Flu Shots: Another Vocal Minority Influences The Media Disproportionately
My position on the H1N1 flu vaccine is clear: everyone should get it.
But not every physician shares that sentiment. The Washington Post reports that there are a minority who are unconvinced of the vaccine’s safety and believe the H1N1 pandemic is over-hyped.
Worse, they aren’t vaccinating their patients. And when you’re talking about pediatricians, that can mean trouble for their patients; children who are most susceptible to the damage caused by H1N1.
According to the CDC, “this is the same manufacturing process, the same manufacturers, the same factories, the same safeguards as the seasonal flu vaccine that has been used for more than 100 million doses each year for many years and which has an excellent safety record.” So let’s get that out of the way first.
Like those who oppose vaccines against polio, mumps, measles and rubella, it is this vocal minority who have a disproportional influence as they express their views to the media. It does no good for these skeptical doctors to further confuse patients with conflicting information, and fail to vaccinate those at high-risk from H1N1’s effects.
What if they’re wrong?
*This blog post was originally published at KevinMD.com*
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