Biologics

Better Vaccine Communication Needed: Column

Four researchers and scholars who are founding members of the Council for Quality Health Communication say it’s time to unpack what is meant by vaccine safety and effectiveness and acknowledge individual concerns being raised by consumers. Writing in a MedPageToday Perspective column, the four say that many people don’t know how a vaccine works or how its ability to protect stacks up against a threat that most people have never experienced.

“Vaccines have specific characteristics that make them particularly vulnerable to concerns from a worried parent or a fearful senior,” the authors write. “They are (1) made by big companies, (2) their technology is hard to understand and can appear to change quickly, and (3) their benefits are invisible and often far in the future.”

The post says that rather than offer vaccine advice that addresses the fears empathetically and clearly, the medical and public health community tends to repeat that vaccines and safe and effective. “What many hear is defensive government gobbledygook from a distant bureaucracy they don’t trust,” it says. “It also offers a shorthanded way for busy healthcare professionals to address patient questions while glossing over individual concerns.”

The authors suggest:

being realistic about typical post-vaccination symptoms that might make people think the vaccines are unsafe;
being open about what is not known;
emphasizing protection over prevention; and
explaining vaccine effectiveness in today’s language and using today’s media.

They conclude that the message about vaccines should not be that they are safe and effective, but rather that they are “worth it.”

Gupta Raises Concerns About Overton’s Independence, Ideology

FDA commissioner nominee Heidi Overton’s responses on vaccines, contraception and abortion medication during her 9/24 Senate confirmation hearing raise concerns that ideology could influence her decision-making if she takes over the agency, MSNBC senior medical analyst Dr. Vin Gupta said Friday. Gupta was particularly critical of Overton’

Overton Confirmation Remains Uncertain After Senate Hearing

FDA commissioner nominee Heidi Overton emerged from her Senate confirmation hearing Thursday (see earlier story) without resolving questions about whether she has enough Republican support to advance — and with a rapidly narrowing window for confirmation before the midterm elections. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing provided few

FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

FDA has classified Boston Scientific's recall of its Imager II Angiographic Catheters as Class I because a manufacturing problem could cause catheter tips to degrade and detach, potentially resulting in life-threatening complications. The agency announced the Class I classification 9/25, updating an Early Alert it issued

FDA Approves Gazyva for Childhood-Onset Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome

FDA has approved Roche’s Gazyva (obinutuzumab) for reducing the risk of relapse in adults and children aged 2 and older with frequently relapsing or steroid-dependent, childhood-onset idiopathic nephrotic syndrome who are in remission. The expanded approval covers the use of the CD20-directed antibody beyond its existing

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Gupta Raises Concerns About Overton’s Independence, Ideology

Overton Confirmation Remains Uncertain After Senate Hearing

FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

FDA Approves Gazyva for Childhood-Onset Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome