Experiences and perceptions about vaccines and reporting of adverse events following immunisation: a qualitative study among mothers in Northern Ghana

Immunisation is an essential and cost-effective way of preventing infectious diseases. The emergence of new diseases, including COVID-19, along with advancements in malaria vaccines, has potentially led to an increase in vaccinations, particularly among children under 5 years old in Africa. However, concerns about vaccine safety have led to a decline in trust and greater vaccine hesitancy, as evidenced by the low uptake of newly introduced vaccines like the pneumococcal vaccine-13 in Ghana.Adverse events following immunisation (AEFIs) may range from mild to severe and are of concern because vaccines are generally given to healthy people. To monitor vaccine safety, it is important that those who experience adverse events report to the nearest health facility, but compliance is low in Ghana. This study explored the knowledge and experiences of mothers in northern Ghana regarding vaccine safety and adverse event reporting procedures.

This cross-sectional exploratory study used a qualitative research design that involved 10 focus group discussions (FGDs) with mothers from 5 administrative regions in resource-limited Northern Ghana. Participants for the FGDs were selected through a purposive sampling method at childhood vaccination clinics. All the interviews were recorded, transcribed and coded into themes using QSR NVivo V.12 software to aid thematic content analysis.

The results revealed that mothers understood the need for vaccinations, although some were unaware of the diseases that the vaccines protect against. Even though most mothers knew about the benefits of vaccinations, many expressed concerns about the pain and discomfort their children experienced during the process. Furthermore, they noted that the absence of responses from health workers following the reporting of AEFIs, the belief that adverse events are commonplace, and previous vaccination experiences all influenced AEFI reporting. The fear of serious adverse events such as paralysis, coupled with insufficient explanation of the benefits, may dissuade parents from allowing their children to receive vaccinations. The findings also revealed that mothers were not adequately informed about vaccines and the need for them to report adverse events.

Many individuals regard vaccines as an essential public health intervention for preventing diseases and their related complications. Public health agencies and healthcare providers ought to address concerns about vaccine adverse events by providing thorough education for mothers about vaccines and AEFI reporting.