Stakeholder Consultation Meeting on “Maternal Immunization”, Kathmandu

On May 18, 2025, GlohMed organized a stakeholder consultation meeting on a relatively less discussed topic “Maternal Immunization”, at the meeting hall of National Health Education Information and Communication Center (NHEICC), Department of Health Services, Teku, Kathmandu. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Keshav Raj Pandit (Director of NHEICC and Senior Public health officer of Nepal Government), and attended by Dr. Abhiyan Gautam (Chief of Immunization Section at Family Welfare Division), Mrs. Sheela Shrestha (Chief of NHEICC Health Education & Material Development Section), other Senior health education/ public health officers of Nepal Gov, representatives of Management Division’s IHIMS Section, WHO MNH representative, vaccination officers, clinicians and researchers. As reflected by some participants, it was the first ever meeting that solely focussed on maternal immunization in Nepal. The stakeholders not only discussed the role of maternal vaccination in eliminating maternal & neonatal tetanus (2005), but also explored various challenges in sustaining this success in the context of Td vaccine upgrade and various socio-cultural barriers. Despite high level of vaccine acceptance among pregnant women (per recent NDHS survey 2022/23), the national Td vaccine coverage is fairly low at 68% (target of 95%), and provincial coverage ranges from 43% to 77% (with median coverage of 59%). With this background, and diving further deep into the fluctuating data across provinces in order to understand the nuances of vaccine coverage, GlohMed has collaborated with NHEICC to develop a short documentary on maternal immunization. This documentary will feature interviews with key experts in immunization, field workers, pregnant women, new mothers and social activists, covering the stories of successes, hurdles, and what lies ahead. The AV tool will also highlight the national strategies and pathways for introducing new maternal vaccines in the horizon. Next up, GlohMed, NHEICC and AV team will finalize the script, prepare the first version of AV tool and get back together to polish the content and messaging. The entire team of GlohMed is deeply grateful towards all the participants for giving their valuable time, insights and enthusiasm.