Association Between Maternal Literacy and Child Immunization According to the Expanded Program on Immunization Schedule in a Primary Health Care Center of a Squatter Settlement in Karachi

Abstract

Background An increase in maternal education may influence vaccine administration to a significant extent, therefore reducing the childhood mortality rate. Hence, this survey aims to establish an association between maternal literacy and childhood immunization in children under five years of age. Methods A questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was conducted in a primary healthcare center of a squatter settlement in Karachi, Pakistan. Mothers of 250 children under the age of five years were interviewed. We used IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, version 20 (released 2011; IBM Corp., Armonk, New York, United States) for data analysis to assess the relationship between maternal education and childhood immunization. Results The survey revealed that complete vaccination coverage among children under five years of age (n=250) was 71.7%, while 24.6% were partially vaccinated and 2% were unvaccinated. The most common reason for unvaccinated children was the parents' personal choice (80%), while incomplete vaccination was majorly due to a medical condition (30.2%).  Conclusion According to the survey, maternal educational qualification did not prove to be directly associated with vaccination coverage in children. However, a multi-centered study with larger sample size and multiple populations as targets would provide more accurate outcomes.