Influence of Parents' Residential Location and Level of Knowledge ofVaccine Preventable Diseases on the Acceptance of Childhood Immumization in the North-East Zone, Nigeria
Keywords:
Acceptance, Childhood Immunization, Residential location, Knowledge, Vaccine preventable disesasesAbstract
Childhood immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically
by the administration of a vaccine. This study investigated influence of parents' residential location and level of
knowledge of vaccine preventable diseases on the acceptance of childhood immunization in Northeast Nigeria. The study
adopted a cross-sectional descriptive survey design involving 400 parents of children under five years, using two step
sampling procedure. Data were collected using a researcher-developed instrument titled “Influence of Parents'
Residential Location and level of knowledge of Vaccine-preventable diseases on Childhood Immunization Acceptance
Questionnaire (IPRLLKV-PDCIAQ)”, which was validated by experts and pilot-tested for reliability. Out of the 400-
questionnaire administered, 392 (98%) were correctly completed and successfully retrieved for analysis. Data were
analysed using descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression at a significance level of p < .05. Results revealed that
overall parental acceptance of childhood immunization was moderate at 52.8%. Residential location revealed that urban
parents had the highest acceptance (77.3%), with urban residence significantly increasing the likelihood of acceptance
(OR = 18.670, 95% CI: 9.370–37.186, p < .001). Knowledge of vaccine-preventable diseases was a powerful predictor;
parents with good knowledge had 94.6% acceptance rate (OR = 141.270, 95% CI: 55.375–356.943, p < .001). The study
concludes that improving parental knowledge, alongside addressing geographical location gaps, are critical for boosting
immunization uptake in Northeast Nigeria. Targeted health education, community engagement, and context-specific
outreach programmes are recommended to close acceptance gaps and strengthen child health outcomes in the region.
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