Assessment of Knowledge and Compliance with Routine Immunization among Nursing Mothers in Ekiti State

Abstract

This study was carried out to assess nursing mothers’ knowledge and compliance with routine childhood immunization. The descriptive research design of the survey type was adopted in this study. Four hundred and eighty nursing mothers having babies between 9 and 12 months, randomly selected from twelve health facilities in Ekiti State, participated in the study. Data was collected with the use of self-developed, validated questionnaire. Analysis of data was carried out using frequency counts, percentages, mean, ANOVA, and Pearson Product Moment Correlation, and all inferences were made at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that level of knowledge of routine childhood immunization among nursing mothers was moderate while the level of compliance was high. The age of mothers significantly influenced their knowledge. Younger mothers’ had better knowledge than older ones. Compliance of mothers with routine childhood immunization was significantly influenced by mothers’ educational status and their age. There is the need to intensify public health campaigns on the importance of routine childhood immunization to raise awareness of mothers on routine childhood immunization and sustain the high level of compliance already attained.