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Maternal Education and Immunization Status Among Children in Kenya

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Abstract

Child morbidity and mortality due to infectious diseases continues to be a major threat and public health concern worldwide. Although global vaccination coverage reached 90 % for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP3) across 129 countries, Kenya and other sub-Saharan countries continue to experience under-vaccination. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between maternal education and child immunization (12–23 months) in Kenya. This study used retrospective cross-sectional data from the 2008–2009 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey for women aged 15–49, who had children aged 12–23 months, and who answered questions about vaccination in the survey (n = 1,707). The majority of the children had received vaccinations, with 77 % for poliomyelitis, 74 % for measles, 94 % for tuberculosis, and 91 % for diphtheria, whooping cough (pertussis), and tetanus. After adjusting for other covariates, women with primary, secondary, and college/university education were between 2.21 (p < 0.01) and 9.10 (p < 0.001) times more likely to immunize their children than those who had less than a primary education. Maternal education is clearly crucial in ensuring good health outcomes among children, and integrating immunization knowledge with maternal and child health services is imperative. More research is needed to identify factors influencing immunization decisions among less-educated women in Kenya.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Nursing, Winston-Salem State University, 601 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27110, USA

    Elijah O. Onsomu & Janice Collins-McNeil

  2. Education Research Program, African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC), Kirawa Road, P.O. Box 10787-00100 GPO, Nairobi, Kenya

    Benta A. Abuya

  3. Department of Research and Policy, Imbako Public Health, 48 Old Roswell Street, Alpharetta, GA 30009, USA

    Irene N. Okech

  4. Imbako Public Health, P.O. Box 19500-00200, Nairobi, Kenya

    Irene N. Okech

  5. Department of Visual, Performing and Communication Arts, Johnson C. Smith University, 100 Beatties Ford Road, Charlotte, NC 28216, USA

    DaKysha Moore

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  1. Elijah O. Onsomu
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Correspondence to Elijah O. Onsomu.

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Onsomu, E.O., Abuya, B.A., Okech, I.N. et al. Maternal Education and Immunization Status Among Children in Kenya. Matern Child Health J 19, 1724–1733 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-015-1686-1

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