Perceptions of Healthcare Workers (HCWs) towards childhood immunization and immunization services in Fiji: a qualitative study

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Childhood immunization has been globally recognized as the single most effective strategy in preventing childhood diseases and mortality. The perceptions of healthcare workers are important as their behavior and attitudes influence parental decision–making process. This research aimed to explore the factors that influence healthcare workers’ experience and perceptions about delivering childhood immunization in Fiji. Materials and methods A qualitative study was conducted in three randomly selected health centers in Suva, Fiji from March 1st to April 5th, 2021. Five focus group discussions were conducted with healthcare workers who were chosen purposively, had worked in the health center for at least 6 months and included either gender. Those that did not consent or did not meet the inclusion criteria were excluded. The interviews were guided by semi–structured open–ended questionnaire and were recorded into a digital voice recorder. The data were coded, sorted, and then categorized into themes, and transcribed onto Microsoft Word. Thematic analysis was utilized to sort the key phrases from the recorded interviews. Results There were a total of 22 participants for the focus group discussions, with their ages ranging from 25 to 51 years, included 3 medical officers, 1 nurse practitioner and 18 registered nurses. Three major themes emerged, which included: healthcare worker factors, parental factors and health system factors. Subthemes identified from the healthcare worker factors were worker knowledge and attitudes. The subtheme for parental factors that emerged were defaulters, parental attitudes, perceived behavior and religious beliefs. For health system factors the subthemes were service delivery, registration, infrastructure, staff turnover, staff training and changes to the immunization schedule. Conclusion Some of the perceived barriers reported by the healthcare workers were parental religious beliefs, parental knowledge and attitude, social or physical factors (finances, transportation, childcare and work conflicts), access to health services, immunization services and policies, hours of operation, waiting time and missed opportunities. Health workers acknowledged that they have an important role to play in immunization as they are the source of information and motivation for parents. Further studies are needed to be conducted nationally to determine the perceptions of healthcare workers towards immunization and how the services can be improved on a national level.