Abstract

The study aimed to determine malaria vaccine perception, awareness, and acceptance among mothers of children aged 0-5 years in the Mile 16 community through a descriptive cross-sectional study involving 50 participants. The research utilized a semi-structured questionnaire addressing demographic data, awareness, perception, and acceptance of the malaria vaccine.

Results indicated that 40% of participants had received information about the vaccine from healthcare workers, and 68% had not yet vaccinated their children, but 57% expressed willingness to vaccinate if the vaccine became available. Positive perceptions were noted, with 72% agreeing that the vaccine was effective and 56% affirming its importance for child health.

However, 70% felt inadequately informed to make decisions. Acceptance was generally favorable, with 64% expressing positive attitudes toward vaccinating their children. The findings suggest a generally positive perception and willingness to accept the malaria vaccine if made available, despite gaps in information and accessibility.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Malaria is a serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by parasites that are transmitted to humans through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. The parasites infect red blood cells, leading to symptoms such as fever, chills, fatigue, and flu-like illness. If not treated promptly, malaria can cause severe complications and organ failure. The disease is most commonly found in tropical and subtropical regions.

1.1 Background of the study

Malaria infection remains one of the leading causes of death in sub-Saharan Africa. Over the years, several measures have been implemented for the prevention of malaria, including vector control with insecticide-treated nets, indoor residual spraying, and seasonal or traveling prophylactics. In 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) approved the use of the malaria vaccine in children (Taiwo et al., 2022).

Malaria is a disease of public health concern and in endemic areas, pregnant women and children under-five years are vulnerable to the disease. The introduction of the pilot program of a malaria vaccine for children under-five years in Ghana is an intervention to further reduce the burden of the disease (Bam et al., 2023) Malaria remains a serious public health problem in Cameroon.Malaria vaccine is one of the novel strategies currently being evaluated for use in malaria control in children under five (Sani et al., 2022)

While focus is more on the development of a vaccine, less attention has been paid on the extent to which such vaccines could be well accepted and the readiness among caregivers to comply with its use in order to achieve the effectiveness of the vaccine in the malaria endemic areas. Compliance rates are influenced by the level of awareness, as well as the perception of the population (Uchechukwu et al., 2018).

Malaria is the most widespread endemic disease in Cameroon, responsible for 2.7 million reported cases, and absenteeism from school and work annually. At the national level, the number of cases recorded in health facilities, stagnant since 2011, has shown an increasing trend since 2017. The number of deaths, after a downward trend over several years, went upward in 2017 and is now showing a small decrease since 2019. In response to this increasing burden, the Government of Cameroon has made the fight against malaria a priority, highlighting the country’s Health Sector Strategy and the adoption of the High Burden High Impact (HBHI) stratification exercise in the National Malaria Strategic Plan (USAID, 2018).

Malaria vaccine, RTS, S/AS01, has demonstrated modest efficacy against malaria and holds promises for children living in areas where malaria transmission is high (Yetunde et al., 2023).  The R21 vaccine is the second malaria vaccine recommended by WHO, following the RTS,S/AS01 vaccine, which received a WHO recommendation in 2021. Both vaccines are shown to be safe and effective in preventing malaria in children and, when implemented broadly, are expected to have high public health impact. Malaria, a mosquito-borne disease, places a particularly high burden on children in the African Region, where nearly half a million children die from the disease each year (WHO, 2023).

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended a new vaccine, R21/Matrix-M, for the prevention of malaria in children. The recommendation follows advice from the WHO: Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) and the Malaria Policy Advisory Group (MPAG) and was endorsed by the WHO Director-General following its regular biannual meeting held on 25-29 September (WHO, 2023).

Malaria vaccines protect against malaria infection in varying degrees, with severe side effects rarely occurring (Chutiyami et al., 2024). Vaccination has contributed to major reductions in global morbidity and mortality, but there remain significant coverage gaps (Moubassira et al., 2018).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

While focus is more on the development of a vaccine, less attention has been paid on the extent to which such vaccines could be well accepted and the readiness among caregivers to comply with its use in order to achieve the effectiveness of the vaccine in the malaria endemic areas. Compliance rates are influenced by the level of awareness, as well as the perception of the population (Uchechukwu et al., 2018).

The introduction of the pilot program of a malaria vaccine for children under-five years is an intervention to further reduce the burden of the disease. However, the availability of the vaccine does not necessarily mean it will be accepted by the public.  The level of malaria vaccine awareness and acceptance among the population of mile 16 is not known. Therefore this study aims to assess malaria vaccine perception, awareness and acceptance among mothers in the mile 16 community.

1.3. Research questions

1. What is the perception of malaria vaccine among mothers of children 0-5 years in the mile 16 Community
2. What is the level of knowledge of malaria vaccine among the mothers of children 0-5 years
3. What the level of malaria vaccine acceptance among the mothers of children 0-5 years

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