91原创

Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

B.C.鈥檚 vaccination rate lags; doctors want to know why

It鈥檚 a tough time to be a crunchy mama.
10800273.jpg
Public health nurse Reda Wilkes prepares to give a Pediacel shot to Logan McColl, 18-months, while mom Alyson McColl holds him at the Three Bridges Community Health Centre in 91原创. Big brother Ethan McColl, 2, watches the commotion from the right.

It鈥檚 a tough time to be a crunchy mama.

As a measles outbreak linked to Disneyland spreads through the United States, social media is screaming with debates between so-called 鈥減ro-vaxxers鈥 and 鈥渁nti-vaxxers,鈥 with some of the latter saying they feel under attack.

In B.C., where about 30 per cent of toddlers have not had the recommended immunizations by age two, there is little data on who is choosing not to vaccinate their children 鈥 and why.

Statistics collected by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control show 68 per cent of two-year-olds in the province, excluding those in the 91原创 Coastal Health region, were up-to-date on their childhood vaccinations in 2013. (While 91原创 Coastal data is collected differently, the numbers were similar for babies born in 2009.)

鈥淲e鈥檇 like to have a better understanding of (who鈥檚 not vaccinating),鈥 said Dr. Meena Dawar, 91原创 Coastal medical health officer. Of particular concern are children who have had no vaccinations, a number that is not readily obvious in the data.

B.C. CDC statistics show the highest uptake for the MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) and Men C (meningococcal type C) vaccines with the lowest uptake for the HPV (human papillomavirus) and rotavirus vaccines.

B.C. CDC medical director Dr. Monika Naus said the data 鈥渟eems to be reflective of concerns parents have over specific diseases.鈥

In anti-vaxx lingo, picking and choosing vaccines is called the 鈥渟elect and delay method,鈥 according to Langley mom Jen Collins, who is contemplating the approach after her third child is born this summer.

鈥淒iseases that are really bad, where you could die or become paralyzed, might be worth getting the vaccine,鈥 she reasoned. 鈥淏ut things like chickenpox? I got the chickenpox at age 16, and I survived.鈥

Collins鈥 beliefs about vaccinations aren鈥檛 represented in the statistics 鈥 both her eight-year-old daughter and five-year-old son are fully vaccinated up to preschool 鈥 but she seems to be among a growing group of moms who have reservations about vaccines.

While she takes comfort in knowing her kids are protected from a measles outbreak, she has a hard time trusting health officials because she believes the companies that make vaccines have a financial agenda for promoting them. She鈥檚 also trying to steer clear of chemicals as much as she can 鈥 鈥淚鈥檓 not a total crunchy mom, but I鈥檓 on my way there.鈥

In a blog post, Collins proposes the development of vaccines made with natural ingredients 鈥渨ithout all the toxic chemical preservatives and emulsifiers.鈥

Naus said misperceptions about vaccine safety seem to be a significant concern for parents who don鈥檛 vaccinate.

鈥淭his is quite a prominent belief in B.C.,鈥 she said.

A study that looked at parents鈥 reasons for declining the HPV vaccine for their daughters identified safety as the top concern.

Naus said some parents also believe general good health, including proper eating and sleeping habits, provides the best protection.

鈥淲hile it is true that it鈥檚 important to be in good health, it doesn鈥檛 provide immunity against specific diseases,鈥 she said.

In her experience, women who receive care from midwives or naturopaths are more likely to be misinformed, while the most effective vaccination education happens at the individual level, among moms.

(Facts on B.C. vaccine safety can be found on the ImmunizeBC website, Naus added.)

Another factor that prevents parents from keeping their children鈥檚 vaccinations up-to-date seems to be the modern scourge of busyness.

In the Fraser Health Authority, a high percentage of babies get their first shots, but the numbers drop off after that, said Dr. Michelle Murti, Fraser Health medical health officer.

The vaccination schedule has become more complicated in recent years, requiring appointments at two, four, six, 12 and 18 months, and then again between the ages of four and six.

91原创 Coastal鈥檚 Dawar also believes parents may find it tough to fit in all the required appointments.

In 2011/12, the North Shore region reported only 57 per cent of kindergarten-aged children were up-to-date on their DPTP (diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio) vaccines. The health authority targeted the area with education and improved access and saw rates come up to 71 per cent in 2013/14.

鈥淚t recognizes the work we can do to improve rates,鈥 said Dawar.

B.C. CDC statistics show vaccination rates in B.C. have basically held steady for the last five years. Nonetheless, the province鈥檚 largest measles outbreak in 30 years happened in 2014 after someone visiting the Netherlands caught the disease and brought it home to Chilliwack, where it spread in a small community of religious objectors.

It would not be surprising if measles reared its head again, said Naus. B.C. falls far short of the 90 per cent inoculation rate needed to keep the highly-contagious disease at bay.

鈥淲e (as a society) are particularly vulnerable to measles,鈥 she said.

There are few people as vulnerable as three-year-old Addison Yong McArthur. The 91原创 girl received a heart transplant at just four weeks old and, as a result, cannot receive vaccinations that contain live virus. She relies entirely on the immunity of others to keep diseases away, said her mother, Elaine Yong.

鈥淵ou try your hardest to keep your child safe and healthy, but there鈥檚 this one thing we cannot do and we have to rely on other parents to make the right decision,鈥 she said.

Yong was surprised to learn that children in B.C. are not required to be vaccinated to attend school 鈥 鈥淪o parents can鈥檛 send peanut butter to school in lunches, but they can send their unvaccinated kids?鈥 she said. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 make sense.鈥

Several provinces, including Ontario, require children to be vaccinated to attend school, but parents can opt out for religious, medical or philosophical reasons.

According to information provided by B.C.鈥檚 Ministry of Health, it is felt that mandatory immunizations would not significantly increase overall herd immunity in the province. By age seven, vaccination levels in B.C. are comparable to those in Ontario, where legislation exists.

But Naus said she believes it could help.

鈥淧eople would have to meet with a medical health officer and sign a piece of paper (to opt out). I think it would force them to think very hard about the issue.鈥

It would also give Addison鈥檚 parents a little more comfort when she starts kindergarten in a year and a half.