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Background: Acceptance of vaccines has been on a decline in recent times, with vaccine hesitancy being listed as one of the top 10 global health threats. This study analysed vaccine hesitancy and belief towards vaccination among caregivers of children aged below 5 years. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 196 caregivers of children aged 6 months to below 5 years who had attended an immunization clinic at a tertiary care institute of Eastern India from March to May 2019 were surveyed. Consecutive sampling was used to recruit eligible study participants. The survey assessed the attitudes of parents towards childhood vaccination by using the Vaccine Hesitancy Scale and their beliefs towards vaccination. Univariate analysis was performed to assess the association of various sociodemographic factors with vaccine hesitancy. Results: Among the caregivers, most (48%) mothers were aged 26–35 years, literate and homemakers. Vaccine hesitancy was observed in 9.18% of the participants. Only the age of the child was significantly associated with vaccine hesitancy. Nearly half (48.5%) of the participants were concerned about the serious adverse effects of vaccines, and a third (30.6%) agreed that newer vaccines are associated with higher risks than the older ones. Caregivers felt that vaccines are no longer required for uncommon diseases. Conclusion: Concerns regarding vaccine hesitancy are prevalent even among caregivers attending a tertiary care institute. Thus, additional studies are required to assess hesitancy in urban, rural, remote and inaccessible areas. Policymakers ought to conduct periodic assessments and implement necessary remedial measures for the long-term sustenance of the benefits of the national immunization programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Little information is available about dropout from treatment for children and adolescents attending the various psychiatric services. Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the drop-out rates of patients attending child and adolescent psychiatry services. Methods: A retrospective review of 2249 case records of all patients aged up to 15 years registered in child and adolescent psychiatry services from 1st January 2017 to 31st December 2018 was carried out. Details regarding socio-demographic data, clinical data and follow up status were extracted from the records. Results: The mean age of the study sample was 11.11(SD: 3.58) years. About two-fifth (n=1003; 43.99 %) did not follow up at all after the first walk-in contact. Additionally, about one-tenth (n=247; 11 %) dropped out by the one month of the first contact, another one-eighth (n=275; 12.2 %) dropped out by 3 months of the first contact with outpatient services and another one-eighth (n=301; 13.4%) dropped out of the follow-up by 6 months of the first contact. Only one-fifth (n=423; 18.8%) of the patients followed up beyond 6 months of the first walk-in contact. No significant difference was noted between those who continued to follow-up and those who dropped out in terms of age group, gender, and the number of diagnoses made at the initial evaluation. Those who dropped out of treatment were less often prescribed medications in the form of antipsychotics or antidepressants. Conclusion: This study shows that there is a high dropout rate from the child and adolescent psychiatric outpatient services. Accordingly, strategies need to be developed to minimize dropout rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]