even if refusal to do so
puts one’s own kids at risk,
along with other people’s children. Do you agree?
Introduction
People get sick every single day from just about anything such as smallpox, chicken pox, measles, and flu. Some people feel that it is their given right to get vaccinated for said diseases so as to prevent them from resurfacing in the future, and sparing everyone else the horrible agony of going through the same exact thing they did. Children getting vaccinations are very important because they not only help people, but they help people around them as well, and ensures that everyone stays healthy and happy. Staying up with your child’s yearly vaccinations are deathly important because as I am sure most people well know, kids can infect other kids that in turn can infect their parents who will then infect other adults; the epidemic is a continuous chain reaction that never breaks. Frightenedly, a sneeze is all it takes, and the common cold alarm sounds; quite loudly I might add. Now, there are people who know the importance of getting vaccinated, and getting their children vaccinated, but what do you do when you encounter people who want to exercise their right to not get their child vaccinated because they feel it is not important? Child vaccinations are becoming a rarity; those truly sick, and need the vaccination will be given it, it is not the parent’s place to decide whether the child’s vaccination is or is not important. Parents can control many things involving their child but not the issue of whether the child’s vaccination is or is not important. Well, this paper will help me argue why I agree with the idea that people should be forced to vaccinate their kids even if they do not feel that it is necessary.
Body
One of the reasons why I feel that people should be forced to vaccinate their kids is because they are saving their kids, and other kids’ lives. Case in point, little Paul Detmeyer only six years old, comes to his preschool sick and vomiting. The reason Paul is feeling terrible and throwing up is because Paul’s parents do not believe in getting him or his three sisters, and two brothers vaccinated because they are anti-doctor. Simply, Paul’s parents do not believe in taking their kids to the doctor because they do not want a “licensed professional” to stick their kids. Plus, they also believe that getting a shot or vaccination is not going to solve the problem of kids getting theirs sick and vice versa. Paul’s parents are all about spiritual healing for the body that puts them in a state of mind that their body’s natural defenses and healing ability will cure the body’s sicknesses. To a VERY small extent, Paul’s parents are right, but the body’s natural healing ability does not make things like smallpox or rebella disappear which could potentially make little Paul impotent when he gets older. Also, thanks to Paul’s parents’ vaccination neglect, Paul has infected his entire preschool with the flu, and will have to spend some time out of school in the hospital where he can get the help he needs. The problem here is that Paul’s parents should have been doing the right thing by their children and not by themselves or what they think is right and wrong. It is a parent’s job to ensure that their child or children’s health is in top-notch condition, when it is not then the parents are the ones that are questioned and eventually judged; not the child. It should be the law that if a parent or parents do not make the time to get their child vaccinated when they are scheduled to do so, those parents should have those kids taken from them by DFCS (Dept. of Family and Child Services). Once those kids are in DFCS’ possession, the parents of those children should be given a 6 month mandatory parenting class then given a test that will determine whether or not they are ready to get their kids back.
Another big reason I agree that parents should be forced to vaccinate their kids is because the child faces a lifelong nightmare of isolation and being quarantined. No parent wants to be home sick with the flu let alone anything else associated with being sick, and most parents prevent that at all costs by getting their child vaccinated as they should. However, unvaccinated children will not only spread whatever the disease is that they have at that moment in time, but they will also stand a good chance of endangering their future. Case in point, a child has two working parents that cannot seem to get a break in their job long enough to take care of their child or children to get them the help that they need; vaccination help to be exact. This scenario goes on for months and months until the child develops, and shows signs of having the disease that they did not get the vaccination for. As a result, the child has temporary coma spells where the child will be fine for several hours at a time then their body slows down until it comes to a complete stop. Then, the child collapses and is comatose for several minutes then comes back to life again automatically. A teacher at the school has no idea what is causing the child to do this and as a result, are worried that the other children might get infected, so they put the infected child in a quarantined corner until the parents come and get him. Upon arrival of the parents, they just push the child outside and do not take the time to greet the child’s parents because they are afraid that they might get the disease too. There should be very strict laws against parents neglecting to get their child vaccinated because the parents do not care about the benefit it will have to the child, or making the time to get the child vaccinated. A child getting vaccinated serves a huge purpose, and that purpose is to keep the child safe from contracting anything that might harm or kill them. Every kid on earth has a right to be healthy; it is not the parents place to decide that for them because the kid is the one who suffers the consequence of the vaccinations or lack thereof. It can also be said that there are just reasons why kids cannot get vaccinated; those are not many.
The last reason I feel that parents should not have the right to decide whether it is mandatory to vaccinate their child or not is because the child’s future will not be their own. It is a known fact that kids that get yearly vaccinations will more than likely be immune to even the harshest of infections, infections like Hepatitis, Chickenpox, Flu, HPV and Tuberculosis. The child will go on to live a disease free life with no worries about getting sick from something or someone or catching something from someone. Parents who took the time to care about their child’s safety and vaccinations are less likely to take time off of work to spend time with their child in the hospital. Children who get vaccinated at an early age will more than likely be immune to the disease in their future when the disease becomes a big deal, and people who have not been vaccinated for it. Getting your child vaccinated shows the child that you as a parent care about them and what happens to them. Most parents are quick to jump to the conclusion that the vaccine is only temporary, and ineffective, therefore should be completely ignored as should the appointment to get it. However, nine times out of 10, parents find out that the ramifications of not getting their child vaccinated is severe, and an example of this is when parents are forced to stay at home with their child until the child recovers. The reason being is that the school will not permit the child to come back if he does not get his or her mandatory vaccinations, which is fair. Another reason being is that teachers are already working to keep the kids from practically killing each other by other means bereft of vaccinations, why should the teacher’s job difficulty be increased by singling out one child from the rest? The answer, it is not the teacher’s responsibility to get the unvaccinated child vaccinated, that is the parent’s responsibility. Nowadays, there are not enough parents that care enough about their child’s vaccinations to get them done since the schools have made them mandatory then the parents do not have any choice.
Conclusion
Overall, I feel parents should not have the right to decide whether to get their child vaccinated is because it can save the parents of the unvaccinated much money. Doctor visits are very expensive as most are well aware, and getting the child vaccinated will cost more. However, in the event that the vaccine is being distributed at school then it is in the parents and child’s interest to get the vaccine free of charge so they will be safe from whatever is in the air around them. The child will beat the odds of getting that disease, and nothing is more important than that.
Work Cited Page
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Reasons to have your child vaccinated. (2012, December 04). Retrieved from http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/vaccinations/Pages/reasons-to-have-your-child-vaccinated.aspx
The harm of skipping vaccinations or delaying. (2012, April). Retrieved from http://www.health.ny.gov/prevention/immunization/vaccine_safety/harm.htm
Gibbs, W. (2013, Sept 03). Vaccinated kids show no long term ill effects. Retrieved from http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/vaccinated-kids-show-no-long-term-i-13-09-03/
McDonald, N. (2009, March 31). A plea for clear language on vaccine safety. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2659827/
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