Doctors Reluctant to Treat Unvaccinated Children, Study Shows

[Godhumor]

From Bloomberg http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-20/doctors-reluctant-to-treat-unvaccinated-children-study-shows.html

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More than one fifth of pediatricians stopped treating children whose parents refused to have them vaccinated, according to an online survey of doctors in nine U.S. states.

Such denials run counter to recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and should prompt a discussion about how doctors handle the issue, authors of the survey said in a presentation to the 49th Annual Meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America in Boston.

“Pediatricians are starting to recognize that having unimmunized patients in their practice puts other patients at risk when they congregate in the waiting room,” said Christopher Harrison, director of the infectious disease research laboratory at Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics in Kansas City, Missouri, in a telephone interview. “They’re conflicted and the data shows this.”

...

Doctors’ practices varied dramatically by state, however. Minnesota doctors, who saw the highest number of families refusing to vaccinate their children, discharged them less than 1 percent of the time. In contrast, Iowa doctors saw the lowest number of families refusing vaccines, but reported discharging them 38 percent of the time, the survey found.
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Interesting study (The article linked is rather brief.). The question becomes, what obligation to doctors have to both unvaccinated children and those who may be at risk when an unvaccinated child comes in sick/as a carrier.

[Lint Head]

1. Some children are actually allergic to shots.

I do not mean autism.

[Warpy]

2. Physicians know this and react accordingly

but parental stupidity that exposes those kids who can't be vaccinated to serious harm should not be tolerated, either.

[Godhumor]

3. Study mentions the percentage that choose to not vaccinate

It is staggeringly high the number of unvaccinated children that are due to parental choice not medical necessity.

[kestrel91316]

6. Genuine allergy to modern vaccines is extraordinarily rare. That same lame excuse

is one that some of my anti-vaxer clients throw at me when declining core vaccines for their cats.

I have seen a legitimate apparent hypersensitivity reaction to vaccine exactly ONCE in 29 years of practice, and that was in a dog.

Feeling crappy for a day or two after vaccinations does not constitute an allergic reaction, contrary to popular belief.

[postulater]

4. Seems like the only ones who would be at risk are the unvaccinated ones.

All the others would be vaccinated and therefore wouldn't get the disease.

If there is concern, then schedule the unvaccinated together during special hours.

The doctor could accomodate both groups that way.

[Godhumor]

5. Unfortunately, unvaccinated, especially at a pediatric clinic, would have significant risk

For children too young to have vaccines, for mutated bugs, for the small percentage where the vaccine doesn't catch the virus, etc.

Part of the controversy around the anti-vaccine movement is how it affects others.

[kestrel91316]

7. Vaccines are not 100% effective. There is a subset of patients that

gets vaccinated but does not mount adequate immunity. High herd vaccination rates also protect them.

[lbrtbell]

8. First abortion, now this

It's wonderful how the medical community supports freedom of choice. :mad:

[Llewlladdwr]

9. Vaccinations shouldn't be a choice.

Unless there's a valid medical reason for not having your child vaccinated you shouldn't be allowed to opt out.