Assessing How the Packaging of Immunization Services Influence Uptake of the Immunization Services in Selected Health Facilities of Kajiado North Sub-County Kenya

Abstract

Background: Immunization as a preventive measure to diseases is vital to organizational performance. Among the six pillars of the health system, this research focused on service delivery. A desk review indicated that there was low immunization coverage in the County. The objectives of the study was to determine how the cultural values, packaging of immunization and health promotion supports the uptake of immunization services Methods: A cross-sectional study utilizing a guided questionnaire, targeting 280 mothers and an interview guide targeting 9 health workers were used. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 21 using descriptive statistics. Qualitative analysis was done by thematic content analysis and framework analysis. Results: Majority of the respondents (mothers) were young with a mean age of 26 years. 233 (83%) agreed that immunization program is well explained to them when they visit health facilities. More than half 183(65.4%) of mothers got the information about immunization through continuous health education routinely offered in health facilities, whereas a significantly low 39 (13.9%) mothers got the immunization information through community health promotion. The correlation of health education with awareness indicated a (P-value = 0.406**) A p-value of 0.209** indicates that frequent visits to the health facilities did not influence the awareness of mothers on the immunization services offered in health facilities. Conclusion: The researcher concluded that there is a relationship between immunization uptake and immunization health promotion activities and recommended that the County Government of Kajiado should introduce outreach services and intensify health promotion activities