Anti-vaxxers are neglecting their children?

[sallycinnamonn]

Having a conversation with a friend about this whole anti-vaxxers malarkey.

She made an interesting point saying when a parent chooses not to vaccinate their child, it should be seen as neglect, as they are failing to protect them and their wellbeing and are putting them at risk of disease/death. It should be considered neglect just as it would be if the parent was putting them at risk of disease/death through placing them in a inadequate, unsafe environment etc.

I don't agree with anti-vaxxers but have never thought about it this way before. What are your opinions on it being considered as neglect? I'm interested to see what others have to say about her opinion.

And how would you compensate the 1 in how ever many thousand, like my friends son, after the whooping cough jab that was left cerebrally damaged? Or was he just collateral damage, sacrifice of the few for the many?

Why would you compensate them? If you encourage children to play sport and get exercise, what about the child that dies playing sport?

If you encourage kids to learn to swim, what about the child who drowns learning to swim?

Sometimes bad things happen to people who are doing the right thing. That's no reason not to do the right thing. Or do you think kids should be encouraged to play computer games all day long because the odd child dies playing sport?

Hugoavril I'm so sorry about your nephew, that's very sad. But would you no longer allow your kids in a car because a family member once had a crash? There are so many many things that can hurt us all.

I also agree that it’s “neglect”. People need to stop pussy footing around these wahoos and call them what they are. Shit, neglectful parents.

I consider it neglect.

I think charging parents would simply lead to them being deified as martyrs by the antivax community, so I think the appropriate sanction would be a fine and mandatory parenting classes.

This wouldn't be allowed because then those who can't be immunised wouldn't be allowed. The end result of spreading disease is the same whether anti vax or medically not vaccinated

I don’t see any sensible reason why you couldn’t have a policy that permits exemption from the vaccination requirement on medical grounds.

And how would you compensate the 1 in how ever many thousand, like my friends son, after the whooping cough jab that was left cerebrally damaged?

We have the Vaccine Damage Payments act, which has compensated approximately 900 people since 1979 when it was introduced.

And how would you compensate the 1 in how ever many thousand, like my friends son, after the whooping cough jab that was left cerebrally damaged? Or was he just collateral damage, sacrifice of the few for the many?

It's not 1 in thousands, it's 1 in millions.

And your friend's son should be compensated from the vaccine injury fund. And we should consider it a terrible tragedy, and we should support him as a society so that his needs are met and his life fulfilling.

But should we risk that thousands more children are left ill, injured or dead as a result of vaccine preventable illnesses? No. We shouldn't.

I'd gladly shove a biscuit up the arse of any of ignorant, neglectful parent who fails to look after their child by depriving them of appropriate medical care. I'd say ban these children from schools but I imagine that there's a high correlation between bat-shit anti-vaxxing tendencies and support for "un-schooling" home-ed by unqualified teachers. I suppose these kids won't need an education when they're killed by measles anyway.

It low level neglect similar degree to letting your child get fat.

@HatingTheBigShow extreme but I agree.

Most anti-vaxxers were themselves vaccinated.

They are trying to pull the ladder up behind them.

I don't get why big scare is centered around measles. Meningitis B is a much deadlier illness, and vaccines not just not required, but also pricey.

Yes its neglect and should have some form of punishment
Not sure what though

I often wonder if the problem the anti Vaxxers have is the fact so many vaccines are given on one go. If everyone had the choice of joint or single vaccines there maybe a far greater uptake.

Not sure I see not vaccinating as neglect though, rightly or wrongly its a parental choice, and one the government could do more to change the opinion of with single vaccines

It places you outside of society as you are acting in a way that is highly detrimental to society at large.

So I am beginning to think that if you choose to act thus you then don't get the benefits of society, eg free schooling, free healthcare etc.

Yes.

Next.

I know a couple of families who don't vaccinate their children and I would struggle to describe them as 'neglectful' even though I completely & utterly disagree with them. These are kind, gentle, very hands-on and devoted parents. Both send their children to alternative schools (eg Steiner, Montesorri) Their views about vaccination are so sincerely held - but you can't talk them around at all - it's almost as though they have been brainwashed. Of course, for a very small minority, some vaccines can have horrific or even deadly side effects, which I suppose provides anti-vaxxers with some validation. Of course the benefits outweigh all risks, but they just don't seem to see it.

Oh F Off .

I was never vaccinated (apart from one) and I lived to tell the tale .

How DARE YOU call parents like mine neglectful because they didn't buy into a hive mind that this forum and this thread appears to have ?

Survival of the fittest somebody upthread said . That's me as I never caught ANYTHING vaccines were meant to avoid . You lot are like witches .

I work with children in a safeguarding role. Failure to attend routine immunisations (along with other medical appointments) is already considered a sign of potential neglect. When Children's Services have concerns about the welfare of a child one of the first things they will do is to check with the Health Visitors/School Nursing service/GP if the child's immunisations are up to date. Failure to vaccinate alone wouldn't lead to intervention from Children's Services but it can form part of a wider picture of a child's needs not being met. A lot of people assume that if a child isn't vaccinated it is because their parents are 'anti-vaxxers' but it can also be because the parents have chaotic lives, have their own difficulties that make it hard to attend appointments or because they simply prioritise other things so they don't 'get around to it'. It's common IME for Parents whose children are on Child Protection plans to be told they must get their child's immunisations up to date as one of the action points on the plan and this isn't usually an issue as it tends to be lack of organisation rather than any moral objection that leads to the families I work with not vaccinating. If they didn't comply though it would be seen as evidence that they are not meeting their child's needs.

I think it's a red flag and families often refuse other beneficial things too. Eg fluoride toothpaste, pain relief, vitamin k at birth.
I think if health visitors should be made aware of families who don't vaccinate so they can keep a closer eye. These children are at risk of not being taken to be seen by a medical professional if they are ill or injured.

WhentheRabbitsWentWild

I’m sorry but your parents were irresponsible. There will always be some children that can’t be vaccinated for medical reasons but to wilfully choose not to is playing Russian Roulette with your children’s lives. You were lucky. You might not have been. In the same way, many children were lucky in that they came to no harm by not being in a car seat. Others died.

@whentherabbitswentwild shouldn't that say haven't yet caught anything?

@WhentheRabbitsWentWild the post is about the opinion of a friend, although I never stated whether I agreed if it was neglect or not, I did state I disagree with not vaccinating. The fact you haven't caught anything YET could purely be down to luck or herd immunity.

How DARE YOU call parents like mine neglectful because they didn't buy into a hive mind that this forum and this thread appears to have ?

You mean they didn't buy into facts. It's not "this thread" or "this forum" that says your parents were irresponsible, it's science.