Promoting Awareness of Childhood Vaccines in the Uyghur Turk Community in Türkiye: A Heath Education Intervention

Background: Vaccine hesitancy and low immunization coverage remain major challenges among the Uyghur Turk community in Türkiye, compounded by linguistic, cultural, and socioeconomic barriers. The 2022 measles outbreak, which disproportionately affected Uyghur children, underscored the urgent need for targeted interventions. Methods: The project Promoting Awareness of Childhood Vaccines in the Uyghur Turk Community in Türkiye: A Health Education Intervention was implemented by university lecturers and involved two community-based educational sessions conducted in Istanbul and Konya in 2025, reaching 106 adult participants. Each session included pre- and post-tests, presentations integrating scientific and Islamic perspectives on vaccination, interactive discussions, and the distribution of culturally and linguistically tailored educational materials. Results: A total of 106 participants were included, with the majority aged 25–44 years (57.5%) and females representing 56.6%. The intervention substantially improved vaccine-related knowledge, perceptions, and trust. Belief in the necessity of childhood vaccines increased from 73.6% to 98.0%, confidence in vaccine safety rose from 63.2% to 93.1%, and awareness of herd immunity improved from 60.4% to 99.0%. Trust in the Ministry of Health’s vaccine decisions increased from 57.5% to 87.1%, while agreement that vaccination is permissible in Islam rose from 61.3% to 97.0%. Concerns about multiple vaccines, vaccine ingredients, and negative effects on child development decreased markedly. Remaining challenges included beliefs in natural immunity (20.8%), doubts about certain vaccines (11.9%), and concerns regarding long-term MMR vaccine effects (23.8%). Conclusion: Culturally and linguistically adapted health education that integrates scientific evidence with religious perspectives can effectively enhance vaccine knowledge, attitudes, and trust among underserved communities. Sustained community engagement, follow-up, and improved access to vaccination services are crucial to maintain these gains, offering a scalable model to address vaccine hesitancy among minority and migrant populations globally.