The Hirsch Pediatrics Policy on Vaccinations

What is your policy on vaccinations?

One of the cornerstones of my medical philosophy is to keep our children safe and healthy through disease prevention. The routine use of vaccines is arguably one of the greatest medical interventions with its dramatic reduction of childhood disease and death—the statistics are quite impressive. The following table published by the CDC demonstrates the dramatic impact of vaccines on public health in the 20th century:

I wholeheartedly support the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation that every child be fully vaccinated in a timely fashion. As of January 1, 2009, if you wish to significantly modify the vaccination schedule, I am no longer able to provide care to your child and will request that you find another pediatrician that has an alternative vaccine philosophy.

Please click HERE to read the updated Hirsch Pediatrics vaccine policy. 

By adhering to the recommended schedule for all children of Hirsch Pediatrics, I want to reassure other parents (especially those with newborns) that their child will not be unnecessarily exposed to vaccine preventable diseases at his or her visit to Hirsch Pediatrics.

Substantial and ongoing research has demonstrated that it is extremely safe to give kids multiple vaccines at a time. As noted in the article, Too Many Vaccines? What you should know published in Fall 2008 by the world renowned Vaccine Education Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia:

Thirty years ago, children received seven vaccines, which protected against measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and polio. The total number of bacterial and viral proteins contained in these seven vaccines was a little more than 3,000. Today, children receive 14 different vaccines, but the total number of immunological components in these vaccines is only about 150. This dramatic reduction is the result of scientific advances that have allowed for purer, safer vaccines.

Given that infants are colonized with trillions of bacteria, that each bacterium contains between 2,000 and 6,000 immunological components and that infants are infected with numerous viruses, the challenge from the 150 immunological components in vaccines is minuscule compared to what infants manage every day. 

I recommend that any parent that still has questions or concerns about administering multiple vaccines at once click HERE to read the full text of this publication.

Understandably, many parents will ask the following question, “If these diseases are so rare, then why is it so important for my child to be vaccinated?” In fact, as long as a disease still exists in any part of the world, vaccinating your child will offer protection not only to your own child but to all of the children in your community. This is the principle of Herd Immunity:

The effectiveness of a vaccine depends, amongst other things, on the percentage of the population which has received it and is still within the period of protection offered by that vaccine. Vaccinated people act as a sort of "firebreak" in the spread of the disease, slowing or preventing the further transmission of the disease to others. Since the protection offered by vaccines is rarely 100%, the vaccine will be more effective if more people have been vaccinated. This is because the disease may be able to jump from one unvaccinated person to another person who has not been vaccinated, but is unlikely to be able to jump from one unvaccinated person to another who has been vaccinated. Virologists and epidemiologists who have studied these areas have found that when a certain percentage of a population is vaccinated, the spread of the disease is effectively stopped. This critical percentage depends on the disease and the vaccine, but 90% is not uncommon. This is herd immunity - the fact that others in the herd or population have been vaccinated provides protection to all others, whether or not vaccinated themselves.

Finally, in responding to questions of vaccine safety, I consider rigorous scientific research and continued post-marketing surveillance for guidance on what is the best choice for your child. When it comes to the health of our children, I want to be sure that these vaccines are as safe as possible, and like any medical intervention, that the benefits of vaccinating your child strongly outweigh the risks.

If you wish to learn more about the safety and effectiveness of vaccines, please refer to our resource center.

What is the vaccination schedule?

Hirsch Pediatrics utilizes the vaccination schedule recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and approved by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Because of the flexibility in the exact timing and choice of vaccines, we have been able to design a vaccine administration schedule that will provide complete protection to your child while minimizing the total number of injections.

In most cases, your child will receive vaccinations prior to leaving the hospital and at the 2 month, 4 month, 6 month, 12 month, 15 month, and 18 month visits. The remaining vaccines will be given at age 4, between ages 10 to 12 years, and then finally in high-school prior to college.

Prior to administering any vaccine to your child, we will always review the most up-to-date research to ensure the highest level of safety and effectiveness in the vaccine.