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But among those with children under 12, one-fifth say it should be up to parents to decide to vaccinate
February 21, 2019 – While public health workers in Canada and around the world are struggling to stem a new wave of measles outbreaks this winter, and the heated debate between pro and anti-vaccine parents is raging on social media and Real Life, According to the Angus Reid Institute, the vast majority of Canadians (70%) believe that immunizing children against common life-threatening illnesses should be a requirement.
And while more than four in five (83%) say they would vaccinate their children without hesitation, an important segment – one in five with children under 12 (20%) – believes that immunizations should be those of the parents. choice, not mandatory.
In addition, 29% believe that scientific knowledge about immunization is not "completely clear"; a finding that increases with the age of respondents.
More key findings:
- Nine in ten Canadians (92%) say that vaccinations effectively protect the community from disease (59% highly effective, 32% mostly effective).
- The view that children should be forced to get vaccinated goes beyond political boundaries. At least two-thirds of potential supporters of each of the major federal parties believe this should be the norm (CPC 66%, Liberal 80%, NDP 77%)
- A quarter of Canadians are concerned (26%) about the risk of side effects for those vaccinated. Seven in ten (68%) say they are not worried about this problem
INDEX:
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Eight in ten would vaccinate their children
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Fewer, but still seven in ten say vaccines should be mandatory
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Strong agreement with the efficiency
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A quarter say science is not very clear
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But most still say that not vaccinating children is irresponsible
Eight in ten would vaccinate their children
Vaccines are not new. Some historical sources suggest that the Chinese may have been inoculating some form against smallpox as early as 200 years before our era. In the 1770s, during the American Revolution, George Washington demanded that his troops be vaccinated against smallpox, which he described as "a greater threat than the sword of the enemy."
But despite all the progress made in minimizing and eradicating diseases over the past 100 years – smallpox was eradicated in 1977 – debates continue in the modern era on the benefits and risks of the vaccination.
Fueled by vaccination rates below the suggested rates, measles has recently broken out in both the United States and Canada. Physicians have expressed concern that rates have fallen below the "collective immunity" threshold – a sufficient number of the population vaccinated to prevent the spread of a particular disease. For example, the immunity level of the herd against measles is 95%.
In Canada, in 2015, 89% of children were immunized against measles, mumps and rubella at two years of age, while 88% had received meningococcal C vaccine at the same age. Rates for multiple-dose vaccines are slightly lower, but still stand around four out of five, according to the latest available data from the Public Health Agency of Canada.
These rates are closely related to the number of Canadians who report vaccinating their children without reservation (83%). Notably, 12% of Canadians say they are not sure of the situation, while 5% are opposed to vaccinating their children.
Among those who have children at home, the percentage that says they would vaccinate wholeheartedly is nine out of ten:
Fewer, but still seven in ten say vaccines should be mandatory
Often, philosophical, religious or personal reasons are invoked when parents dispense their child with vaccination. For example, in 2015, 15% of parents told Health Canada that in their opinion, chiropractic practices and naturopathy were viable alternatives to vaccination – which Health Canada called "false."
This has led some observers and experts to question whether vaccines should become mandatory. Some jurisdictions require proof of immunization before registration, but vaccines remain the parents' choice throughout the country.
Seven in ten Canadians (70%) say they would be comfortable with mandatory vaccines, while a quarter (24%) feel that this should remain the choice of parents. Canadians in the Conservative political sphere (see the methodology at the end of the report) are twice as likely to say that the choice should be that of the parent:
* see the end of the report for the methodology of the political sphere
On this issue, there is little difference between Canadians who have children at home and those who do not. Seven in ten in each group are in favor of mandatory vaccination:
Strong agreement with the efficiency
More than nine out of ten Canadians believe that each is effective in reducing the prevalence of disease when considering the impact on the vaccinated person and the community as a whole:
Vaccines have been shown to be effective in minimizing a number of diseases. Smallpox has been completely eradicated, while polio only affects about 500 people every year worldwide. However, it is difficult to control diseases in the face of fears of vaccination. After Dr. Andrew Wakefield fueled his fears about measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) immunization in 1998, many parents began to worry that MMR was involved in autism. Wakefield has been removed from the UK General Medical Council for unethical behavior and is no longer allowed to call himself a doctor. No scientific link between MMR and autism has been established. However, the fallout and the decline in the rate of MMR membership have led to a significant increase in the number of measles cases in recent years.
Views on this issue are consistent across all age groups, with relatively unquestioned effectiveness in Canada. The intensity of belief in effectiveness is higher among young Canadians compared to their older peers:
A quarter of them say that science is not very clear and worry about side effects
Canadians' views on the effectiveness of vaccines do not prevent many from worrying about the risks. In fact, out of ten (29%), they do not believe that the scientific knowledge of vaccination is clear enough. Skepticism is lowest in younger age groups and increases with age. More than one in three Canadians over the age of 55 (36%) say that science is uncertain.
About the same number (26%) said they thought they were at a serious risk of side effects from inoculation. The Center for Disease Control highlights a number of side effects associated with vaccination. They note that although minor side effects may be common and vary among vaccines, the possibility of serious injury is low.
At least one in five Canadians, all age groups combined, expresses these concerns:
But most still say that not vaccinating children is irresponsible
Although the potential for side effects leaves some Canadians paused, the vast majority of them say that people who campaign against child immunization are irresponsible. Three-quarters (75%) have this opinion while one in five says they disagree (21%):
Canadians with young children at home are slightly more likely to say that immunization advocates are irresponsible, although the presence of children at home has minimal impact on the answers to this question:
As noted above, the lack of "group immunity" is one of the problems associated with low vaccination rates. Lower rates increase the likelihood that diseases will spread among the population. This is a particularly sensitive area of concern for Canadians. Nine out of ten (88%) say it is important to vaccinate children as it protects the community more broadly:
Political Sphere Methodology
Rather than relying on respondents' potentially obliterated memories of their vote in the 2015 federal election, IRA researchers constructed a measure of political partisanship based on the desire to vote for the major federal parties in a future election under their current leaders.
The question specifically asked respondents how likely they would be to vote for "the Liberal Party led by Justin Trudeau", "the conservative party led by Andrew Scheer" and "the new Democratic Party led by Jagmeet Singh" in future elections. The response options were to "definitely support" the party and the leader in question, "certainly to consider them", "perhaps to consider them", and "certainly not even to consider them".
Respondents who choose one of the first two options (definitely support or definitely consider) are considered the "sphere" of the party. They represent potential supporters of this party, not necessarily voters.
It should be noted that the categories are not mutually exclusive. Respondents were asked to give an opinion on each of the main parties and were given the opportunity to say that they would "definitely" consider each one.
Thus, many respondents may appear in the spheres of several parties.
the Angus Reid Institute (ARI) was founded in October 2014 by pollster and sociologist Dr. Angus Reid. ARI is a national, non-profit, non-partisan public opinion research foundation established to advance education by ordering, conducting and disseminating accessible and unbiased statistical information to the public. and political research and analysis of the administration, national and international affairs, and other socio-economic issues of importance to Canada and its world.
For detailed results by age, sex, region, education and other demographics, click here.
For detailed results by political sphere and by children at home, click here.
Click here for the full report, including tables and methodology.
Click here for the questionnaire used in this survey
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Shachi Kurl, Executive Director, Angus Reid Institute: 604.908.1693 [email protected] @shachikurl
Dave Korzinski, Research Associate: 250.899.0821 [email protected]
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