Author(s):
Cassocera, Marta ; Augusto, Orvalho ; Chissaque, Assucênio ; Guimarães, Esperança Lourenço ; Shulock, Katherine ; de Deus, Nilsa ; Martins, Maria R. O.
Date: 2023
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/165886
Origin: Repositório Institucional da UNL
Subject(s): children; determinants; full immunisation coverage (FIC); Mozambique; surveys; trends; Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health; Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis; Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health; SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being; SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities
Description
Funding Information: This research received funds from Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Institute of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (IHMT), NOVA University of Lisbon, Portugal (ref. UID/04413/2020. The funders had no role in study design, data, collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.
The 1974 Expanded Program on Immunisation has saved millions of children worldwide by promoting full immunisation coverage (FIC). However, forty years later, many sub-Saharan African countries remain well below its target of 90% FIC. This study analysed the level, trends and determinants of FIC in 4322 Mozambican children aged 12–23 months from pooled data from four national surveys between 1997 and 2015. Descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression models were performed to analyse the factors associated with full immunisation coverage. Overall, the coverage of fully immunised children increased from 47.9% in 1997 to 66.5% in 2015, corresponding to a 1.8% yearly increase. The needed FIC growth rate post-2015 was 4.3 times higher. Increased maternal education and a higher household wealth index were associated with higher odds of FIS. Furthermore, attending antenatal care (ANC) visits, institutional delivery and living in southern provinces were also associated with increased odds of FIS. Between 1997 and 2015, FIC among 12–23-month-old children made modest annual gains but remained well below international targets. Factors related to access to healthcare, educational level, socioeconomic status and geographical location were associated with improved FIC. Targeted interventions to expand these factors will improve immunisation coverage among Mozambican children.
