According to a recent poll, 48 per cent of Canadians might refuse to get the H1N1 vaccination, the Globe and Mail reported Oct. 26.
An op-ed piece by Juliet Guichon and Ian Mitchell argues Canadians who refuse the vaccine are jeopardizing the public good. With 20 to 35 per cent of the Canadian population expected to come down with H1N1 if they remain unvaccinated, the influx of hospital cases could temporarily devastate our health-care system.
Guichon and Mitchell call on Canadians to engage in frank dialogue to ensure hospital beds remain available for those who need them most, such as diabetic children whose access to health care may be ousted by people who refuse the H1N1 vaccine and then come down with the illness. The firm suggestion that Canadians vaccinate themselves is valuable. If the federal government is going out of its way to invest in development and distribution of the vaccine, it’s for a good reason.
But it’s extreme to assert that other groups who rely on regular access to health care may be denied these rights in the interest of serving swine flu sufferers.
Employing scare tactics isn’t the most effective way to achieve public cooperation. The H1N1 vaccine should be treated like any other: some Canadians will refuse out of personal belief, and it’s intrusive to force the vaccine upon them.
It’s unfortunate many Canadians will refuse the vaccine as a result of being misinformed. Public health officials have struggled to control the message in a climate of media frenzy and online speculation. We can’t blame Canadians for being confused.
The normal flu shot’s unpredictability has also created a culture of doubt surrounding the H1N1 vaccine. Since the flu shot only targets what are predicted to be the most prevalent strands of the virus in any given year, it’s possible to be vaccinated against the normal flu and still fall ill by catching a rare strand. However, the H1N1 vaccine is more reliable in its specificity.
The H1N1 pandemic is worrisome, with an unusual pattern of infecting young people and a great ability to mutate. We shouldn’t view refusal as a drain on the public good, but given the vaccine’s availability and convenience, it would be unwise not to take advantage.
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