Vaccinations & Opinions on Them.....

lpnflorida · Nov 26, 2008

If a pediatrician gave that advice I might take their advice more to heart.

Katers* · Nov 26, 2008

From what I've learned in nursing school, childhood vaccinations are safe. However, this is definitely a controversial topic and it seems like there are a lot of myths out there about the safety of childhood vaccinations. See this link for some examples: http://www.gov.ns.ca/ohp/ocmoh/immunization_myths_facts.pdf

It seems like one of the biggest concerns that parents have is that their child will develop autism as a result of the MMR vaccine. From my understanding, this controversy originated in 1998 after a British medical journal published a link between the vaccine and autism. The media got ahold of this story and parents started to become concerned. In Britain vaccination rates dropped from 95% to 75%. As a result of this, there have been outbreaks of all three diseases. The findings of the study were later retracted and the study has sincebeen widely discredited.

I think it is important to note that to date, there is no scientific evidence that proves that a connection between the vaccine and autism exists. However, many still have their doubts and you hear about this controversy everywhere (i.e. online, the media, and now celebrities like Jenny McCarthy are speaking out about this issue too).

I think some really important points to consider are that:

- There is a lot of speculation about the potential link between vaccines and autism, but not enough attention on the fact that diseases like measles can be fatal for children who are not immunized

- Delaying or withholding vaccines only increases the time during which children are at unnecessary risk for severe and occasionally fatal infections.

http://dalnews.dal.ca/2008/10/31/autism.html

As a health care professional, I do not think it is right to tell patients that they 'should not' have their child vaccinated without providing any additional information. Instead, I think it is important to give honest, unedited information which includes a discussion about the potential risks/benefits. Parents need this information in order to make an informed decision.

ShannonRN2010, BSN, RN · Nov 26, 2008

I have a 28 year old brother who had a reaction to his DPT shot. They misdx'ed him for months...now my brother is like a 28 year old infant. He can't eat, sit up, walk...talk...

And yes, even the government agrees that it was the vaccinations because they awarded him a settlement under the Vaccination Compensation Act.

I think that vaccinations are NOT a one size fits all thing...I think that is a parents responsiblity to do reasearch in what goes into vaccinations and what they can do to a child. I think that is SHOULD be the medical community's responsibility to let parents know the dangers that do exist with vaccinations...cause yeah it maybe rare...but it SUCKS when its YOUR family that is effected by it.

That being said, both my children are unvaccinated. My son has a medical exemption...his ped. agrees that there is too much history to allow my kids to be vaccinated. My BIL had a reaction to his MMR, I reacted to the booster for school, and then my brother, so its obvious that their genes are predisposed to react to the vaccinations...and I can deal with anything but what my mom has had to deal with the last 28 years.

I would never tell someone to NOT vaccinate...but to do their own investigation, then decide if the risk outweighs the benefits.

Jolie, BSN · Nov 26, 2008

I am a firm believer in encouraging and assisting patients, parents and the general public to inform themselves from reliable sources about the risks/benefits of any medical treatment so that they can make intelligent decisions about their care, and the accept the responsibility for the outcome of those decisions.

However, I question why your school had a chiropractor come in and lecture you about vaccinations, an area of health care so very far removed from his/her expertise. That is an invitation for misinformation and misunderstanding about the subject.

When you discuss musculo-skeletal disorders, will your instructor invite an infectious disease or public health specialist to the class? I seriously doubt it, and am quite sure that even if she did, no reputable MD or PhD would accept an invitation to lecture on a topic they are not knowledgeable about.

An important part of nursing school is learning to think critically, to give the proper "weight" to information based on the reliability of the source, and to discount information that comes from unreliable sources unless or until it is verified by reputable sources. A chiropractor is not an expert in pediatrics, preventive health, public health or infectious disease, and should not be regarded as such.

softstorms · Nov 27, 2008

Did you just say you had a ?????? chiroprator???come into you class and talk about what? What part of........not a doctor.....talks to you.

Use some critical thinking here and let him be the part of the job he is.

lpnflorida · Nov 27, 2008

While I love my chiropractor, and usually see him about once a year when my back goes out. I realize number once, they are not allowed to precribed medicines. They are into holistic health and vitamin types of things. I have respect for what they do, however I do not discuss health issues with him that is what my MD or if I had a DO takes care of.

Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP · Nov 27, 2008

I am a big believer in chiropractic. Got my first adjustment when I was about 3 weeks old. My uncle is a chiro, a very good one, and family get-togethers usually turn into adjust-fests. :)

My uncle also has a strong opinion about vaccines. His son/my cousin has autism and Uncle is firmly convinced it's because of vaxes he got. He is, of course, anti-vax, and sends me emails periodically warning me about the dangers of vaccines. I don't read them, and I don't go there with him. Neither's gonna change the other's mind.

I also wonder why your school had a chiro come to talk w/ you about vaccines. It is a bit curious.

I have given hundreds, probably thousands, of vaccines of all sorts and honestly, the worst reaction I've seen was a localized skin reaction. I worked in the same place with the same patients for several years and never ever saw any sort of developmental or neuro issue r/t vaxes. (And I worked with a PNP whose specialty was sniffing out autism & spectrum disorders.) That is just my experience but I think it is a valid one. I'm not at all convinced that vaccines 'cause' autism. For the millions of vaccines that get given, it's a pretty small number of people dxed with any sort of issue related to them, much less autism. (I'm not meaning to diminish anyone else's experience, just stating things from my POV.)

I am glad, however, that we have stopped giving DTP and are instead using DTaP. The acellular pertussis causes far fewer reactions. I'm all for reasonably spacing vaccines and really don't see the need to vaccinate newborns. This is always a heated debate. If I had to say anything to anyone, it would be to read, read, read. Read from reputable resources. Talk to reputable experts on both sides of the debate. Then make up your mind.

As for me? I've seen too many cases of measles, mumps, pneumococcal related ear infections/pneumonia, and flu in children to turn it down for my own child. That's just me.

jode · Jan 8, 2009

http://www.immunize.org

Vaccines are safe. There is no evidence that proves otherwise.

EarthChild1130 · Jan 8, 2009

I too find it odd that a chiropractor would do a lecture on vaccines for a class...I would tell my patients to do research and then make their own decisions. But my niece, for whom I am legal guardian, is fully vaccinated!

Magsulfate, BSN, RN · Jan 8, 2009

It's ironic that this thread comes one day after my son was put into in school suspension (unexcused absense) for not having an updated vaccination record at school. I had to drive 50 miles to get the record because the dr's office felt like it wasn't an emergency and it would take 48 hours to get the records faxed to me. I just couldn't see my son missing 2 days of school, unexcused, because the school nurse decided to go through all of her immunization records during christmas break.

Why do public schools make some students have records while other students are exempt???

And, doesn't it endanger other innocent children (too young to be immunized for certain diseases) by not vaccinating your child? The unvaccinated children are spreading around measles, mumps and other deadly diseases.

Purple_Scrubs, BSN, RN · Jan 8, 2009

It's ironic that this thread comes one day after my son was put into in school suspension (unexcused absense) for not having an updated vaccination record at school. I had to drive 50 miles to get the record because the dr's office felt like it wasn't an emergency and it would take 48 hours to get the records faxed to me. I just couldn't see my son missing 2 days of school, unexcused, because the school nurse decided to go through all of her immunization records during christmas break.
Why do public schools make some students have records while other students are exempt???
And, doesn't it endanger other innocent children (too young to be immunized for certain diseases) by not vaccinating your child? The unvaccinated children are spreading around measles, mumps and other deadly diseases.

Try not to hate on the school nurse too much, we are usually bound by federal or state law. As far as exemptions, at my school we allow 30 days for shot records if the child came from another in-state school, or if the child is homeless. We also have medical exemptions for kids who have conditions that would make immunizations dangerous. There are also exemptions that can be filed through the state for religious or personal reasons.

I agree that having unvaccinated children is dangerous for those who cannot be vaccinated. In fact, I saw something on the news not long ago about how doctors are now seeing more are more cases of diseases that were almost erradicated because of vaccines. The doctor that was interviewed was attributing the increase to the autism scare and the resulting decrease in immunizations. It is a very dangerous and worrysome trend.

I can't believe the nurse at your son's school couldn't work with you a little more. I send notices giving one week to anyone who I need records for. Even if there is no response to that I usually call before I sent them home. The nurse should have at least called the doctor's office to try and get them to fax the records. Sorry you had to go through that.