Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
To jab or not to jab our little children?
City mums and dads give their vax views
THE debate around vaccinating children under 12 years in Scotland is growing.
A number of other countries are already issuing vaccines to children aged five to 11, including China, the US, Australia, Germany and Spain.
In the UK the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has ruled the Pfizer vaccine is safe for under-12s.
Young children who are clinically vulnerable will soon be offered jabs, but calls to vaccinate all children have been made from some medical professionals, including leading Scottish Government adviser Professor Linda Bauld.
We asked parents in Dundee their views on inoculating children.
Max Mitchell, 40, from Perth, said she is undecided about whether or not to get the Covid vaccination for her eight-year-old son, Jamie.
That is despite having had all three vaccinations herself and her older children of 18 and 21 also having had three jabs.
She said: “He’s just so much smaller and he’s autistic so I’m not sure how he’d cope with it.
“We’ve all had Covid and were floored with it – my symptoms were so bad I was in bed, and so was my partner.
“Jamie got it at the same time but he didn’t get any symptoms, he was absolutely fine, so I’m weighing up if it would be beneficial to him or not.
“I got so ill with the vaccines and if he had the same reaction, the vaccines could be worse for him than Covid.”
Max added that if there was more information available about the vaccines then that would help her make up her mind.
However Fraser Hughes, 34, of Broughty Ferry Road, Dundee, said he is confident about the information which has been provided to the public.
Dad to four-year-old Arthur and a two-year-old daughter, he said: “If they say it’s safe, then it’s safe and if it stops them getting Covid then it can only be a good thing.
“I’d give it to my kids if they were in that age group and if it was extended to include their age group, I would give it to them.
“I disagree with the point of view that they don’t need it because their symptoms are milder – it’s both for their own benefit and the benefit of wider society.
“Even if it became a regular thing, I’d still do it – that’s just like the flu vaccine.”
But Danielle Perrie, 27, from Hilltown, mum to a one-yearold daughter, said five was “too young” in her opinion.
She said: “Maybe when she’s a teenager but five is a bit young.
“We were told the vaccination is to stop you getting it but people still get it – I’ve heard of people who’ve had two vaccinations and still got it.
“They might not have it that bad but they can still spread it, so if it’s just to reduce symptoms I don’t see why kids should get it if they don’t get Covid that bad in the first place.”
Her friend Pamela Lannen, 41, from Stobswell agreed and said she will not be allowing her 11-year-old daughter to get the vaccine.
She said: “I don’t see the point in them getting the vaccination because I’ve never seen a kid who got it bad.
“Their symptoms are not bad enough to put something into their bodies that we don’t know what it is or what it does, even to adults.”
Stella Xenophontos-Hellen, 51, from Menzieshill, who does not have children herself, thinks kids should be vaccinated.
She said: “Children get vaccines for other illnesses – if it’s for the good of them and the good of everyone else then it makes sense.
“They might be less at risk but they can still pass it on to other vulnerable people and that is what affected people greatly at the start of the pandemic.
“Grandparents were desperate to see their grandchildren but they could be agents of death.
“It’s wise to protect wider society.”
Grandmother Karen Wilson, 70, from Forfar, agreed and said everyone should be vaccinated, no matter their age.
She said: “Anyone of my age will say yes they should be vaccinated.
“I just keep thinking back to polio, meningitis, whooping
cough, diphtheria – where would we be without vaccines for these illnesses?
“It doesn’t matter if it affects children mildly, they can pass it on to others who don’t get it mild.
“My granddaughter is a secondary teacher and she’s had all her vaccinations – why should she be put at risk from children who haven’t had them?
“My other granddaughter is a nursery teacher and she’s had it twice.”
Another grandmother, who declined to be named, said she would like to see vaccinations given to all of her grandchildren, ranging in ages from two to nine years old.
She said: “I think all children should have it so that we can start living our lives again and get back to normal, and for their education.
“Having them in school when this is going on, then off again and back again, it’s affecting their education.”