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Dad Takes Mom to Court Over Skipped Shot
A mother’s decision not to give her child the swine flu shot has landed her in court. But it isn’t the government sending her there. It’s the child’s father.
Neither of the parents are being named to protect the identify of their nine-year-old daughter, but the Telegraph reported Dad wants his daughter to get the shot.
His ex-wife, however, says she doesn’t think there’s enough of a risk to their daughter if she gets the disease, and she’s decidedly anti-vaccine.
So what’s a court to do?
When dad’s argument is listen to the medical authorities and he’s saying mom’s is “I read it on the Internet,” we’re willing to bet it will be a toughy. But the court needs to figure out if the parents are really fighting about the shot or just using their kid as a pawn in their reportedly acrimonious divorce. Two years after splitting up, they’re still at it – fighting over a pre-nup in British courts.
And now their fighting could make for a major legal precedent in Britain – should medical doctor’s recommendations get the final say or should parents’ guts hold sway?
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7 Comments
laura commented on Nov 30 09 at 5:04 pmI am a nurse, and got the flumist vaccine (however it was not available to me until after I believe I already contracted H1N1 and spread it to my family). I agree that nurses should get the shot – but not be forced into it to keep their jobs. Are the other workers, doctors, clerks, physical therapists, housekeepers, etc being held to the same standard? That woudl be my biggest worry.
Robyn commented on Dec 01 09 at 12:33 amShould the government be making medical decisions for our kids, or should we, their parents, be making them?
When you put it that way, I think it’s a lot clearer.
PlumbLucky commented on Dec 01 09 at 7:35 am@Laura – in at least one local hospital to me, the answer to your question is “yes”.
@Robyn – I agree with the sentiment, but what happens in a case such as this? Where the parents can’t be in the same room without taking polar opposite sides on a given issue? Who makes the rules then?
Laure68 commented on Dec 01 09 at 12:27 pmRobyn, I’m not sure I agree with your statement. What about the mom who didn’t want her son to undergo chemotherapy for his highly-treatable cancer? How many people thought the government was wrong in this situation?
The problem is that there are too many people who get their info from Google University, and think they know more than actual experts. They can put their kids’ lives in danger. If parents are making medical decisions for their kids based on false and misleading information, I think someone should step in. We make people put their kids in car seats, I don’t see how this is all that different.
Nakia commented on Dec 01 09 at 1:29 pmLaure68 – a car seat is not injected into the body- unless a kid is severely allergic to plastic, the risks don’t even compare. While vaccines are generally safe, no vaccine, treatment, or procedure is risk free. Some parents think the risk is worth the benefit; others disagree.
Laure68 commented on Dec 01 09 at 2:56 pmNakia – but when people decide that the benefits are not worth the risk, how are they getting their information? That is the problem I have. There is a trend where people fancy themselves experts after a few hours on the internet. However, organizations such as the CDC use scientific research to make their recommendations. What do you think about the comparison to chemotherapy?
Also, you bring up something I find fascinating with people who argue against vaccinations. (I know you are not necessarily doing this, though.) The fact that a vaccine is injected makes people particularly nervous, for no reason. There are tons of things we put in our body every day we don’t think twice about. But a vaccine, which has a very low amount of “toxins” compared to what we are exposed to daily makes some concerned. I was talking to a mom who was very nervous about giving her child vaccines, but was perfectly comfortable with giving this child Motrin on a daily basis for the several months she was teething.
Beatrice commented on Dec 01 09 at 3:58 pmWhen parents are divided on an issue & THEY choose to get the legal system involved, then “public safety” & medical science should be a factor. Both are antidotes for the emotional knee-jerk reactions that so often propel family squabbles into our courts. Such is the case when Christian Scientists refuse to get medical intervention for their sick children — why should the H1N1 autism-induced, baseless-hysteria be any different.
I hope the child gets the vaccine.
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