Abstrato

Study on knowledge, attitude and practice regarding immunization, among parents having children less than 16 years of age: A cross sectional study.

Sivagurunathan P, Thangavel A, Vairamuthu GS, Krishna Prasanth B

Background: Immunization is one of the health interventions, that is most economical in preventing various diseases. The study's primary goal is to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and vaccination practices amongst parents of children under the age of 16. This study also evaluates the awareness of parents towards newer vaccines present today.

Methods: A Cross-sectional study among 210 parents was done, using random sampling technique. Informed consent and ethical committee approval were obtained. A questionnaire was made to collect the data regarding parent’s knowledge, attitude and practice. Data collected was analyzed in MS-Excel.

Results: Out of 210 parents, who were interviewed, 68.6% of parents had desirable knowledge about immunization, 43.8% of parents had desirable attitude towards immunization and 84.5% had desirable practice towards good immunization. Among 210, 84% fully vaccinated their child for age, 68% of parents were not aware of the newer vaccine. Doctors were the main source of information. 5% perceived that vaccination is harmful to their child.

Conclusion: Parents have little knowledge of more recent vaccines. For the public to embrace the new vaccine and also to keep their faith in the current vaccine, vaccination knowledge among doctors and health education among the general public are crucial. There should be widespread implementation of the National Immunization Schedule awareness campaign.