With vaccines…Is there no middle ground, no room for questions?

“We should be as demanding of ourselves as we are of those who challenge us.” Dr. Jerome Groopman, writing in the New Rupublic Writing about the medical decision-making surrounding vaccines proved to be sketchy. Yesterday’s post brought stinging criticism from both sides of the debate. A pediatrician felt the structure of the post was patronizing. Just an hour later, a skeptic sent me the same message–patronizing. This was educational. Criticism is taken seriously here, especially when it comes from both sides of an argument. The reflex: Perhaps its useful to write more on the matter? (It’s funny; writing that sentence caused me to think about my childhood. My younger brother and I would often find ourselves in conflict with our parents. My reaction was always to argue, explain and make the case. My brother never did this; he simply ducked quietly into the weeds, a master of inflammation avoidance.) True to my childhood self, then, here is a reach for clarity. First is the question of why a cardiologist would insert himself into the vaccine debate? It’s not your fight. Butt out. Medical decision-making: Vaccines, as therapeutic interventions performed in well people, highlight the issue of patient-centered decision-making. My field, cardiology, is currently undergoing a major transformation in this area. The pivoting involves a culture shift, from one of paternalism to one of shared-decision making. It’s been a remarkable thing to wi...
Source: Dr John M - Category: Cardiology Authors: Source Type: blogs