Questions concerning the safety of children's vaccines are not a new thing. They began to surface a few decades ago.
There seems to be two camps, with one in favor of vaccination and one against. It can be hard to know what, and who, to believe.
Many parents worry about their children's safety. Some allegations about immunizations are pretty overwhelming, as the specters of autism, ADHD, or brain damage loom.
In some respects, parents hit a dead end in the information exchange because they don't know who they can trust. And when parents don't trust what they hear from the medical community, their kids are less likely to get vaccinated.
Not when parents fear their child is at risk of autism, brain dysfunction or death. Not when parents don't trust the messenger.
Most of these parents are not irresponsible. Quite the contrary. It would be easier to go with the flow and yield to the pressure.
But when you're not sure whether what you're doing to your child is safe or poses a hazard ... and when you're not sure who to trust ... that's living between a rock and a hard place.
The medical community in its turn is concerned about this disconnect. Some are striving to bridge the credibility gap. They want to understand the disenchanted and disenfranchised parents, then determine how best to respond to their concerns.
Despite the currents of uncertainty, most parents are having their kids vaccinated but many are uneasy about it, according to a survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Vaccine Program Office. This was reported in a June 9, 2011 article at Baltimoresun.com.
About one-quarter of parents surveyed had no worries about vaccinations. Another two percent would allow no immunizations. The remaining three-quarters were troubled about pain, too many shots in too short a time, ingredient safety, and possible adverse effects.
Researchers concluded that more needs to be done to answer parents' questions and to inform more effectively as to the reasons for immunizations, and possible health consequences of declining them.
In an article from May 16, 2011 Sciencedaily.com reported on a national survey that was done between August 13 and September 11, 2010 on the subject of asthmatic children and flu vaccines.
Seventy percent of parents surveyed said they vaccinated their child against flu during the winter of 2009 - 2010. Most of those planned to do so again the next winter. Parents who did not vaccinate were worried about possible side effects and sickness from the vaccine.
The survey results underscored the discomfort many parents experience about the prospect of vaccinations. The researchers saw the need for the medical community to have a better dialogue with parents about immunization.
C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health Pediatric Faculty Participation Program funded the study with support from the University of Michigan Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases.
Resources:
Kids getting vaccines despite parents' concerns
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/health/2011/06/kids_getting_vaccines_despite.html
Study Evaluates Parents' Reluctance to Vaccinate Asthmatic Kids
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110516161353.htm
Are Pediatricians Refusing To See Unvaccinated Kids?
http://pediatrics.about.com/b/2011/03/03/are-pediatricians-refusing-to-see-unvaccinated-kids.htm
Reviewed June 21, 2011
Edited by Alison Stanton
Visit Jody's website and blog at http://www.ncubator.ca and http://ncubator.ca/blogger