services in Jimma zone.

Methods

An institutional-based cross-sectional study supplemented with a qualitative method was conducted in 41 randomly selected health centers providing immunization service in districts of Jimma zone from October 31 to November 30, 2019. Pre-tested self-administered questionnaires and observation checklists developed from an effective vaccine management assessment tool (EVMAT) were used to collect quantitative data. Key informants were selected using the purposive sampling technique and an in-depth interview was conducted. Quantifiable data were analyzed using SPSS version 20 and chi-square was used to test the presence of association (p-value <0.05). Qualitative data were analyzed by thematic analysis and triangulated with quantitative findings.

Results

All public health centers had at least functional ice-lined refrigerators while 28 (68.3%) public health centers had functional deep freezers. Of the cold chain handlers, 120 (82.9%) had fair knowledge. Vaccine storage was appropriate per the World Health Organization's vaccine storage code in ice-lined refrigerators in 11 (24.4%) public health centers. Cold chain handlers’ years of service, types of training, availability of funds for cold chain maintenance, and availability of cold chain equipment at public health centers showed the presence of significant association with vaccine cold chain management practice.

Conclusion

The majority of cold chain handlers showed inadequate knowledge while a significant number showed poor practice of preserving the vaccines’ cold chain. Cold chain maintenance was not adequate in public health centers, necessitating attentive efforts of providing proper management of vaccine cold chains at immunization delivery points.

Full Vaccination Coverage and Associated Factors Among 12-to-23-Month Children at Assosa Town, Western Ethiopia, 2020

Introduction

Vaccination means the injection of a killed microbe to stimulate the immune system against the microbe, which prevents communicable diseases. It’s the most important and cost-effective public health intervention to reduce child mortality and morbidity. Ethiopian national full vaccination coverage is 43%. This research aimed to assess full vaccination coverage and associated factors among 12-to-23-month children at Assosa Town.

Methods

A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among children aged of 12 to 23 months from November to December 2020. Assosa town has two woredas. Each woreda has five kebeles. By using lottery method, five kebeles were selected from two woredas. Systematic sampling technique was used for sampling. The total sample size was 372. It was calculated by the proportionate allocation method. Questioners were used to collect data by the observation of vaccination caring and mother interviewing. Data were entered into SPSS and analyzed. Multivariance analysis was used by considering a 95% confidence interval. Variables whose p-value less than 0.05 were identified as significant.

Results

The respondent rate of this study was 372 (100%). Of the total respondents, 338 (90.8%) were females and 34 (9.1%) of them were males. The coverage of full, partial, and non-vaccination is 71.77%, 16.67%, and 11.56%, respectively. Based on multivariate logistic regression analysis, child age [AOR=2.7, 95% CI: (1.36, 5.4)], no antenatal care visit [AOR=0.41, 95% CI: (0.24, 0.71)] and fear of covid 19 at health institutions [AOR=3.5, 95% CI: (2, 6)] were identified as significant variables. There are major identified factors for partial and non-vaccination.

Conclusion

Coverage of full, partial, and non-vaccination was 71.77%, 16.67%, and 11.56%, respectively. Child age, no antenatal care visit, and fear of covid 19 at health institutions were significant variables. Fear of covid-19 is the commonest factor for partial and non-vaccination.

Individual and community-level determinants of childhood vaccination in Ethiopia

BACKGROUND

Vaccines are one of our most important tools for preventing outbreaks and keeping the world safe. Most unvaccinated children live in the poorest countries including Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the determinants of vaccination coverage among children aged12-23 months in Ethiopia.

METHODS

A cross-sectional secondary data were obtained from the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey data (EDHS). A total of 1929 children were included. A Multilevel Proportional Odds Model was used to identify the individual and community-level factors associated with child vaccination.

RESULT

Among 1, 929 children, only 48.6% (95% CI: 46.3 to 50.8%) were fully vaccinated while 37.8% (95% CI: 35.7 to 40.1%) were partially vaccinated.. The multilevel ordinal logistic regression model reveled that housewife mother (AOR =1.522, 95%CI: 1.139, 2.034), institutional delivery (AOR =2.345, 95%CI: 1.766, 3.114),four or above antenatal care visits (AOR = 2.657; 95% CI: 1.906, 3.704), children of mothers with secondary or higher education (AOR = 2.008; 95% CI: 1.209, 3.334),Children whose fathers primary education (AOR = 1.596; 95% CI: 1.215, 2.096), from the rich households (AOR = 1.679; 95% CI: 1.233, 2.287) were significantly associated with childhood vaccination.

CONCLUSION

Child vaccination coverage in Ethiopia remains low. Therefore, there is a need to increase child vaccination coverage by promoting institutional delivery and prenatal care visits, as well as maternal tetanus immunization. Besides, public initiatives needed to improve child vaccination coverage, women's and husband's education, poor women, and further advancement of health care services for poor women, housewife women, women living in remote areas should be made to maintain further improvements in child vaccination. Furthermore, policies and programs aimed at addressing cluster variations in child vaccination need to be formulated and their implementation must be strongly pursued.

Full immunization coverage and associated factors among children age 12-23 months in Ethiopia: systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies

Background: Millions of children in developing countries remained unvaccinated and under-vaccinated. This study was aimed to determine the pooled full vaccination coverage and associated factors in Ethiopia.Methods: This review and meta-analysis were included observational studies conducted from 2013 to 2020. The international online databases as well as gray literatures were retrieved from April 15 to 30/2020. The quality of each study was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOS). Data were extracted using Microsoft excel 2016 and analyzed using STATA 11.0 statistical software. Heterogeneity among studies was assessed using the Cochran Q statistics and I² test. The pooled effect sizes were determined using pooled proportion for the full vaccination coverage and odds ratios for the associated factors with the corresponding 95% confidence interval.Result: Sixteen studies with 8305 children aged 12-23 months were included. The overall pooled full vaccination coverage was 65% (95% CI: 56%-74%). Institutional delivery (OR: 2.12, 95% CI: 1.78-2.52), travel to vaccination site for <2 hours (OR: 2.43, 95%CI: 1.97-3.00), received at least one antenatal (ANC) visit (OR: 3.2, 95%CI: 2.46-4.1), good maternal knowledge of immunization (OR: 3.63, 95%CI: 2.82-4.67), being informed on immunization schedule (OR: 2.54, 95%CI: 2.02-3.2), living in urban areas (OR: 2, 95% CI: 1.54-2.6), and a household visit by health-care providers during the postnatal period (OR: 2.23, 95%CI: 1.22-4.09) were the independent predictors of full immunization coverage among children age 12-23 months.Conclusion: The study showed that the pooled full immunization coverage is still far from the national target (90%). Therefore, the government should strengthen both the outreach and facility-based immunization services.

Immunization Status and Challenges During COVID-19 and Associated Factors Among Children Aged 10-23 Months in South Region, Ethiopia 2020

Background

The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic is overstressing health systems and Essential health services and vaccination services are disrupted. Immunization is a confirmed gizmo for governing and even eliminating communicable diseases.

Objective

This study aims to assess the challenge and status of immunization during COVID-19 and associated factors among children aged 10–23 months south Nation Nationality and People Region Ethiopia. Methods and Materials: community-based mixed quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional study was done in southwest Ethiopia. Data was collected using semi-structured questionnaires and in-depth interviews. After that, the data were edited, coded, and move in into Epi info version 7.2 for data management then transported to SPSS version 25 for analysis. The analyzed data were presented by tables, graphs, figures, and text form.

Results

According to this study, the prevalence of incomplete immunization was found to be 809 (62.2%) with (95% CI: 59.5, 64.8). In multivariable analysis waiting time at a health facility (AOR=0.04, 95% CI 0.0001,0.004), education (AOR=5.08,95% CI2.31,11.14), place of delivery (AOR=2.34,95% CI 4.96,6.089), fearing of COVID-19 (AOR=3.62,95% CI 1.72,7.64) and do not understand the separation care of COVID-19 and other health services (AOR=2.85,95% CI1.38,5.9) were significantly associated factors.

Conclusion

The prevalence of incomplete immunization among children aged 10–23 months was very high in this study as compared to the other studies done in a different pocket of Ethiopia. Consecutively, reducing waiting time at a health facility, avoiding unnecessary fear of COVID-19, and promoting immunization in a different area of southwest Ethiopia along with health extension workers are recommended.