Background Malaria continues to be a major disease of public health concern affecting several million people worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) started a pilot study on a malaria vaccine (RTS,S) in Ghana and two other countries in 2019. This study aimed at assessing the factors associated with uptake of the vaccine in the Sunyani Municipality of Ghana. Methods The study was a cross-sectional study employing a quantitative approach. Stratified sampling technique was used to select respondents. A structured questionnaire was administered to parents/caregivers with children eligible to have taken the first three doses of the malaria vaccine by December 2019. The Child Welfare Clinic (CWC) cards of the eligible children were also inspected. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was done to determine the association between the independent variables and full vaccine uptake. Results Uptake of RTS,S 1 was 94.1%. However, this figure reduced to 90.6% for RTS,S 2, and 78.1% for RTS,S 3. Children with a parent who had been educated up to the tertiary level had 4.72 (AOR: 4.72, 95% CI 1.27–17.55) increased odds of full uptake as compared to those who completed secondary education. Parents whose children had experienced fever as an adverse reaction were more likely to send their children for the malaria vaccine as compared to those whose children had ever suffered abscess as an adverse reaction (AOR: 2.27, 95% CI 1.13–5.10). Children with parents who thought vaccines were becoming too many for children had 71% (AOR: 0.29, 95% CI 0.14–0.61) reduced odds of full uptake as compared to those who thought otherwise. Conclusion Uptake of RTS,S 1 and RTS,S 2 in Sunyani Municipality meets the WHO’s target coverage for vaccines, however, RTS,S 3 uptake does not. Furthermore, there is a growing perception amongst parents/caregivers that vaccines are becoming too many for children which negatively affects uptake.

Résumé Introduction Le programme ghanéen de lutte contre les maladies tropicales négligées visait à sensibiliser la population aux géohelminthiases et à atteindre une couverture de 100 % de la chimiothérapie préventive (CTP) d'ici 2020. Cette étude vise à déterminer les facteurs associés au niveau de connaissances des enfants d’âge scolaire et à décrire leurs perceptions à Krachi East Municipal au Ghana. Patients et méthodes Il s'agissait d'une étude transversale à collecte quantitative et dans les ménages, effectuée en juillet-août 2020. Les enfants de 7-14 ans et leurs tuteurs, consentant librement à participer à l’étude, ont été sélectionnés selon un échantillonnage stratifié à deux degrés. Ainsi, 5 communautés rurales et 3 communautés urbaines ont été sélectionnées par échantillonnage aléatoire simple. Puis, un échantillonnage systématique a été appliqué pour sélectionner les enfants et leurs tuteurs dans les ménages. Les statistiques descriptives ont concerné individuellement les variables quantitatives et qualitatives. Une régression logistique binaire uni et multivariée a été réalisée pour déterminer les facteurs associés au niveau de connaissances des enfants, considérant un niveau de signification de 5 %. Résultats 352 enfants et 352 tuteurs provenant principalement de Dambai (66,48%) ont été interrogés. L’âge médian des enfants était de 11 (IIQ : 9-12) ans et les enfants étaient âgés de 7 à 14 ans. La majorité des enfants étaient de sexe masculin (53,13%), et les tuteurs de sexe féminin (66,48%). Les tuteurs avaient un âge compris entre 15 et 74 ans, avec un âge médian de 36 (IIQ : 30-45) ans. Ils étaient le plus souvent mariés (79,55%). La plupart des enfants ont perçu un bénéfice associé à la CTP (334; 94,89%). La proportion d'enfants percevant un risque associé à la CTP ne différait pas significativement de celle des enfants n'en percevant pas (49,72 % contre 50,28 %; p = 0,8802). Pour les élèves, les enseignants étaient leur principale source d'information sur les vers intestinaux (96,59%). La majorité d'entre eux percevait un soutien de leurs enseignants vis-à-vis de la CTP (96,00%). La proportion d'enfants ne connaissant pas les modes de transmission et les moyens de prévention des vers était respectivement de 41,48 % et de 33,24 %. Globalement, 115 enfants (32,67%) ne connaissaient pas les vers intestinaux. Après cumul des scores de connaissances et classification, les enfants avaient en général une mauvaise connaissance des géohelminthiases et de la CTP (91,19 % contre 8,81 %; p < 0,0001). La bonne connaissance était associée au groupe ethnique [Guan : ORa = 3,96 95%CI 1,11-14,12; p = 0,034], à l’âge de l'enfant [(11-12 ans : ORa = 6,05 95%CI 1,21-30,22; p = 0,026); (13-14 ans : ORa = 8,19 95%CI 1,64-40,89; p = 0,010)] et au sexe des tuteurs (Femme : ORa = 2,97 95%CI 1,02-8,66; p = 0,046) dans le modèle ajusté. Conclusion Les plus jeunes enfants et les tuteurs hommes semblent avoir...

Introduction: Malaria has and continues to be a major disease of public health concern affecting several million people worldwide. WHO started a pilot study on a malaria vaccine (RTS,S) in Ghana and two other countries in 2019. This study aimed at assessing the factors associated with uptake of the vaccine in the Sunyani Municipality of Ghana.Methods: The study was a cross-sectional study employing a quantitative approach. Stratified sampling technique was used to select respondents. A structured questionnaire was administered to parents/caregivers with children eligible to have taken the first three doses of the malaria vaccine by December 2019. The Child Welfare Clinic (CWC) cards of the eligible children were also inspected. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was done to determine the association between the independent variables and full vaccine uptake.Results: Uptake of RTS,S 1 was 94.1%. However, this figure reduced to 90.6% for RTS,S 2, and 78.1% for RTS,S 3. Children with a parent who had been educated up to the tertiary level had 4.72 [AOR: 4.72, 95%CI: 1.27 – 17.55] increased odds of full uptake as compared to those who completed secondary education. Parents whose children had experienced fever as an adverse reaction were more likely to send their kids for the malaria vaccine as compared to those who children had ever suffered abscess as an adverse reaction [AOR: 2.27, 95%CI: 1.13 – 5.10]. Children with parents who thought vaccines were becoming too many for children had 71% [AOR: 0.29, 95%CI: 0.14 – 0.61] reduced odds of full uptake as compared to those who thought otherwise.Conclusion: Uptake of RTS,S 1 and RTS,S 2 in Sunyani Municipality meets WHO’s target coverage for vaccines, however, RTS,S 3 uptake does not. Furthermore, there is a growing perception amongst parents/caregivers that vaccines are becoming too many for children which negatively affects uptake.