Exploring the Perceptions and Experiences of Mobile Teams on COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake at the Community Level: Evidence from Benue and Niger States

Background After the adoption of several non-pharmaceutical measures, vaccines were developed to ameliorate the menace of the COVID-19 pandemic and improve the global population’s well-being in less than a year, resulting in the largest vaccination campaign in human history. Nigeria received nearly 4 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, shipped via the COVAX Facility, marking a historic step towards ensuring equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines globally. The NPHCDA in collaboration with implementing partners engaged ad-hoc health workers to facilitate outreaches in different communities and settlements as a strategy to optimize COVID-19 vaccination in Nigeria. Objective This study seeks to explore the perceptions and experiences of mobile teams in various communities during their implementation of COVID-19 vaccination. Methods Our study adopted an exploratory research design to acquire qualitative data from purposively selected populations in two North Central states in Nigeria. Focus Group Discussions (FDGs) were moderated among 12 mobile vaccination teams from 12 LGAs across Benue and Niger states to elicit information from participants at the Community Level. Results A total of 72 health workers including vaccinators, validators, EMID recorders, social mobilizers, and paper recorders participated in the study. Nearly 3 out of every 5 (58.3%) participants were female by gender, as over one-quarter (27.8%) of the study participants are National Certificate Examination (NCE) degree holders. Using the health building blocks, we found that health workers experienced challenges across service delivery, health information systems, finance, and vaccine and logistics. These challenges include misconceptions about the vaccine, requests for incentives in exchange for the vaccine, poor network services, inadequate stipends, distance to communities, lack of transportation, and vaccine stockout. Conclusion Our study concludes that stakeholders across all levels directly and indirectly involved in community health interventions should provide all necessary support to mobile health workers to limit their challenges.