The Vaccine War is a video that portrays the two opposing sides in
the debate over immunization. The views of parents who believe that vaccines
are unnecessary and have side effects that are far too risky are contrasted
against the views of doctors and researchers who explain why vaccines are
extremely crucial in keeping the public safe from disease.
1.
Watching this video definitely changed the way I
think about vaccinations. Growing up with a physician as a mother, I’ve never
questioned or even second guessed getting a vaccine, and always saw them as
something extremely important and crucial to have. While I knew there were
stories out there about people falsely believing that vaccines could result in
terrible side effects, such as autism, I had no idea there was such a large
fraction of the population that refused to get vaccinated. Also, I was not
aware that this there were enough people that made the choice not to get
immunized that public health officials and physicians are worried that diseases
that are currently not seen in the US could possibly come back as a result. I
thought this video illustrated the points of view of both sides very well, and
it allowed me to understand why someone would choose to refuse a vaccination,
which beforehand I did not know.
2.
According to the video, herd immunity refers to
the immunity that happens when a certain number of the population is vaccinated
to the point where a virus will be stopped from spreading. With this type of
immunity, you are benefited by the vaccinations of others. Some diseases could
be completely eradicated with a strong herd community, rendering the vaccine
unnecessary. However, if a critical number of people are not vaccinated, those
who don’t get immunized or those that can’t be immunized are at risk for
disease. When enough people aren’t vaccinated, herd immunity suffers, and the
disease can begin attacking the venerable.
3.
Vaccination differs from other type of person
health decisions because it something that can have drastic effects on the
entire population. Choosing not to vaccinate not only puts yourself at risk of
disease, but also threatens the entire unvaccinated population to the point
where an eradicated disease could be brought back. While I personally believe
that parents should consent 100% of the time to getting their children the
necessary vaccines, it is mostly the decision of the parents. The pediatrician
should also have a say in the vaccination process, and should work to
thoroughly explain the benefits of vaccines in order to get as many parents as
possible to agree. Lastly, I think that
public health officials and the government should make sure that all schools,
not just public schools, require necessary vaccinations, since schools are the
breading grounds for the spreading of disease.
4.
One of the reasons children might not receive
their recommended immunizations is that their parents refuse to get them done.
Parents who believe these vaccines put their children at risk, that they go
against their religious beliefs, or simply feel they are unnecessary can choose
to allow their children to grow up without getting immunized. For pediatricians
in family practice, financial costs could be a reason vaccines aren’t
administered if they are running their own business. Additionally, the
healthcare system could not cover the cost of vaccines making some family unable
to get them.
5.
One of the main reasons patients are against
vaccines is that they believe the diseases vaccines protect against only occur
in the developing world, and that because of this, the potential side effects
of vaccines are not worth being put at risk for. Thus, it is not only necessary
for information about the limited risk of side effects to be projected to the
public, but also to inform the public that these diseases can and will come
back if too many people do not get immunized against them. The way that the
most amount of people can be efficiently informed of what vaccines help protect
us against are in commercials, such as that for the whooping cough which is run
daily. I feel that a commercial campaign would be the way to cause the greatest
improvement in this vaccination issue. By illustrating the detrimental effects
of the diseases vaccines prevent against, people would be more willing to get
the immunizations than they would if they had only heard the disease and knew
that it no longer existed in the US.
I like your idea of a commercial campaign, it is something I did not think about and could be very effective. I agree that this would be effective in spreading awareness about the possibility of many infectious diseases returnign. One problem I can think of, however, is making sure parents trust these ads. It seemed in the video that many parents simply do not trust the medical community, which might be a road block in some ad campaigns. Other than that I thought you offered good insight.
ReplyDeleteAlyssa,
ReplyDeleteNice blog. You have explained herd immunity well. You also correctly identify that vaccinating kids is different from other health decisions because it affects the population. For question four, I'm impressed you thought of the financial cost of running a clinic as a reason for vaccine's not being administered. Finally, for question five, I think you have a good idea for a media campaign. Where would public health get the money for this? Should the government pay?...or private vaccine makers like pharmaceutical companies?
Erin