Vaccine completeness and determinants study: Kabinda, DRC 2016

The health situation of newborns and children is currently marked by excess mortality due to preventable causes. The Kabinda Health Zone is no exception to this rule. It presents a major risk of occurrence of vaccine-preventable diseases. Less than 40% of children in the Lomami Province, where Kabinda is located, are fully vaccinated. The objectives of this study are to highlight the coverage of fully immunized children and to determine the factors associated with the immunization completeness of children aged 12 to 23 months. At the end of our observations, we found that the immunization coverage was insufficient in relation to the objective set by the health zone. The factors identified above, essentially lack of knowledge on the part of parents, home deliveries and long distances, are identical to those found by other Congolese and African authors (Boko, Simon Franck, Ouedraougo, etc.). The effective application of the Reach Every Health Zone (RAHZ) approach integrated into the Minimum Package of Activities (MPA) is the most effective solution for improving this coverage.

Autorentext

Joseph Kasongo Wa Kasongo, MD, MPH, International Health. Médico Chefe da Zona Kabinda. Licenciado com Mestrado em Desenvolvimento pelo Departamento de Saúde, especializado em Saúde Internacional na Universidade de Senghor de Alexandria, no Egipto. Prémio Internacional Wallonie-Bruxelles: Prémio de Excelência atribuído ao Major da especialidade de Saúde Internacional.