Caregivers’ knowledge of pneumonia and uptake of vaccination in under-five children in Kaduna State, Nigeria

Pneumonia, though very much a preventable disease, still remains a tangible threat to the lives of under-5 children. Caregivers’ knowledge of pneumonia is important in effective management. The study determinedthe reported proportion of childhood pneumonia in Kaduna State and assessed caregivers’ knowledge of pneumonia and uptake of pneumococcal vaccine among under-5 children. The mixed method research approach used 500 caregivers of under-five children in urban and rural communities in Kaduna state. Ethical approval and informed consent of participants was obtained before data collection using a pre-tested semistructured questionnaire and a focus group discussion guide. Chi-square statistical test was used to test for association between variables, while data from the focus group discussion was analyzed using thematic coding process. Most respondents were aware of pneumonia, they had local names for it but majority 340 (68%) had poor knowledge of pneumonia. The overall occurrence of pneumonia as reported by respondents among under-five children was 33 (6.6%). The rate of child pneumococcal vaccine uptake as reported by respondents was 105 (21%), the uptake was significantly more among the urban dwellers (p<0.01). The knowledge of pneumonia and uptake of pneumococcal vaccination was poor. Routine and constant health education of the community members on pneumonia is very necessary to preserve lives of under-5 children in our communities.Journal of Medical and Biomedical Sciences (2018) 7(1), 40 - 48