Effect of Educational Intervention on Knowledge for Immunization Among Mothers With Under-5 Children in Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study assessed the effects of educational intervention on the knowledge of immunization among mothers with under-5 children in Oyo state, Nigeria Methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted among 60 mothers of under-5 children recruited by multistage sampling technique divided into intervention and control groups. There was a baseline assessment of mothers’ knowledge in both the intervention and control groups using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire. Thereafter, immunization education training was given via lectures and demonstrations and another assessment was done post-intervention. Six weeks after the intervention, another assessment of the same mothers was conducted with the same instrument. Mother and knowledge responses were measured on a 33-point rating scale. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS version 23 to generate descriptive and inferential results. Results: At the baseline, the mother knowledge in the control group had a mean score of 7.70±1.50 while the experimental group had a mean score of 9.6±2.60. At the immediate post-intervention stage, there was a statistically significant increase in the mean knowledge score of the experimental group (15.67±3.28; p = 0.000) while there was no increase in the mean knowledge score of the control group (8.83±2.36). This significant increase in the mean knowledge score of the experimental group (21.80±3.50; p = 0.000) was also observed during a 6-week follow-up period. Conclusion/Recommendation: The immunization education training was effective in improving the mothers’ knowledge. It is recommended that mothers of under-5 children should be trained on the importance of immunization appointment-keeping practice by the government.