Assessment of Factors Related to Reporting AEFIs and Parameters for Vaccine Safety Surveillance Improvement: Healthcare Workers Perspective in FCT, Nigeria |Biomedgrid

The gross under-reporting of Adverse Event Following Immunizations (AEFIs) does not permit for appropriate planning and decision making. The objectives of this study were to evaluate health care workers' perspectives, identify barriers to reporting of AEFIs and the parameters for improvement in AEFI surveillance. A mixed method approach was employed to evaluate healthcare workers Knowledge, Attitude and Practice towards AEFI monitoring and reporting using semi-structured questionnaires. Fifteen indepth interviews of key managers of immunization were conducted to further understand the barriers to reporting and parameters for improving AEFI reporting. Responses were audio-taped and handwritten. Data were analyzed by transcribing recorded tapes into major themes. Most of the interviewed healthcare workers had good knowledge of AEFIs with statistically significant difference in knowledge between the different qualification levels at p=0.003. Results showed various facility management of identified AEFIs without appropriate documentation which may have contributed to the gross under-reporting of AEFIs. Majority of the participants acknowledged barriers to AEFI to include poor funding and logistic support to conduct AEFI investigations and surveillance, lack of staff motivation and poor transmission of identified AEFIs to the relevant authorities for decision making. Key recommendations for improvement and sustainability of the system include training and retraining of health care workers and provision of adequate government budgetary allocations for immunization and AEFI surveillance. There is under-reporting of AEFIs across the different levels of healthcare where immunization activities take place.