Promoting awareness of childhood vaccines in the Uyghur Türk community in Türkiye: a health education intervention

Vaccine hesitancy and low immunization coverage remain major challenges among the Uyghur Türk community in Türkiye due to linguistic, cultural, and socioeconomic barriers. The 2022 measles outbreak, which disproportionately affected Uyghur children, highlighted the need for targeted interventions. This study aimed to assess the effect of a culturally and linguistically adapted health education intervention on vaccine-related knowledge, attitudes, trust, and intention to vaccinate among Uyghur adults in Türkiye. Promoting Awareness of Childhood Vaccines in theUyghur Türk Community in Türkiye: A Health Education Intervention was implemented by university lecturers through two community-based educational sessions in Istanbul and Konya in 2025. A total of 106 adult participants attended the sessions. The intervention included pre- and post-tests, presentations integrating scientific and Islamic perspectives on vaccination, interactive discussions, and culturally tailored educational materials. Among participants, 57.5% were aged 25–44 years and 56% were female. The intervention was associated with improvements in vaccine-related knowledge, attitudes, and trust. Belief in the necessity of childhood vaccines increased from 73.6% to 98.0%, confidence in vaccine safety from 63.2% to 93.1%, and awareness of herd immunity from 60.4% to 99.0%. Trust in Ministry of Health 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 regarding multiple vaccines, vaccine ingredients, and negative developmental effects decreased. Remaining challenges included beliefs in natural immunity (20.8%), doubts about certain vaccines (11.9%), and concerns about long-term MMR effects (23.8%). Culturally and linguistically adapted health education integrating scientific and religious perspectives can improve vaccine-related knowledge, attitudes, trust in health authorities, and intention to vaccinate among underserved communities. These findings do not reflect measured vaccination uptake. Sustained engagement, follow-up, and improved access to vaccination services are needed to support long-term behavioral change and may offer a scalable model for minority and migrant populations.