CLEVELAND, Ohio — The coronavirus pandemic has increased hesitancy around visits to hospitals and healthcare facilities. As a result, vaccinations have dropped at a dangerous rate.
- Vaccination rates for measles, mumps and rubella decreased by 50 percent
- The decline raises concerns about future outbreaks of other preventable diseases
- Many health care systems say they have measures in place for families to have safe hospital visits
What You Need To Know
Pediatricians across the country, including Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital’s Dr. Kmberly Giuliano, say the decline raises concerns about future outbreaks of other preventable diseases.
“Now if we have even more families opting to forgo vaccines, or at least just delay the vaccines for a period of time, we're at a real risk for another public health emergency. It would not get to the same scale as COVID because nobody has immunity to COVID, but we've seen how crippled we can become when we are at the mercy of an infectious disease,” Dr. Kimberly Giuliano of Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital said.
A recent study done by the Physicians Computer Company, an independent electronic health record provider, shows that for 1,000 U.S pediatricians, vaccination rates for measles, mumps and rubella decreased by 50 percent during the week of April 5, compared with the week of February 16.
“The numbers are staggering and it is concerning that that happened in such a short period of time, that we saw that dramatic of a decrease,” Giuliano said.
Dr. Skyler Kalady, of Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital, says while the pandemic is front and center right now, as it should be, other highly contagious diseases have and can make a comeback.
“We know that measles is in our community. We know that pertussis or whooping cough is in our community. And so, some people mistakenly feel that these illnesses no longer exist, but the data is very clear that that's not true,” said Kalady.
She says even amid COVID-19, it is critical to keep children vaccinated on schedule.
“In general, babies need one vaccine in the hospital when they're born, and the routine schedule for vaccines is done at 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 12, months, 18 months and 2 years, and then again at4 years. So, there's very concrete intervals of when is the earliest, best time to vaccinate your children," Kalady said.
Giuliano and Kalady want to let parents know it is safe to bring their children into Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital offices.
“The vast majority of our facilities do not have patients with COVID-like symptoms entering the doors. The other thing is that all of our facilities, we have screeners stationed in each door that are checking temperatures on every patient, visitor and employee as soon as they walk in the door. And we're also working on ways that we can speed up the check-in process as quickly as possible, collecting information ahead of time prior to the visit." said Giuliano.
They say it's understandable that parents have questions and feel hesitant about getting vaccinated at this time. They encourage families to talk directly with their pediatrician to share their concerns.
“Unfortunately, COVID has shown us what happens when we don't have immunity. And this can serve as a reminder of a place that we do not want to get to with infections that we are lucky enough to have vaccines for now. So, I’m hopeful that vaccine-hesitant families will see this COVID epidemic as a health care example of how effective vaccination programs have been,” Kalady said.
“Your health care provider will be happy to talk with you on the phone or with a virtual visit, help you to understand the pros and the cons and make a health decision that is a safe and effective one for you and your family,” said Giuliano.