Chatbot-based Intervention to Promote Vaccine Acceptance in Varansi, India

Only 2/3 of Indian infants and children are fully immunized. In communities facing unstable urban housing (UUH) vaccination rates are even lower. COVID-19 introduced new challenges for community health workers in these areas, and many do not have the capacity to promote vaccination. At the same time, the pandemic also prompted more parents and caregivers to engage with smartphones to manage the child's health. The investigators believe that a WhatsApp-based Chatbot intervention may be an effective way to promote routine childhood vaccination among caregivers without creating additional burdens on community health workers. To test this, the investigators are developing the Happy Baby Programme. This programme will be disseminated as a Chatbot through WhatsApp to parents of infants and young children living in Varanasi, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. In addition to testing the overall efficacy of a Chatbot messaging platform, the investigators will compare two different Chatbot messaging designs, one featuring vaccine-only messaging and a second that positions vaccines as part of a broader set of well-being practices.