Coverage survey of Measles-Rubella mass vaccination campaign in a rural area in Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Background: In Tamil Nadu, where health indicators are above the national average and routine immunization coverage is >95%, the tepid response to Measles-Rubella (MR) mass vaccination campaign was unexpected. Several parents refused MR vaccine for their children, due to false news claiming inefficiency and adverse effects due to the vaccine. Aim: This study was conducted to assess the Measles-Rubella (MR) mass vaccination coverage and to know the motivating factors and barriers for vaccination. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a rural area immediately following the mass vaccination campaign. Using a pre-tested structured questionnaire, data was collected on awareness of MR vaccination campaign, MR vaccination status, motivating factors and reasons for non-acceptance of the vaccine. Results: Vaccine coverage among the 616 children surveyed was 80.2%. Factors that motivated acceptance of vaccine among the immunized participants were easy access to immunization (85%), support and motivation from school teachers (41.1%) and community level health workers (25.5%). Barriers reported among the unimmunized participants were rumours of adverse effects (47.5%), fear of adverse effects (53.3%), and no faith in immunization (18.9%). Risk factors for vaccine refusal included female child (OR = 1.7, 95%CI = 1.1-2.6), Children not attending school (OR = 3.32, 95%CI = 2.1-5.1), Mothers with higher education (OR = 4.3, 95%CI = 1.2-15.2). Conclusion: An effective communication strategy addressing the needs and concerns of the public/parents should be in place and started early on before initiation of the mass vaccination programme.

Frequency and Reasons for Vaccination Failure against Measles among Pediatric Cases at a Tertiary Care Hospital of Karachi

“…5,13,20,21 Although we also documented conspiracy/hoax as one of the factors responsible for missed vaccination, again, the frequency stood at 5% only. Fear of adverse effects to vaccine was a common barrier documented in most studies 13,19,21 including ours, but the frequency of 10% in our subjects is much lower than 34 and 53% reported from Bangladesh 19 and India (Tamil Nadu), respectively. 13 Our study population narrated lack of belief in vaccination as the cause for nonvaccination in 15% of the cases which is similar to 18.9% reported from India (Tamil Nadu) as is the influence of elders of the family similar to our study.…”

“…19 This is in dire contrast to a very high cognizance rate of 81 to 98% reported from Iran and India (Tamil Nadu), respectively. 13,14 An interesting fact surfaced from a surveillance conducted in India (Tamil Nadu), according to which almost 98% of the study subjects were cognizant of the mass vaccination campaign, but 55% were not aware why the vaccine was needed. Another fact documented by them was the high frequency (89.4%) of awareness about the venues of vaccination among the subjects, 13 which again is much better than our study population where 76.7% were able to find the vaccination site.…”

Barriers to childhood vaccination as perceived by accredited social health activists and multipurpose health workers in Mewat, Haryana (India): A qualitative research

“…[ 8 ] Vaccination per se is not confined to children, and some more studies relevant to the identification of such barriers have been conducted in the recent past. [ 9 10 11 12 ]…”

India’s efforts to achieve 1.5 billion COVID-19 vaccinations: a narrative review

“…Further, World’s largest Measles-Rubella Campaign covering more than 324 million children in the age group of 9 months to 15 years, from 2017 through 2020 has been implemented [ 13 ]. Data from various studies conducted in India reported MR vaccine coverage ranging from 80% to 90% [ 14 , 15 ], which depicts the implementation and high coverage of vaccination campaigns.…”