Media is a powerful tool. I remember seeing an ad for vaccines on TV. A small child was playing in the middle of a busy street. And me, with my unimmunized children, I was compared to the mother...irresponsible and putting my kids in unnecessary danger.
The irony was that I had researched vaccines for about 7 years, reviewing medical journals, popular literature and interviewing experts before I made my well informed choices. Yet the women I saw who simply did as they were told and followed the schedule blindly....THEY were good parents.
I think as a parent the most frustrating thing about this whole issue is that it is so purposely misleading. If vaccines are such a universally good thing, it would be easy to simply show the clear scientific evidence of benefit.... And everyone would comply, right? So why use media scare tactics over reason and clear information? Issues related to the safety, efficacy, and promotion of vaccines are complicated.... and ambiguous. Not because there are not clear benefits to certain populations.... But because promoting the same prescription drug to all people without consideration of need or circumstances is simply bad medicine.
I think if all the risks and the level of effectiveness were clearly disclosed for each vaccine, it would be very obvious to people that these are drugs that do not apply to all our children but need to be considered, like all other prescription drugs, on a case by case basis with a professional. Why are vaccines advertised like a commodity? I think the lack of clear information makes it difficult to make an informed decision about an issue that feels really significant to how I will approach healthcare for my children all of their lives. This seems very counterintuitive to me as a mother and as a physician. I think that this type of media campaign is insulting to an intelligent parent seeking factual information and unbiased advice to make healthcare choices.
