Foster Vaccine Confidence Through the Power of Story. We harnessed the proven success of community plays—previously used to combat health challenges like HIV/AIDS stigma—to directly address concerns and build trust in maternal vaccination.

Maternal immunization is a powerful public health strategy that safeguards two lives at once. By vaccinating pregnant women, we can transplacentally transfer protective antibodies to the developing fetus. This passive immunity is crucial for protecting newborns during their first six months of life—a window of extreme vulnerability where they are exposed to serious diseases but have not yet developed their own adequate functional antibody response.

In Kenya, the Ministry of Health (https://www.health.go.ke/) currently recommends the tetanus-diphtheria (Td) vaccine for pregnant women and is actively exploring evidence-based strategies for the future introduction of other vital shots, like the influenza vaccine https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0189623

However, the success of any maternal vaccine program depends entirely on community acceptance. To build this critical vaccine confidence, our project in rural Kilifi focused on directly addressing community concerns. We moved beyond traditional leaflets and seminars by harnessing a powerful, culturally resonant tool: community theatre (manuscript under review in a journal)..

We produced and staged an original community play in open public spaces. This interactive performance was designed not as a lecture, but as a forum. It sparked open dialogue, allowing community members to openly debate, discuss, and address their specific fears and questions about maternal immunisation. By meeting people where they are with empathy and engagement, we are working to build the essential trust required to ensure both mothers and their infants can benefit from the life-saving protection of vaccines.

Acknowledgement: this project was supported by a grant from the IMPRINT network https://www.imprint-network.co.uk/.