Cold chain management: Knowledge and practices in primary health care facilities in Niassa, Mozambique

Background: To maintain vaccines perfectly conserved from its manufacture through administration requires an adequate could chain infrastructure. At the end of the chain, primary health care providers must have adequate knowledge to manage the cold chain. Objective: The study describes an observed audit of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) in Niassa province of Mozambique. Methods: Data collection methods included questionnaires, observations and document analysis in 44 health facilities, 12 of which in district capitals, and the remaining 32 in peripheral health facilities in Niassa province. Findings: The results show that the principal explanatory variable for the inadequacies of the system was the location of the health facility as health workers in the peripheral health facilities were in general less educated, had less work experience and their knowledge of cold chain was not as per required levels to support effective cold chain management. Conclusions: The study strongly indicates the need to improve and integrate the knowledge and practices on cold chain management, especially to the peripheral level workers, by providing them with adequate training and supervision, and demonstrating how that can be effectively integrated with practice. The Ethiopian Journal of Health Development Vol. 21 (2) 2007: pp. 130-135