Madam, – I laud Ann Kennedy’s openness and forthrightness on her battle with the effects of contracting rubella in her mother’s womb (HEALTHplus, February 23rd).
I am aware of at least one other person whose life is severely damaged by rubella. Yet I am one of those mothers who did not give vaccines to my children when they were due. My decision was based on my second baby’s health problems and on foreign information that vaccines (not just the MMR one) contain many other chemicals that can be harmful. At the time, I was also disturbed by the reported link with autism but know now that this is not true.
When my son got a bad cut a few years ago I asked the doctor in the VHI clinic for a tetanus jab for him. Going to the GP for a follow-up dose, I found out that my son had been given either a four-in-one or a three-in-one vaccination, as a single tetanus vaccine is not available in this country.
This kind of experience undermines my trust in information put out by the HSE and the Department of Health, and I know I am not alone in this. I am well-educated and prefer to make my own decisions based on information from reputable sources.
Like me, most parents try to make the best choices for their children. In order to get a higher uptake of vaccinations there should be more openness and transparency. My children have since got the MMR vaccine. – Yours, etc,