Compulsory Vaccines: A Doctor's View

The Ministry of Education has announced it will shortly be rolling out chickenpox vaccines for 5 and 6 year-old children across the UAE's schools. To find out more,  WhichSchoolAdvisor.com spoke to Dr. Richard Jones, family medicine specialist at Dubai's Keith  Nicholl Medical Centre...

Why do some governments/schools mandate a vaccination program?

Many governments around the world have mandatory immunisation programs for school children. They are designed to protect the health of the public – that is, everybody.

Remember that vaccinations protect not only the person receiving it but also people around them, particularly those unable to receive them (for example, a child with leukaemia).

If vaccines were not mandatory there is the potential for less uptake which could lead to levels of immunity dropping below what are needed for herd immunity which, in turn, lead to outbreaks of disease. So mandatory vaccination might not be a perfect solution, but can be a practical solution to a difficult problem.

Are vaccines mandatory in Dubai?  Can I refuse to get my child vaccinated?

Dubai health authority have published a good comprehensive summary of recommended immunisations found here.

However, there is no reference to mandatory vaccinations.

Whether or not you do or don’t get your child vaccinated remains a parental responsibility.  Yet, I hope this brief summary helps you understand the importance of vaccinations and their safety. 

Why does my child need a chickenpox shot? Isn’t it a mild disease?

Chickenpox can be a serious disease. Approximately 50 children died per year from chickenpox prior to the vaccine. There is no way to tell in advance how severe your child’s symptoms will be.

Can the vaccine give you the disease?

There are 2 types or vaccines given, either a ‘live’ (tiny dose of the real disease) or ‘dead’ (inactivated). 

With live vaccines the answer is almost certainly not, but sometimes a person will develop what looks like a mild form of the disease (i.e. measles), the full blown disease is extremely unlikely. It is impossible to get the disease from inactivated vaccines.

After vaccination, can you actually get that disease in the future?

Yes, but it is highly unlikely and if you do it will almost certainly be less severe.  Around 1 to 5% of vaccinated people do not develop full immunity. 

Can my child’s immune system cope with all the vaccines advised?

Yes.  A baby is exposed to thousands of viruses and bacteria from the day they are born which their immune system deals with admirably, often without any sign of illness.

The immune system is under constant attack by many viruses on a daily basis. The few vaccines currently given, around 16 for children in Dubai, compared to the number of viruses the immune system can deal with is minute.

Realistically the risk of my child getting one of these illness' is so low, do you really think it is is worth the risk of a vaccination?

The risk of getting any of the diseases vaccinated against is very low.  However, we have established vaccines are safe and the risk of an allergic reaction is extremely low, but granted there is still a tiny risk. 

I often answer this question with an analogy - you don’t wear a car seatbelt because you expect a serious car accident, you wear it to protect yourself from serious injury in the unlikely event of a crash.  Vaccines are given in an attempt to prevent life changing consequences or death in the unlikely event you contract a disease. 

Are vaccines safe? Do vaccines cause autism or sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)?

Ok, this is a massive topic in its own right but here is my brief summary:

Millions and millions of vaccines have been given to children over the last 50 years around the world and there is no medical or scientific evidence, from thousands of worldwide independent studies, to support any link or long term detrimental effects. 

The main risks associated with getting vaccines are side effects, which are almost always mild such as fever, redness and swelling at the injection site and go away within a few days. Serious side effects after vaccination, such as a severe allergic reaction (1 in 1,000,000) are very rare. doctors and clinic staff are trained to deal with them.

So, the answer to the questions: yes vaccines are considered extremely safe despite the very small risk of an allergic reaction and to date there is NO evidence to support the multiple hypothesis out there to link vaccines to future problems, like autism