Frequency and Reasons for Missed Opportunities for Vaccination in Children under 59 Months of Age Admitted to the Pediatric Department of the Yalgado Ouédraogo University Hospital, Burkina Faso

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Résumé

Introduction: Childhood vaccination is one of the most effective ways to prevent
serious diseases and death in children. The aim of this study was to determine
the frequency and reasons for missed opportunities for vaccination
(MOV) in children under 59 months of age admitted to the Pediatric Department
of the Yalgado Ouédraogo University Hospital (CHU-YO). Materials
and Methods: This was a prospective, descriptive, cross-sectional study of 420
children and their mothers/caregivers admitted to the Pediatric Department
of the CHU-YO, as well as health workers, from July 15, 2023 to November
15, 2023. Results: The overall frequency of missed vaccination opportunities
was 37.14%. Missed vaccination opportunities at birth and at 15 months were
10.7% and 71.9%, respectively. The main reasons for MOV were: lack of communication
about vaccines (60.71%), parents’ lack of knowledge of the EPI schedule
(49.76%), and illness in children (25.71%). For health workers, the reasons
included: lack of training on vaccination in the previous two years (81.08%),
not systematically checking health records (79.72%), and stockouts of EPI vaccines
at the health center (71.62%). Conclusion: Missed opportunities for vaccination
remain high despite national efforts. Improving these indicators requires actively tracking incompletely vaccinated children in our centers to reduce the
burden of vaccine-preventable diseases.

Mots-clés

Missed Opportunities for Vaccination, Child, Reasons, CHU-YO, Burkina Faso