Are H1N1 vaccine risk worth it to prevent Swine Flu symptoms ?
As More and More Come Down with H1N1 Symptoms, People are Still Unsure About the Swine Flu Vaccine
With only days left before the arrival of the first shipments of H1N1 Swine Flu vaccine, Americans are divided about whether or not they will receive the vaccinations, not to mention whether they will allow their children to receive it. But how many will or won’t seems to vary widely depending on who’s asking.
Different H1N1 Vaccine Surveys Receiving Vastly Different Results
There have been at least four major surveys conducted on the matter in the last few days, and each of them found widely different results. One, released on October 2nd, conducted by Harvard School of Public Health, indicated that as many as half of adults intend to get the vaccine, and nearly three quarters of parents will get it for their children.
This is a sharp contrast to a survey released earlier in the week, which showed only about a third of people intending to get the vaccine themselves, and about the same number intending to have their children have it. Yet a third survey’s results fell squarely between the two. Another said that some 87 percent of people thought healthcare workers should be required to take the vaccine, while among those same healthcare workers, only a little over a third intend to do so.
Why do So Many Intend to Avoid the H1N1 Swine Flu Vaccinations?
The top reason people intend to not get the vaccine themselves appears to be worries about side effects from the vaccine itself. This is most likely due to how quickly the vaccines have been rushed through development and testing. Close behind that worry, is the belief they would be unlikely to come down with a serious illness from swine flu, and finally because they feel they would be able to treat the H1N1 virus with medication if they did become ill.
Among parents, worries were slightly different. Although the top concern – side effects of the H1N1 vaccine – is the same, it is followed instead by a fear their children might get some other illness because of it, and then by a distrust of health officials to provide accurate information about the risks involved.
Should People be Getting the Vaccine?
Although only a doctor can say for sure how high each individuals’ risk is of catching the Swine Flu, or how severe the illness might be if they do catch it, statements from the CDC have indicated that “it is expected that most people will recover without needing medical care.” Each person must decide for themselves; but, save for those who are at high risk for complications, there is little, despite urgings to the contrary, that gives any really compelling reason to get it — or, for that matter, not to get it.
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