Abstract
Although strong evidence exists that the benefits of vaccination by far outweigh potential adverse events, controversy still exists. This has led opponents of vaccination to question its safety, efficacy and necessity. In an interview with Professor Elizabeth Miller, we discuss the continuum of beliefs held by vaccine refusers and hesitators, the resulting health consequences, and ways in which health professionals and industry regulators can help promote transparency to better convey the substantial health benefits of vaccination.
Highlights
Professor Miller (Fig. 1) is a Consultant Epidemiologist at the Immunisation Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, Public Health England (PHE) in Colindale North, West London, and has a long standing interest in the risks and benefits of vaccination programmes
In collaboration with colleagues at PHE, she has conducted several vaccine safety studies to investigate the associations between mumps and rubella (MMR) and autism, convulsions and “immune overload”, H1N1 vaccine and narcolepsy, thiomersal and developmental delay, oral polio vaccine and intussusception, and meningococcal C conjugate vaccine and nephrotic syndrome, among others
I worked on the large postlicensure safety and efficacy studies of pertussis vaccines that were being conducted following the collapse of the UK whooping cough immunisation programme in the mid-1970s
Summary
Professor Miller (Fig. 1) is a Consultant Epidemiologist at the Immunisation Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, Public Health England (PHE) in Colindale North, West London, and has a long standing interest in the risks and benefits of vaccination programmes. I worked on the large postlicensure safety and efficacy studies of pertussis vaccines that were being conducted following the collapse of the UK whooping cough immunisation programme in the mid-1970s.
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