Should Dental Staff Be V vaccinated?

The decision to immunize dental staff comes with a lot of uncertainty. Many dentists argue that the danger is overblown and that the benefits far outweigh the risks, but others are adamantly opposed to the idea. There are also those who feel that it is best for children not to be vaccinated. These arguments about the necessity of vaccines come from two different angles - fear of autism and fear of contracting infectious disease.

In order to understand where these arguments are coming from, we have to understand what it is that children face in the work environment today. At every single workplace, there is the possibility of a co-worker falling sick or becoming infected with some form of disease that can be transmitted through any type of contact. From the hands of a child sitting at a table to a co-worker picking up a ball of skin or dirt from a desk, the potential for disease exists at all levels of the workplace. To eliminate the risk, it is necessary for staff to wear protective gear that covers the entire body, such as gowns, gloves and face masks.

While there is no need to allow children exposed to harmful bacteria to harm their bodies, some people argue that it is better to protect them from disease than to allow a potentially deadly disease to be passed along. On the other hand, there is another view on the issue - that a staff member who has contracted a disease should be shunned by his or her peers, and that the risk is too great to allow the person to re-infect anyone else. For this latter view, people are often encouraged to purchase face cream that will protect their own health. The same argument could be used to justify the requirement that staff should be vaccinated.

One problem with this line of reasoning is that there are numerous choices available to employers today. No one staff member needs to be forced into purchasing face cream that will be used by all of the staff. This would result in staff wasting money by not using the cream. Additionally, no single product is required to protect everyone. Varying the types of vaccines that staff are exposed to could help reduce the need to use a face cream, and might even decrease the number of outbreaks that occur.

Another argument for staff members being required to be vaccinated against deadly diseases is that children will be scarred for life. The argument goes that some children who contract these diseases are so little that they will never be able to lead normal lives. This is completely untrue. Many children will grow out of the diseases and never have negative effects on their health. Therefore, if a person wants to protect his or her family, a dental professional should be allowed to recommend the safest course of action, and that is, staff members should be allowed to be fully vaccinated.

In the end, the decision as to whether or not staff members should be vaccinated should rest on the wishes of the school board. If a school board believes that the safety of its students is at stake, then staff members should be required to be vaccinated. However, if the school board believes that an educated decision is best made, then staff members should be allowed to decide not to get vaccinated. No one wishes to make decisions that could affect the health of their loved ones, but protecting them can be the best decision a family can make.