High response rate and low cost of WeChat-based data collection of infant and young child feeding data in rural Qinghai Province, China

BACKGROUND: Measuring the infant and young child feeding (IYCF) indicators is key to effectively tracking the progress of child health programs and making evidence-based decisions. WeChat is the most popular mobile social media platform in China and has become a promising tool for collecting health data. This study aims to explore the response rate and costs of a WeChat-based questionnaire on IYCF information in rural China. METHODS: We conducted two cross-sectional surveys with caregivers of children aged 6-23 months in two rural counties in Qinghai Province (Menyuan and Datong County), China, from January to March 2022. Both surveys used the same WeChat IYCF questionnaire to collect household information, infant feeding practices, and caregivers’ feeding knowledge. Village doctors sent a quick response (QR) code to caregivers that was linked to the WeChat IYCF questionnaire. Participating caregivers scanned the QR code using their own WeChat account on their smartphone and filled in the questionnaire online. If they could not use WeChat themselves, village doctors administered the questionnaire. Once caregivers finished the questionnaires, they received a personalized report with infant feeding recommendations. RESULTS: We recruited 1274 caregivers of children aged 6-23 months in Menyuan County and 1748 caregivers in Datong County. The total response rate in the two counties was 98.2%; 77.6% of questionnaires were self-administered by caregivers and 20.6% were interviewer-administered by village doctors. The questionnaires were filled in twice by 209 (6.9%) caregivers. The cost of these two WeChat IYCF surveys was much lower than the cost of a previously conducted face-to-face survey: 11.8 yuan (US$1.85) in Menyuan County and 7.5 yuan (US$1.18) in Datong County for the WeChat survey vs 112.7 yuan (US$17.70) for the face-to-face survey in Huzhu County. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that using WeChat for IYCF surveys can achieve a very high response rate at a low cost in rural China. Village doctors played a very important role in achieving this high response rate. Providing feedback to caregivers may improve their feeding practices and this intervention could be incorporated into the data collection process.