Immune to education

Let’s be honest. Although pediatricians invest most of their days, some of their nights, and untold cockles of heartfelt concern trying to keep their patients well, there is very little evidence that what we do actually makes a difference. The one shining exception comes when we administer immunizations. This humbling fact makes the problem of vaccine refusal so frustrating and depressing.

I have always considered the increasing number of parents who refuse or who are hesitant about immunization just another example of decay in our nation’s educational system. How could anyone who was even half awake in American History class not be aware of the toll that infectious diseases took on the children born before 1900? Diseases that are now preventable. Do introductory science courses even touch on the basic mechanisms that underlie immunizations? High school students may not be expected to know that John Enders was the lead investigator in the development of the measles vaccine, but someone should have told them the story of Jonas Salk and polio.

Like many of you, I assumed that if I could just do a better job of filling in the gaps in our educational system that vaccine-hesitant parents would see the light. If I could share with parents even a small fraction of what I know about the efficacy of vaccines they couldn’t possibly refuse to immunize their children. However, after 40 years of failed attempts and frustration, I have begun to doubt my communication skills.

Some work by Brendan Nyhan, Ph.D., a government professor at Dartmouth College, and his colleagues suggests that my attempts at education were destined to fail. ("Effective Messages in Vaccine Promotion: A Randomized Trial," [Pediatrics 2014;133:1-8]). Aware that people frequently resist information that contradicts their views, these investigators began a small study. Nearly 1,800 parents were randomized to receive one of four messages supporting the value of MMR vaccine from textual excerpts to pictures of children with the diseases prevented by the vaccine.

What they discovered was that parents who had "mixed or negative feelings" about the vaccine were actually less likely to say that they would choose to vaccinate a future child after they had been presented with literature refuting the MMR-autism link. While these families were less likely to accept the vaccine-autism link, the informational materials had prompted them to consider other reasons that supported their negative views about vaccines.

Although other studies have found that parents still consider their children’s doctor to be the most trusted source of vaccine information, it appears that education as we understand it may not be our best tool. In fact, it may even be counterproductive. Attempts to engender fear may seem logical to us, but in reality they may be backfiring.

Dr. Nyhan and his colleagues didn’t bore down to discover what factors made a particular view so resistant to education. But, in my experience inheritance doesn’t seem to play a role. I hear from many fearful and frustrated grandparents who can’t understand why their grandchildren aren’t being immunized.

There is the hermit mentality that says by keeping apart from "all those other people" in society and by living a better life, we can protect ourselves from their diseases and don’t need immunizations. And, of course, there is the notion that even though we understand the rationale for immunization, God will protect us.

This important study suggests that we must be very thoughtful about our attempts at education in all public health issues. Our intuition has failed us here. As unfair as it may be to the child victims of this parental foolishness, we may need to fall back on strict exclusion and quarantine to protect the rest us until we learn how to convince families that they are making a serious mistake.

Dr. Wilkoff practiced primary care pediatrics in Brunswick, Maine, for nearly 40 years. He has authored several books on behavioral pediatrics including "How to Say No to Your Toddler." E-mail him at [email protected].

Let’s be honest. Although pediatricians invest most of their days, some of their nights, and untold cockles of heartfelt concern trying to keep their patients well, there is very little evidence that what we do actually makes a difference. The one shining exception comes when we administer immunizations. This humbling fact makes the problem of vaccine refusal so frustrating and depressing.

I have always considered the increasing number of parents who refuse or who are hesitant about immunization just another example of decay in our nation’s educational system. How could anyone who was even half awake in American History class not be aware of the toll that infectious diseases took on the children born before 1900? Diseases that are now preventable. Do introductory science courses even touch on the basic mechanisms that underlie immunizations? High school students may not be expected to know that John Enders was the lead investigator in the development of the measles vaccine, but someone should have told them the story of Jonas Salk and polio.

Like many of you, I assumed that if I could just do a better job of filling in the gaps in our educational system that vaccine-hesitant parents would see the light. If I could share with parents even a small fraction of what I know about the efficacy of vaccines they couldn’t possibly refuse to immunize their children. However, after 40 years of failed attempts and frustration, I have begun to doubt my communication skills.

Some work by Brendan Nyhan, Ph.D., a government professor at Dartmouth College, and his colleagues suggests that my attempts at education were destined to fail. ("Effective Messages in Vaccine Promotion: A Randomized Trial," [Pediatrics 2014;133:1-8]). Aware that people frequently resist information that contradicts their views, these investigators began a small study. Nearly 1,800 parents were randomized to receive one of four messages supporting the value of MMR vaccine from textual excerpts to pictures of children with the diseases prevented by the vaccine.

What they discovered was that parents who had "mixed or negative feelings" about the vaccine were actually less likely to say that they would choose to vaccinate a future child after they had been presented with literature refuting the MMR-autism link. While these families were less likely to accept the vaccine-autism link, the informational materials had prompted them to consider other reasons that supported their negative views about vaccines.

Although other studies have found that parents still consider their children’s doctor to be the most trusted source of vaccine information, it appears that education as we understand it may not be our best tool. In fact, it may even be counterproductive. Attempts to engender fear may seem logical to us, but in reality they may be backfiring.

Dr. Nyhan and his colleagues didn’t bore down to discover what factors made a particular view so resistant to education. But, in my experience inheritance doesn’t seem to play a role. I hear from many fearful and frustrated grandparents who can’t understand why their grandchildren aren’t being immunized.

There is the hermit mentality that says by keeping apart from "all those other people" in society and by living a better life, we can protect ourselves from their diseases and don’t need immunizations. And, of course, there is the notion that even though we understand the rationale for immunization, God will protect us.

This important study suggests that we must be very thoughtful about our attempts at education in all public health issues. Our intuition has failed us here. As unfair as it may be to the child victims of this parental foolishness, we may need to fall back on strict exclusion and quarantine to protect the rest us until we learn how to convince families that they are making a serious mistake.

Dr. Wilkoff practiced primary care pediatrics in Brunswick, Maine, for nearly 40 years. He has authored several books on behavioral pediatrics including "How to Say No to Your Toddler." E-mail him at [email protected].

Let’s be honest. Although pediatricians invest most of their days, some of their nights, and untold cockles of heartfelt concern trying to keep their patients well, there is very little evidence that what we do actually makes a difference. The one shining exception comes when we administer immunizations. This humbling fact makes the problem of vaccine refusal so frustrating and depressing.

I have always considered the increasing number of parents who refuse or who are hesitant about immunization just another example of decay in our nation’s educational system. How could anyone who was even half awake in American History class not be aware of the toll that infectious diseases took on the children born before 1900? Diseases that are now preventable. Do introductory science courses even touch on the basic mechanisms that underlie immunizations? High school students may not be expected to know that John Enders was the lead investigator in the development of the measles vaccine, but someone should have told them the story of Jonas Salk and polio.

Like many of you, I assumed that if I could just do a better job of filling in the gaps in our educational system that vaccine-hesitant parents would see the light. If I could share with parents even a small fraction of what I know about the efficacy of vaccines they couldn’t possibly refuse to immunize their children. However, after 40 years of failed attempts and frustration, I have begun to doubt my communication skills.

Some work by Brendan Nyhan, Ph.D., a government professor at Dartmouth College, and his colleagues suggests that my attempts at education were destined to fail. ("Effective Messages in Vaccine Promotion: A Randomized Trial," [Pediatrics 2014;133:1-8]). Aware that people frequently resist information that contradicts their views, these investigators began a small study. Nearly 1,800 parents were randomized to receive one of four messages supporting the value of MMR vaccine from textual excerpts to pictures of children with the diseases prevented by the vaccine.

What they discovered was that parents who had "mixed or negative feelings" about the vaccine were actually less likely to say that they would choose to vaccinate a future child after they had been presented with literature refuting the MMR-autism link. While these families were less likely to accept the vaccine-autism link, the informational materials had prompted them to consider other reasons that supported their negative views about vaccines.

Although other studies have found that parents still consider their children’s doctor to be the most trusted source of vaccine information, it appears that education as we understand it may not be our best tool. In fact, it may even be counterproductive. Attempts to engender fear may seem logical to us, but in reality they may be backfiring.

Dr. Nyhan and his colleagues didn’t bore down to discover what factors made a particular view so resistant to education. But, in my experience inheritance doesn’t seem to play a role. I hear from many fearful and frustrated grandparents who can’t understand why their grandchildren aren’t being immunized.

There is the hermit mentality that says by keeping apart from "all those other people" in society and by living a better life, we can protect ourselves from their diseases and don’t need immunizations. And, of course, there is the notion that even though we understand the rationale for immunization, God will protect us.

This important study suggests that we must be very thoughtful about our attempts at education in all public health issues. Our intuition has failed us here. As unfair as it may be to the child victims of this parental foolishness, we may need to fall back on strict exclusion and quarantine to protect the rest us until we learn how to convince families that they are making a serious mistake.

Dr. Wilkoff practiced primary care pediatrics in Brunswick, Maine, for nearly 40 years. He has authored several books on behavioral pediatrics including "How to Say No to Your Toddler." E-mail him at [email protected].