FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH NON-UTILIZATION OF CHILD IMMUNIZATION IN PAKISTAN: EVIDENCE FROM THE DEMOGRAPHIC AND HEALTH SURVEY 2006-07

Monday, 14th of July 2014

[source]BMC Public Health[|source]

The benefits of getting a child immunized are hardly questionable, yet studies have shown that, in many developing countries, a sizeable number of parents, usually belonging to socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, resist child immunization. The primary reason for parents not getting their children immunized is the low perception of the risk of being infected with diseases such as polio, whooping cough and measles. Consequently, the parents are apprehensive about the side effects that follow immunization.

In this report, the authors describe the individual factors associated with incomplete immunization among last-born children aged 12-23 months in Pakistan. Findings presented are obtained from nationally representative cross-sectional survey data from the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey, 2006-07. The report presents evidence in support of targeted behaviour change communication initiatives targeting   people with low socioeconomic and educational status. More details are accessible at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3973983/

 

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The proportion of incompletely immunized children in Pakistan varies from 37-58%, and this has recently resulted in outbreaks of measles and polio. The aim of this paper is to determine the factors associated with incomplete immunization among children aged 12-23 months in Pakistan.

METHODS: Secondary analysis was conducted on nationally representative cross-sectional survey data from the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey, 2006-07. The analysis was limited to ever-married mothers who had delivered their last child during the 23 months immediately preceding the survey (n=2,435). ‘Complete immunization’ was defined as the child having received twelve doses of five vaccines, and ‘incomplete immunization’ was defined if he/she had missed at least one of these twelve doses. The association between child immunization status and determinants of non-utilization of vaccines was assessed by calculating unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios (AOR) with 95% confidence intervals using a multivariable binary logistic regression.

RESULTS: The findings of this research showed that nearly 66% of children were incompletely immunized against seven preventable childhood diseases. The likelihood of incomplete immunization was significantly associated with the father’s occupation as a manual worker (AOR = 1.47; 95% CI: 1.10-1.97), lack of access to information (AOR = 1.35; 95% CI: 1.09-1.66), non-use of antenatal care (AOR = 1.33; 95% CI: 1.07-1.66), children born in Baluchistan region (AOR = 1.74; 95% CI: 1.12-2.70) and delivery at home (AOR = 1.39; 95% CI: 1.14-1.69).

CONCLUSIONS: Despite governmental efforts to increase rates of immunization against childhood diseases, the proportion of incompletely immunized children in Pakistan is still high. Targeted interventions are needed to increase the immunization rates in Pakistan. These interventions need to concentrate on people with low socioeconomic and educational status in order to improve their knowledge of this topic.