Knowledge of vaccine handlers and status of cold chain and vaccine management in primary health care facilities of Tigray region, Northern Ethiopia: Institutional based cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background Ethiopia federal ministry of health has been working on increasing access to immunization service by deploying solar refrigerators to primary health care facilities. However, there is limited evidence on cold chain and vaccine management status. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess knowledge of vaccine handlers and status of cold chain and vaccine management and their associated factors in primary health care facilities of Tigray region Northern Ethiopia. Methods Institutional based cross-sectional study was conducted in four randomly selected districts of Tigray region, Northern Ethiopia. In each selected district, all primary health care facilities with functional vaccine refrigerators were included in the study. Data were collected using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire. The collected data were entered into Epi-data version 3.1 and then exported to Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21 for analysis. All variables with p-value of < 0.25 in bivariate logistic regression analysis were included in multi-variable model to identify predictors of the dependent variables. Results In this study, fifty Primary Health Care Facilities (PHCFs) were included with a response rate of 94.4%. The overall level of good knowledge of vaccine handlers and good status of cold chain and vaccine management were 48% (95% CI; 30.7%-62%) and 46% (95%CI; 26.1%-61.3%) respectively. Receiving training on cold chain and vaccine management (AOR = 5.18; 95%CI: 1.48–18.18) was significantly associated with knowledge of vaccine handlers. Furthermore, receiving supportive supervision (AOR = 4.58; 95%CI: 1.04–20.17) and good knowledge of vaccine handlers (AOR = 10.97; 95%CI: 2.67–45.07) were significant associated with cold chain and vaccine management. Conclusions This study showed that knowledge of vaccine handlers on cold chain and vaccine management was poor. Similarly, the cold chain and vaccine management status was also poor. Therefore, on-site training should be provided to vaccine handlers to increase their knowledge, so as to improve their practices on cold chain and vaccine management. In addition, Programme based supportive supervision is needed to improve cold chain and vaccine management.

Vaccine Management Knowledge and Practice of Health workers in Yemen

“…Also, most of the health workers (96.8%) knew the recommended temperature range for storage of routine vaccines (like Penta, Rota and PCV) at the health facility. These findings are consistent with the results of the studies conducted in Oromia, Ethiopia (96.9%) [7], Malaysia (95.5%) [14] and Tigray Ethiopia (80%) [15]. However, the results are higher than those reported in studies done in Bale and Gurage zone, Ethiopia (67.8% and 71.1%) [16,17], Cameroon (68.5%) [18], Mozambique (52%) [19] and Nigeria (52%) [20].…”

“…The findings from the study revealed that 79.3% had correct knowledge of the tool (vaccine vial monitor) that shows vaccine exposure to heat and 81.7% knew the discard points of the VVM stages. These results were found to be higher than those reported in other studies conducted in Tigray region, northern Ethiopia (64%) [15], Gojam zone, Ethiopia (58.3%) [22], Nigeria (45.3%) [20] and Ghana (38.1%) [1].…”

“…In this study, only 38.8% of the health workers knew that EEFO principle should be applied for vaccine stock management at all levels of immunization supply chain. This result is lower compared to a study conducted in Tigray Northern Ethiopia (66%) [15]. and East Gojam in Ahmara region where 43.3% of the respondent applied the principle [22].…”

“…Earlier Expiry First Out (EEFO) principle is the method of vaccine management which involves issuing products with the earliest expiry date first, regardless of the order in which they are received) to reduce vaccine wastage [15,22]. In this study, only 38.8% of the health workers knew that EEFO principle should be applied for vaccine stock management at all levels of immunization supply chain.…”

Vaccine Cold Chain Management and Associated Factors in Public Health Facilities and District Health Offices of Wolaita Zone, Ethiopia

“…In Ethiopia, vaccine-preventable diseases are substantially contributing to under-five mortality. 8 The main problem in Ethiopia has been vaccines losing their potency during storage at the center, even if they were potent on arrival, which enhances the chances of several outbreaks from different parts of Ethiopia. 9 In addition according to reports from several findings in Ethiopia, the majority of facilities in Ethiopia have registered poor vaccine management practices and factors like EPI-related training, work experiences, and knowledge of cold chain management were reported as factors related to cold chain management practices.…”