Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Routine Vaccination Coverage among Children of Age 15 to 23 Months in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic affected all socio-economic activities including the provision of routine vaccinations. Objective: This study determined the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on routine vaccination rates among children aged 15-23 months. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Lahore, from April 2021 to November 2021. The study included 750 children aged 15 to 23 months from the District of Lahore. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the outpatient department of Services Hospital, Lahore after informed consent. The data was analyzed by using SPSS version 26. The p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Among the study participants, 567 (75%) children had completed their routine vaccines according to the card. One hundred and eighty-three (24.2%) children were not fully vaccinated. Seven hundred and twenty-seven (96.2%) children had oral polio 1 (OPV I), while 693 (91.7%) had Pneumococcal 2 (PCV II), and 696 (92.1%) had taken the Pentavalent 1 vaccine. Measles 2 was received by only 604 (79.9%) children. Sixty-three (8.3%) mothers and caregivers were unaware of the need for vaccination. Twenty-seven (3.6%) mothers had no time to get their children vaccinated, and 27 (3.4%) were uninformed about their children’s vaccination appointments. Conclusion: The vaccination rate was 36% lower among children of ages 15-23 months in the Lahore district compared to the pre-pandemic era.