Using best-worst scaling to rank factors affecting vaccination demand in northern Nigeria

BACKGROUND: Understanding and ranking the reasons for low vaccination uptake among parents in northern Nigeria is critical to implement effective policies to save lives and prevent illnesses. This study applies best-worst scaling (BWS) to rank various factors affecting parents' demand for routine childhood immunization.

METHODS: We conducted a household survey in Nahuche, Zamfara State in northern Nigeria. Nearly two hundred parents with children under age five were asked about their views on 16 factors using a BWS technique. These factors focused on known attributes that influence the demand for childhood immunization, which were identified from a literature review and reviewed by a local advisory board. The survey systematically presented parents with subsets of six factors and asked them to choose which they think are the most and least important in decisions to vaccinate children. We used a sequential best-worst analysis with conditional logistic regression to rank factors.

RESULTS: The perception that vaccinating a child makes one a good parent was the most important motivation for parents in northern Nigeria to vaccinate children. Statements related to trust and social norms were ranked higher in importance compared to those that highlighted perceived benefits and risks, healthcare service, vaccine information, or opportunity costs. Fathers ranked trust in the media and views of their leaders to be of greatest importance, whereas mothers placed greater importance on social perceptions and norms. Parents of children without routine immunization ranked their trust in local leaders about vaccines higher in considerations, and the media's views lower, compared to parents with children who received routine immunization.

CONCLUSIONS: Framing immunization messages in the context of good parenting and hearing these messages from trusted information sources may motivate parental uptake of childhood vaccines. These results are useful to policymakers to prioritize resources in order to increase awareness and demand for childhood immunization.