VACCINE HESITANCY-MEASURING THE MAGNITUDE AND PROVIDING POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE IN MEWAT DISTRICT OF THE NORTHERN INDIAN STATE HARYANA

Objective: To understand the magnitude of vaccine hesitancy, its proximal determinants, and recommend specific interventions to address it in Mewat district (also known as Nuh), Haryana. Design: A mixed-method study design was adopted which involved: Household survey (479 households) and key informant interviews with healthcare providers (10 service providers). Setting: Four blocks namely, Nuh, Ferozepur-Jhirka, Punahana, and Taoru of Mewat district, Haryana. Results: In Mewat, age-appropriate vaccination was observed in 48.8% of the children, whereas 31.6% were partially vaccinated and 19.6% were unvaccinated. Fear of side effects of vaccination (35.0%) was one of the main reasons for partial and no immunization. About 22.1% of households in Mewat were either hesitant or refused to vaccinate their children. Out of all four blocks, Punahana block had 33.3%, the highest proportion of vaccine hesitant or refusal households. A strong patriarchal society with low women empowerment was observed in the community while interacting with beneficiaries and front-line-workers. Further, there existed a misconception that vaccines cause infertility, which leads to gender disparity in immunization of children and could potentially be the reason for outright rejection of vaccines. Conclusion: Multi-dimensional, gender and culturally sensitive approaches are required to address the issue of vaccine hesitancy in the area. Involvement of other line departments like Department of Women and Child Development (DWCD), Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI), Public Relations etc will help in catalyzing the adopted strategies and sustain the achievements in the long run.