Improving Routine Immunization Services

The COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented in its scale and impact globally with regard to disruption of routine immunization services. In the states of West Bengal and Jharkhand, we support and strengthen existing government systems for routine immunization for children and pregnant women. Through this project, we aim to identify drop-out, left-out and zero-dose children, provide timely routine and catchup vaccines to those due and those missed because of pandemic-related disruptions, and integrate services for routine immunization with COVID-19 care and prevention services.

In Mewat district in Haryana, our project draws on the socio-ecological model to mobilize community for spreading awareness about the significance of routine immunization. Vaccination Knowledge Hubs established at the village level act as centers for knowledge sharing and training for the frontline health workers and peer leaders to become child rights advocates regarding routine immunization. The monitoring and evaluation component of this project will capture the effect of community mobilization and vaccination knowledge hub on the uptake of vaccination among pregnant women and children.