Intensified mission indradhanush: Maternal awareness and service utilization in Krishna district, India

Abstract

Abstract: BACKGROUND: The most effective step for child survival is vaccination. The attitude and behavior of parents toward immunizing their children are closely correlated with their awareness of the risks and advantages of vaccination. Since parents are the ones who make decisions, raising their level of understanding is essential. Hence, the goal is to determine how well mothers are aware of the Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) and to measure full immunization coverage among children under 2 years of age. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh, for mothers whose children were under 2 years aged during the period September 2022–October 2022. Sociodemographic data, knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) regarding IMI was collected through quantitative and semi-structured questionnaires answered by the mothers, and the immunization status of children was filled from Mother and Child Protection card. The KAP cutoff point was defined based on Bloom’s criteria. RESULTS: This study concluded that 154 (60.39%) children were fully covered from vaccination and 67 (26.67%) mothers were aware of IMI services. Mothers whose children were fully vaccinated had 59.22% good knowledge, 41.57% positive attitude, and 79.22% proper practice regarding immunization. Lack of awareness to mothers and child illnesses was found to be a major reason for partial vaccination. CONCLUSION: Efforts are required to strengthen information, education, and communication activities regarding the IMI program as relatively few participants had heard about it. The majority of them were aware of immunization services, although there was average immunization coverage. The findings of this study support the suggestions for routine evaluation and the requirement for raising public knowledge of both ongoing and new programs.