HYBRID EVENT: You can participate in person at Baltimore, Maryland, USA or Virtually from your home or work.
Solange Whegang Youdom, Speaker at Vaccine Research Conference
University of Dschang, Cameroon
Title : Missed opportunities for vaccination and associated factors among children aged 12-23 months in Cameroon

Abstract:

Data from the 2018 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) was analyzed for children with at least one vaccination date in the home-based record (HBR). Immunization performance such as accessibility, drop-out, and timeliness, were assessed. Service quality was assessed using MOV. Multiple logistic regression examined the effect of DHS variables on MOV outcomes, and a decision tree approach was used to study their interaction.
Overall, 1824 children aged 12 to 23 months were surveyed which resulted in 70.45% of cards possession and 85.03% of immunization activities. The national prevalence of MOV for simultaneous vaccines was 75.1% (95% confidence interval (CI)=72; 79). Among those who experienced MOV, 67.4% (95% CI=60-73) were uncorrected MOV. Second birth order children experienced more MOV than first born children (adjusted odds ratio (aOR)=1.67, 95%CI: 1.11-2.47). Children born to non-educated/primary level mothers had increased odds of experiencing a MOV than those born to educated mothers (aOR=1.48, 95%CI=1.007-2.19/ aOR=1.55, 95%CI=1.12-2.09). Children from poorest households were at high risk of experiencing MOV for any vaccine than richest households (aOR=2.04, 95% CI=1.11-3.76). 
There is a burden of MOV and under immunized children in the population. Direct interventions that target rural poor and focus on equity gaps that relate to maternal education, socio-economic status, and family planning, should be implemented. Such strategies should aim at reducing MOV for the achievement of the immunization agenda 2030 goals.  

Audience Take Away:

•    Exploring survey dataset after the first publication of survey report is somewhat helpful because it provides more insights on secondary immunization indicator performance;
•    This was an academic exercise that can be taught to students to enable them with skill gaining in data analysis;
•    This is an example of data analysis that can help countries going through their published survey data.

 

Biography:

Dr Solange Whegang Youdom studied Mathematics and applied statistics at the University of Yaounde I-Cameroon and University of Paris Descartes-France. She joined the Department of Public Health and Epidemiology at the University of Dschang (Cameroon), Faculty of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Science where, she is currently a Senior Lecturer in Statistics. She is interested in public health and epidemiology, Biostatistics, modelling and analysis of complex sampling survey. She has published several research articles.

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