Call for compulsory vaccination by prominent GP “alarming”
The statement by GP Dr. Lance O’Sullivan who won the “New Zealander of the Year Award” in 2014 that vaccination should
become “compulsory” is “frankly alarming”, according to Katherine Smith, spokeswoman for No Forced Vaccines.
“I have no doubts that Dr. O’Sullivan is a dedicated doctor who cares about his patients and the community, and his
recognition is well deserved given the initiatives he has taken to improve the health of people in Kaitaia, such as the
Kainga Ora healthy housing initiative,” Mrs Smith says.
“However, his advocacy of compulsory vaccination is frankly alarming, given that he is a doctor, and should therefore
understand that medical ethics demand that except in extreme circumstances (such as an unconscious patient who needs
emergency treatment to save his or her life), patients must be able to make a free and informed decision about their
medical care.”
In practice, Mrs Smith explains, given that vaccination is a medical procedure that has serious risks, as well as
potential benefits, health professionals who offer vaccination to their patients need to provide information about the
benefits and risks of the vaccine. This allows people to make an informed decision about whether to be vaccinated.
In the case of vaccinations for children, their parents need to have this information to make a decision on behalf of
their child, she says.
“Any proposal to make vaccination compulsory shows a worrying disregard for basic medical ethics,” Mrs Smith continues.
“For Dr. O’Sullivan to be advocating that vaccination become compulsory also suggests he has very little regard for the
basic human right for people to make their own decisions about medical treatment for themselves and their minor
children.”
Noting that Prime Minister John Key had ruled out linking children’s vaccinations to benefits, Mrs Smith adds that it is
reassuring that the government recognises that trying to coerce parents into vaccinating their children would be an
infringement of the rights of both parents and children.
“Most Kiwi parents support vaccination, as evidenced by the fact that 94% of children here are now vaccinated – a record
for NZ,” she adds. “Any type of compulsion with regard to vaccination is not only unethical but unnecessary.”
ENDS