Argue with people over vaccine

[hugomaaf]

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After years of learning microbiology and immunology, I guess for me it is a no-brainer that vaccination is in general the best effective tools we have for many disease.

However, I often encounter people (like patients, friends on Facebook) that pull out random stuff online saying vaccine bring this and that.

Do anyone else have deal with this too? If so, who is you guys method to "shut them up"?


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[lymphocyte]

I never want to shut them up. Keep the dialogue going. Make them feel important. That's usually what it's about anyways.

"You seem to know a lot about this, and I know you want what's best. I want what's best for your child too. Measles is a terrible disease that's entirely preventable, and I watched a baby almost die of whooping cough. It was terrifying, and I never want to see another family go through that again. What would convince you"? Now they feel affirmed and the ball's in their court to sound reasonable.

In end, I put my ego away. I don't want to argue. I don't want to mention autism. I don't want to tell them that they're wrong or erroneous or don't know what's what. I just want to focus on the risk of disease and making them feel important. (Unless they're my friend, then I usually crank up the shame/humour factor a little bit: "What's wrong with you, you idiot??" and then just laugh as we talk about it.)

This is somewhat evidence-based: http://www.pnas.org/content/112/33/10321

 

[BeaverLover]

I'd tell them to look up the evidence in a journal, in a passive manner. No point in getting in a heated argument. I think this whole issue originated with Dr. Andrew Wakefield (is this right?) and would point out he had his medical license revoked because of that fraudulent MMR-autism report...not to mention he failed to disclose his connection to the development of an alternative MMR vaccine.

 

[THS]

Providing these people with proof or evidence does nothing to support your argument. It isn't about proof with these people, it's about pride. They are inherently close-minded and nothing will convince them otherwise.

It may make you feel better to try to help these people (and more importantly their kids); and as health professionals it is our obligation to do so, but these people cannot be helped.

 

[hugomaaf]

Providing these people with proof or evidence does nothing to support your argument. It isn't about proof with these people, it's about pride. They are inherently close-minded and nothing will convince them otherwise.

It may make you feel better to try to help these people (and more importantly their kids); and as health professionals it is our obligation to do so, but these people cannot be helped.

I can't agree more ...


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[DrJeff]

Here's the basic lines I use when I encounter the anti vaccine, amalgam, sealants, fluoride, root canals, etc, etc etc crowd, because I fully agree with the above posts about how the reality is you will never convince these people, regardless of how much "good" scientific evidence you show them, that their view is wrong, because after all, they tend to believe that we in the dental/medical profession are all about making money with the help of big pharma

Me: Mrs Jones, I understand that you have some concerns about the proposed treatment/materials/etc that I am proposing that we use to take care of the disease process/help reduce the risk of future disease processes in your daughter Sally

Mrs Jones: Doctor J, I read all about what you want to do on/for my precious little Sally on-line and saw a segment on Dr Oz's show recently that said that what you want to do/use will cause my little Sally to get X (insert your favorite far out disease/condition here ) I also read on some other website, since you know that I do my research about everything that I give my kids and only give them organic, fair trade products because I know that organic sugars aren't as bad for a person as regular sugar . So I won't let you use X on little Sally, but read that if I just have her rinse with coconut oil 3 times a day and then give her vitamin C supplements that her body can fix what you say is wrong with it/prevent it from every getting that disease, without ever having to use what you propose which I heard Dr Oz say will give her Autism/Cancer/etc 😆

Me: Mrs Jones, I fully understand as both a parent and a clinician, the concerns that you have about doing what is best for your child. There is so much information out there on the internet that can even make it seem at times that drinking a simple glass of water will likely lead to imminent death! I can assure you that I have done a wealth of research based on peer reviewed, reproduceable studies about all the materials that I use in my office, and feel very comfortable about using them on/in/for my patients and my own family as well. That is how I choose to operate my practice. If this is something that you have some concerns about, I would be more than happy to forward your records to another office of your choosing.

Lesson to be learned, you will never be able to connect with some patients, so don't get offended if you don't. Just learn to politely encourage them to seek care elsewhere, as long term your sanity and blood pressure will be much better that way!

 

[BYU4you]

Just direct them to this website.

http://howdovaccinescauseautism.com


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[hugomaaf]

Just direct them to this website.

http://howdovaccinescauseautism.com


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The best advice so far!


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[BYU4you]

The best advice so far!


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I really hope more people click the link.


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