Factors Affecting Children Immunization among Rural Farmers in Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The health of any child depends greatly on immunization against certain diseases especially at the early stage of development. Adequate immunization of children serves as a means of preventing them from possible childhood diseases and various health challenges. The study therefore examined factors affecting children immunization among rural farmers in Ondo state, Nigeria. Simple random sampling was used to collect data from 90 respondents. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used in analysing the data. The study revealed that 92.2 percent of the respondents were females. The mean age was 45 years and 63.5 percent were above 40 years. About 76.7 percent were married, 73.6 percent had formal education and 70 percent were farmers by primary occupation. The study also showed that the respondents were aware of children immunization from different sources, which include media sources, personal knowledge, rallies and campaigns, while very few respondents were not aware. The study indicated that the respondents agreed that factors such as; access to information/media, mother’s educational level, farmers age, gender, farmers experience, availability of drugs and vaccines to a great extent influences the acceptance of children immunization while factors such as Inadequate capital, fear of side effects and unwanted/teenage pregnancy contributes tremendously to the rejection of children immunization.