Abstract
Since the creation of the first vaccine against smallpox about two hundred years ago, the debates regarding the integrity, efficiency, and security of vaccination. It has recently been debated, “whether laws should be introduced that render some or all vaccines obligatory for all children” (Rinner, 2010, p. 121).
This issue demands attention to the point of view of not only parents but therapists, educators, health care professionals, and even children as well. Family members assert that vaccination is an issue that is dependent on their thoughts and beliefs.
On the contrary, health care professionals disagree with that opinion: they believe that by refusing to complete vaccination treatment for their children, parents endanger their health by exposing them to vaccine-preventable illnesses. Due to the fact that there are parents who are prepared to face the hazards and those who are not ready to expose their children to various diseases, an auspicious topic for disputes appears.
Introduction
The topic of child vaccinations gains more and more attention every day. The impairments caused by the vaccines arouse overwhelming discussion not only among the parents of the children but the doctors as well. The common assumption suggests that vaccines are beneficial for the health of the baby, and those who dispute this assessment are wrong.
There are two conceivable adverse purposes that prevail in this discussion: on the one hand, devotion towards exterminating the disease exists, on the other hand, an eagerness of parents to shelter their children from any harm. As a result of such a controversy, parents make attempts to make arduous choices without any proper evidence for or against the vaccines for their children.
On the contrary, the regulations of public health suggest obligatory vaccinations. In this research paper, we will try to establish the benefits of damages of child vaccination and draw a conclusion about whether parents should or should not avoid vaccinating their children. Moreover, the research paper provides an extensive exploration of vaccinations among children.
Arguments towards Using the Vaccine
“Vaccines are among the greatest achievements of biomedical science and public health, stimulating protective immune responses against acute and chronic infectious diseases, as well as some infectious diseases that result in cancer. In the United States, vaccination programs have made a major contribution to the elimination of many vaccine-preventable diseases and significantly reduced the incidence of others.
Vaccine-preventable diseases have societal and economic costs in addition to the morbidity and premature deaths resulting from these diseases — the costs include missed time from school and work, physician office visits, and hospitalizations” (Roush & Murphy, 2010, p. 2156).
Pros
There are twelve potentially severe illnesses that can cause damage to the health of the children and are prevented by the vaccines: “Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Diptheria, Tetanus, Pertussis (whooping cough), Polio, Hepatitis A and B, Pneumococcal disease, Varicella (Chicken Pox), and Haemophilus Influenza Type B (HIB Disease)” (Children’s vaccines, 2011, para. 10). A body of a child is exposed to these illnesses from the moment of birth; however, the immunity is not built up yet due to the time constraints.
Vaccines are believed to not only protect the health of a child but to preserve the whole of mankind in general. The statements against the procedure of vaccination were considerably exaggerated; the benefits of vaccines can be scientifically confirmed by limitless researches that have proven the arguments against the vaccination wrong.
Cons
The extensive declaration in favor of the rejection of the vaccine is the disclosure of deaths from the vaccines that are connected to the allergic reactions and chronic predispositions of the children to the vaccine; moreover, the quality of vaccine medication had been deteriorating along with the excellence of the vaccination procedure (Maglione, 2014).
These are the risks “that, unfortunately, cannot always be foreseen and avoided, so calling vaccination a 100% safe prevention method would be definitely wrong” (Rinner, 2010, p. 124). And even though the specific body reactions to the medication of an individual could be detected, in theory, the improper usage of medication is unacceptable.
Vaccinations are able to cause harm to children in distinct forms. “Live or attenuated virus vaccination can actually produce the infection that the vaccine is supposed to prevent.
For example, live polio should never be administered to a child who comes in contact with an HIV patient, for the attenuated virus can leap to the HIV patient and produce polio” (Children’s vaccines, 2011, para. 12). Moreover, another cause of hardship related to vaccines is neurotoxic materials, thimerosal to be precise, which could be encountered in the medication.
Conclusion
Having observed an issue of vaccination from both sides of an argument, it can be concluded that each individual case of child vaccination is dependent on the point of view of the parents and healthcare specialists. However, if properly performed and proven to be non-allergic for a child, are believed to be only beneficial for the health of children, as they indeed prevent the risk of catching a dangerous disease.
The research paper compiles the importance of the careful vaccination process, as it is the most effective way of preventing childhood diseases. The research paper provides an extensive exploration of vaccinations among children.
References
Children’s vaccines: Research on the risks for children and possible neurological consequences (2011).
Maglione, M. (2014). Safety of vaccines used for routine immunization of US children: A systematic review. Pediatrics, 134(2), 1-13.
Rinner, H. (2010). Prevention for the sake of prevention. The New York Witness, 12(7), 121-128.
Roush, S., & Murphy, T. (2010). Historical comparisons of morbidity and mortality for vaccine-preventable diseases in the United States. The Journal of American Medical Association, 298(18), 2155-2163.