Improving vaccination status of children under five through health education.
OBJECTIVE
To improve awareness and knowledge of mothers regarding vaccine preventable diseases and the immunization status of children under five through health education messages by medical students, at Gulshane-Sikanderabad, a squatter settlement adjacent to Ziauddin Medical University, Karachi.


METHODS
The undergraduate medical students' visit families in the squatter settlement. This study compared the effect of intervention by medical students on vaccination status of children under five in the intervention households versus those without intervention. A baseline study was done in 1998 and a follow-up study was done after four years to assess the differences in knowledge and practices of mothers regarding immunization.


RESULTS
A total of 110 houses from block I and 207 houses from block V were selected. An increase of 22% (52% vs 30%) in block-I (p = 0.003) and 19% (32% vs 13%) increase in block V was seen in the utilization of PHC Center for vaccination (p = 0.001). Mothers' knowledge regarding the age when first vaccine is administered to the child, increased in the follow-up from 60% to 76.5% (p < 0.01) in block I and from 50% to 62% in block V. The immunization status increased significantly in block I from 46.5% to 75% after the intervention (p < 0.005), no significant difference could be seen in block V (p = 0.16). In the follow-up survey a significant difference was seen in the vaccination status between the two blocks (p = 0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
The health education messages significantly increased the vaccination status of children under 5 in the intervention area.
Anjum
Qudsia
Q
Department of Community Health Sciences, Ziauddin Medical University, Karachi.
Omair
Aamir
A
Inam
S N Bazmi
SN
Ahmed
Yousuf
Y
Usman
Yaseen
Y
Shaikh
Shazia
S
D000328:Adult; D002654:Child Care; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D017589:Immunization Programs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007223:Infant; D007224:Infant Care; D009035:Mothers / Q000193:education*; D010154:Pakistan; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013337:Students, Medical; D013997:Time Factors; D014611:Vaccination / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*