Caregivers’ perceptions of routine immunisation service performance across availability, accessibility, quality, responsiveness and satisfaction in Adamawa State, Nigeria: A mixed-methods study
- 1Sydani Initiative for International Development, Sydani Group, Abuja
- 2Sydani Institute for Research and Innovation, Sydani Group, Abuja, Nigeria; and Department of Statistics, Faculty of Physical Sciences, University of Abuja, Abuja
- 3Sydani Group, Abuja
Abstract
Background: Globally, 14.3 million children remain unvaccinated, with a large proportion residing in low- and middle-income countries, including Nigeria. Despite ongoing efforts to improve immunisation coverage, substantial gaps in uptake persist. Aim: This study assessed caregivers’ perceptions of routine immunisation service performance across five domains: availability, accessibility, quality of care, responsiveness and satisfaction in Adamawa State, Nigeria. Setting: Ten Local Government Areas in Adamawa State, Nigeria. Methods: A mixed-methods study combining a descriptive cross-sectional survey with qualitative in-depth interviews was conducted among caregivers of children under 5 years in 10 purposively selected local government areas (LGAs) in Adamawa State. Quantitatively, 685 caregivers were selected using probability proportional to size sampling from catchment settlements of supported facilities. Qualitatively, 120 caregivers (12 per LGA) were purposively selected for in-depth interviews. Data were collected using a community scorecard and a structured interview guide. Results: Routine immunisation performance varied across LGAs and domains. Guyuk recorded the highest scores for availability (81.3), quality of care (84.6), responsiveness (81.3), and satisfaction (89.2), while Toungo recorded the lowest scores across most domains. Accessibility demonstrated the greatest variability, with lower scores observed in Fufore, Numan and Toungo. Qualitative findings showed that respectful communication, perceived vaccine benefits and positive provider interactions enhanced caregiver satisfaction, while delays, travel burden and poor queue management reduced service experience. Conclusion: Improving session timeliness, health worker availability, vaccine supply and respectful communication may strengthen routine immunisation uptake and equity, particularly in lower-performing LGAs. Contribution: This study provides community-level evidence on routine immunisation service experience and satisfaction.
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BibTeX
@article{jimoh2026caregivers,
title = {{Caregivers’ perceptions of routine immunisation service performance across availability, accessibility, quality, responsiveness and satisfaction in Adamawa State, Nigeria: A mixed-methods study}},
author = {Akolade U. Jimoh and Rauf I. Rauf and Sunday Atobatele and Daniel Azuka and Stephen O. Asaolu and Edikan Uwatt and Oladayo Awoyale and Akudo Alli and Ejovi Akpojaro and Temitope Kassim and Kehinde Olu-Onifade and Sidney Sampson},
journal = {African Journal of Primary Health Care \& Family Medicine},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.4102/phcfm.v18i1.5613},
url = {https://doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v18i1.5613},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Caregivers’ perceptions of routine immunisation service performance across availability, accessibility, quality, responsiveness and satisfaction in Adamawa State, Nigeria: A mixed-methods study
AU - Akolade U. Jimoh
AU - Rauf I. Rauf
AU - Sunday Atobatele
AU - Daniel Azuka
AU - Stephen O. Asaolu
AU - Edikan Uwatt
AU - Oladayo Awoyale
AU - Akudo Alli
AU - Ejovi Akpojaro
AU - Temitope Kassim
AU - Kehinde Olu-Onifade
AU - Sidney Sampson
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine
DO - 10.4102/phcfm.v18i1.5613
UR - https://doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v18i1.5613
AB - Background: Globally, 14.3 million children remain unvaccinated, with a large proportion residing in low- and middle-income countries, including Nigeria. Despite ongoing efforts to improve immunisation coverage, substantial gaps in uptake persist. Aim: This study assessed caregivers’ perceptions of routine immunisation service performance across five domains: availability, accessibility, quality of care, responsiveness and satisfaction in Adamawa State, Nigeria. Setting: Ten Local Government Areas in Adamawa State, Nigeria. Methods: A mixed-methods study combining a descriptive cross-sectional survey with qualitative in-depth interviews was conducted among caregivers of children under 5 years in 10 purposively selected local government areas (LGAs) in Adamawa State. Quantitatively, 685 caregivers were selected using probability proportional to size sampling from catchment settlements of supported facilities. Qualitatively, 120 caregivers (12 per LGA) were purposively selected for in-depth interviews. Data were collected using a community scorecard and a structured interview guide. Results: Routine immunisation performance varied across LGAs and domains. Guyuk recorded the highest scores for availability (81.3), quality of care (84.6), responsiveness (81.3), and satisfaction (89.2), while Toungo recorded the lowest scores across most domains. Accessibility demonstrated the greatest variability, with lower scores observed in Fufore, Numan and Toungo. Qualitative findings showed that respectful communication, perceived vaccine benefits and positive provider interactions enhanced caregiver satisfaction, while delays, travel burden and poor queue management reduced service experience. Conclusion: Improving session timeliness, health worker availability, vaccine supply and respectful communication may strengthen routine immunisation uptake and equity, particularly in lower-performing LGAs. Contribution: This study provides community-level evidence on routine immunisation service experience and satisfaction.
SN - 2071-2928
SN - 2071-2936
ER -