Help protect your keiki from deadly diseases.

By Andrea Wright

There are lots of misconceptions about immunizations, especially for small children. Many parents think that vaccines are unnecessary, ineffective, unsafe or inconvenient.

Take Nick, for example. His parents reacted to media hype about the dangers of vaccines and chose not to get Nick vaccinated against pertussis (whooping cough) as an infant. At age 4, Nick contracted the disease. “My wife and I thought we were making an informed, educated decision … If you were able to see the horrible, debilitating condition the disease brings about, it greatly outweighs the risk of a reaction to the inoculation itself,” his father later said.

Or consider the parents of 10 children who probably didn’t think that a disease like measles was a viable threat to their infants. That is, until a child at their daycare center contracted the disease while on a trip to the Philippines and infected all of them in one of the largest measles outbreaks of the last decade.

There’s Susan, who had questions about the safety of the Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine. Before she was able to research it, her infant daughter contracted the disease. “I don’t want my child to be the one in 3 million” children with a potentially fatal reaction to a vaccine, “but I also don’t want mine to be the one in 10 that dies if they get the disease,” she concluded after her daughter eventually recovered.

And finally, there’s the mother who, as her 2-year-old daughter remained hospitalized for four days with rotavirus (a serious gastrointestinal infection), had this to say: “It was at this moment that I had a flashback. I was sitting in my doctor’s office rolling my eyes at the thought of taking my children to the [doctor’s office] for yet more vaccines. My child was paying a high price for my foolish decision.”

As a parent, you have a responsibility to protect your keiki. While you may think that you’re helping your child by not subjecting them to numerous vaccinations at a young age, overwhelming medical evidence suggests the opposite. Vaccines are safe, effective and crucial to protecting the health of young children. They’re a covered benefit of all HMSA health plans, and are also a state-law requirement for most public schools and daycare centers.

It can be tough to keep track of your child’s vaccination list, so work with your child’s doctor to form an organized chart, schedule doctor appointments as recommended, and don’t miss them. Here is a list of immunizations your child should receive by age 2:

• Diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTaP): Four doses.
• Polio (IPV): Three doses.
• Measles, mumps and rubella (MMR): One dose.
• Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib): Four doses. 
• Hepatitis B (HepB): Three doses.
• Varicella: One dose.
• Hepatitis A (HepA): Two doses.
• Influenza: One dose.
• Pneumococcal (PCV): Four doses.
• Rotavirus (RV): Three doses.

There are many myths about vaccines that can be dispelled by staying informed. Talk to your child’s doctor and visit the websites of organizations like HMSA, the Hawai‘i Department of Health, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, the Hawaii Immunization Coalition, and The American Academy of Pediatrics - Hawaii Chapter. You’ll find lots of information on the benefits of vaccines and the diseases they protect against.

The health of your keiki lies in your hands. Do your part to help keep them healthy.