1) What is the public health problem that the paper is attempting to tackle?
The paper by Owais et al. (2011) (note: the prompt states 2017, but the paper linked is from 2011) titled "Does improving maternal knowledge of vaccines impact infant immunization rates? A community-based randomized-controlled trial in Karachi, Pakistan" is attempting to tackle the public health problem of suboptimal infant immunization completion rates.
Specifically, the problem is that a significant proportion of infants in low-income communities of Karachi, Pakistan, are not receiving all recommended doses of basic vaccines (DPT/Hepatitis B), contributing to preventable childhood morbidity and mortality. The paper investigates if a lack of maternal knowledge about vaccines is a contributing factor to this problem and tests an intervention to address it.
2) Can you find the MeSH terms that would bring you to find the paper by Owais et al., through searching for the proposed topic?
To find the Owais et al. paper (or similar papers) on the association between maternal knowledge and vaccination using MeSH terms, I would typically go to PubMed's MeSH database (Medical Subject Headings) or use the "Advanced" search in PubMed and add MeSH terms.
Here are the relevant MeSH terms for the proposed topic ("maternal knowledge and vaccination"):
For "Maternal Knowledge":
"Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice": This is a broad MeSH term that covers individuals' or groups' factual knowledge, opinions, beliefs, and behaviors related to health. This would be a primary term for "knowledge."
"Mothers": To specify the "maternal" aspect.
For "Vaccination" / "Immunization":
"Vaccination": This is a direct MeSH term for the administration of vaccines.
"Immunization": A broader term that encompasses the process of becoming immune, often achieved through vaccination.
"Immunization Programs": Relevant if looking at the public health program aspect.
"Childhood Immunization" / "Infant": To specify the age group of the recipients, as the paper focuses on infants.
Combining these terms for a search strategy in PubMed (using MeSH):
A potential search strategy using MeSH terms to find papers like Owais et al. would involve combining these concepts with appropriate Boolean operators (AND, OR):
( "Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice"[MeSH] AND "Mothers"[MeSH] ) - This combines the knowledge aspect with the maternal population.
( "Vaccination"[MeSH] OR "Immunization"[MeSH] OR "Immunization Programs"[MeSH] ) - This covers the vaccination aspect.
Combine the two sets: ( "Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice"[MeSH] AND "Mothers"[MeSH] ) AND ( "Vaccination"[MeSH] OR "Immunization"[MeSH] )
To refine it further for infant immunization, one might add: ( "Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice"[MeSH] AND "Mothers"[MeSH] ) AND ( "Vaccination"[MeSH] OR "Immunization"[MeSH] ) AND "Infant"[MeSH]
Verification from the Owais et al. paper's PubMed entry