This letter expands the thoughts on the importance of vaccines that were expressed by Drs. William Albanese and Paula Nadig in recent editions of the Cape Gazette.
The American Academy of Pediatrics was formed by 35 pediatricians 95 years ago. At that time, the AAP developed the very first childhood immunization schedule. Now 67,000 pediatricians strong, the AAP has continued to research, review and recommend such a schedule annually since then. The AAP schedule is based on evidence-based science and has only one goal: to protect children from preventable diseases with safe and effective vaccines. The most significant public health success in the U.S. and worldwide has been the development and administration of immunizations. Millions of lives have been saved. Vaccines are given to not only protect the person who receives the vaccine, but also to protect others who are too young to be vaccinated and those whose immune systems are compromised, such as by cancer or medications.
Every vaccine on the schedule has been thoroughly studied, as have the reasons why and when each one is recommended. Because vaccines have been so effective, many illnesses have become so uncommon that their devastating consequences have been all but forgotten. Unfortunately, with the recent increase in vaccine hesitancy and decline in immunizations, many of those illnesses like measles, whooping cough, polio and tetanus are on the rise again, and we have already started seeing their tragic consequences. In addition, we are in the midst of the worst flu season in many years. Almost 300 children died of influenza last winter, almost all of whom were not vaccinated against the flu. It is true that the flu vaccine may not keep your child from getting the flu, but it almost always keeps your child from being sick enough to end up in the hospital.
Most pediatricians accept patients whose parents choose not to vaccinate their children, or who choose to follow their own unique vaccine schedule.
Pediatricians would never recommend a vaccine that we would not take ourselves or give to our own children or grandchildren. We encourage parents who have questions regarding vaccines to speak with their pediatrician.
To read and learn more about vaccines, go to the website of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia at chop.edu/vaccine-education-center, the AAP’s parenting website Healthy Children at healthychildren.org/English/Pages/default.aspx and the Vaccine Integrity Project at the University of Minnesota at cidrap.umn.edu/vaccine-integrity-project.
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