Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Routine Vaccination Coverage among Children of Age 15 to 23 Months in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53685/jshmdc.v4i1.149Keywords:
Routine vaccination coverage, COVID-19 pandemic, Children, PakistanAbstract
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic affected all socio-economic activities including the provision of routine vaccinations.
Objective: This study determined the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on routine vaccination rates among children aged 15-23 months.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Lahore, from April 2021 to November 2021. The study included 750 children aged 15 to 23 months from the District of Lahore. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the outpatient department of Services Hospital, Lahore after informed consent. The data was analyzed by using SPSS version 26. The p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: Among the study participants, 567 (75%) children had completed their routine vaccines according to the card. One hundred and eighty-three (24.2%) children were not fully vaccinated. Seven hundred and twenty-seven (96.2%) children had oral polio 1 (OPV I), while 693 (91.7%) had Pneumococcal 2 (PCV II), and 696 (92.1%) had taken the Pentavalent 1 vaccine. Measles 2 was received by only 604 (79.9%) children. Sixty-three (8.3%) mothers and caregivers were unaware of the need for vaccination. Twenty-seven (3.6%) mothers had no time to get their children vaccinated, and 27 (3.4%) were uninformed about their children’s vaccination appointments.
Conclusion: The vaccination rate was 36% lower among children of ages 15-23 months in the Lahore district compared to the pre-pandemic era.
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