Saar Kuzi
Alessandra Coutinho Fernandes
William Cope
Richard Tapping
Kashif Ahmad
Reda Sadki
Shubhra Kanti Karmaker Santu
Adam P Rusch
Elle Meisner
Nereyda Ochoa
Landon J. Kunzelman
James DotimasFA16 Immunization Module’s Updates
Anti-Intellectualism, Anti-vaccination, and Potential Solutions
The rise of anti-intellectualism is correlated with the rise of the anti-vaccination movement within the United States. Various factors drive anti-intellectualism, especially the increased accessibility to social media platforms and other forms of mass media culture. Propagation of misinformation thus can occur at higher rates than it has in the past and the masses of parents/patients have increased access to potential sources of misinformation about vaccination efficacy and the concept that vaccinations cause autism. Interestingly enough, parents who are hesitant to vaccinate their children tend to be older than 30 years, have a college degree, and have an income of $70,000 or greater (Opel). Targeting this demographic would thus be more fruitful in the physician struggle against anti-vaccination sentiments.
The manner in which physicians approach these vaccination hesitant parents can influence their decision-making process. Across the nation, there is a growing number of pediatric practices that fire families that do not vaccinate their children. While these practices are taking an aggressive stance against anti-vaccinators, they may be missing out on the opportunity to provide the correct information to these parents. Firing a patient based on their parents’ misconstrued conceptions may additionally validate that family’s mistrust of modern medicine (Rentmeester). More ground may be gained if physicians approach vaccination hesitant parents with the understanding that they both have a common goal: to keep the child healthy. Education is the key to reconstructing hesitant parents’ notions of vaccination safety and necessity.
Sources:
Rentmeester, C. Professionalism, fidelity, and relationship-preservation: Navigating disagreement and frustration in clinical encounters. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2013 Aug; 9(8): 1812-1814.
Opel DJ, Diekema DS, Lee NR, Marcuse EK. Social Marketing as a Strategy to Increase Immunization Rates. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2009;163(5):432-437. doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2009.42.
I agree with everyone above in saying this post raises some interesting points about the anti-vaccination movement. I had never thought about those who refuse to vaccinate their children being anti-intellectual. Also the point about those parents who are over 30 and college educated is a poignant one - I once had a teacher who refused to vaccinate her children...led to some semi-heated discussions between us!
I like the point that @Hannah raised about this topics relation to health literacy. Its easy to demonize parents for not wanting to vaccinate their children but its important to look at the information that parents receive from their pediatricians regarding vaccinations.
If physicians aren't doing an adequate job of educating parents then the fault lies partly on us. Pediatricians need to make a concerted effort to educate and oppose the misinformation that is spread about vaccinations instead of taking the easy route and firing parents who are misinformed.
I really appreciated how you pointed out the missed chance to really affect the way hesitant parents view vaccinations and the importance of having physicians work with these parents to influence their decision-making process. Although this is likely implied, I think it's worth noting that the repercussions of firing a patient based on their parents’ misconstrued conceptions of vaccination are even more far reaching than additionally validating that family’s mistrust of modern medicine. One of the points Umangi made (Education is the key to reconstructing hesitant parents’ notions of vaccination safety and necessity) I think this is also interesting in relation to health literacy. Looking at what kind of education and what kind of understanding these parents are given and are taking from their interactions with their doctors could deeply affect their view of vaccinations as well as modern medicine and healthcare as a whole.
I find it interesting that, as Umangi pointed out, it is generally parents who are older and have a college degree that are more-likely to not vaccinate their children. However, in a way I would be hesitant to call this a result of anti-intellectualism. Instead I would be more inclined to describe it as an example of the Dunning–Kruger effect. These parents who, have gone on to receive a college degree view themselves as perfectly intelligent and capable of making informed decisions. But their lack of knowledge concerning medical science makes them believe that they know more about the subject than they actually do, and are therefore more willing to believe others who share similar beliefs (whether these others have evidence or not). I would be interested to see if these anti-vaxers are actually distrustful of all medicine/doctors, or simply vaccines (as i think i can already guess the answer.
It's surprising that more educated patients/parents tend to question vaccination. Maybe college-educated people feel more on equal terms with doctors and aren't afraid to question them. The immediate access of (mis)information is a challenge because it gives people a false sense of validation. Ultimately, we need to motivate people to get vaccinated, and firing patients is punitive and as @Umangi Patel mentioned, may lead to further distrust of modern medicine. Communication skills are key in this scenario.
I think this is a very interesting post. I am particularly interested in your point about firing families that do not vaccinate their children. Are practices doing that to make a point about vaccination or are they doing that to protect other patients? I completely agree with you that that is not the best response to the problem. I believe firing families that do not vaccinate their children is not the best approach to solving the problem unless the intent is to protect other patients.
@Umangi Patel I am very surprised by the demographic of parents that are hesitant to vaccinate their children. You would think that those that are educated and of decent socioeconomic status would be more likely to understand the scientific reasoning behind vaccinations. I believe that these parents do have their children's health as a top priority, but for some reason they are skeptical of the information out there or they tend to believe the false information/conspiracy theories.
I totally agree @Umangi---I think it would be beneficial to everyone if the physician and parent can come to a mutual understanding that the child's health is their top priority and move forward from there.
I'm always interested in understanding how despite education from physicians parents still choose not to vaccinate their children. In another post, it was mentioned that the CDC has educational materials that educate parents on the importance of vaccinations. I always wonder why these educational materials and education by physicians isn't enough to convenience parents that vaccinations are necessary. Is there a way to make the material more accessible, more appealing, or interesting? I'm interested in unique methods that allow parents to truly understand the importance of vaccinations.
@ Umangi Patel. I'm looking forward to reading those papers and learning more about anti-intellectualism, propagation of misinformation, etc. Interesting stuff!