The incorporation of the HPV vaccination into Rhode Island’s school immunization schedule is good news for our kids. The media coverage of HPV, or human papillomavirus, over the last few weeks has helped the public learn what doctors have known for a long time ― that HPV is both common and potentially dangerous.
It can lead to various types of cancer in males and females, including cervical cancer, which kills more than 4,000 people every year. In addition to this number, hundreds of thousands of painful procedures are performed on women annually to treat health issues related to HPV, including cryosurgery, electrocauterization, cone biopsies and loop electrosurgical excision procedures.
Rhode Island is already the national leader in immunization against HPV. More than 76 percent of Rhode Island girls are starting the three-dose HPV series, and more than 69 percent of boys have started the series. As a pediatrician who practices in Cranston, I am proud to be part of a group of health-care providers that recognizes the tremendous value of this vaccine.
But these numbers beg the question: if Rhode Island is doing so well, why require it for our children?
The school immunization schedule in our state results in each student being surrounded by a constellation of people who all work together to ensure her or his full immunization. This includes parents, doctors, school nurses, principals, community immunizers and many more.
In some cases, this simply means getting everyone on the same page about what vaccinations are needed at what ages. But in other instances, this means ensuring access to vaccines for children who have fewer regular encounters with health-care providers and who might not otherwise be vaccinated.
In the case of HPV, this is especially important because many children who have infrequent access to routine preventive care, such as immunizations, also have less access to other forms of routine preventive care as adults. This routine preventive care that all adults should receive (but don’t always receive) includes cancer screenings.
At the HPV community meeting that I attended earlier this month, I heard some parents voice frustrations about what they perceive as the Department of Health’s heavy-handed approach when it comes to the HPV vaccine.
I completely understand why some parents feel uneasy when hearing the word “mandate” used in conversations about their children’s health. But keep in mind that this is the same process used to protect students against many other vaccine-preventable diseases, such as the measles, pertussis, meningitis and hepatitis B, a disease not normally spread during school and school-related activities. And exemption forms do exist for any parent who feels deeply uncomfortable with HPV vaccination.
Another frustration that I heard at the community meeting concerned doctors who were a little too emphatic in encouraging parents to have their children vaccinated. While I am the first to admit that I am an emphatic supporter of full immunization, it is important for physicians to remember that every parent’s concerns deserve an honest hearing, and that no parent wants to be bullied in our offices.
Conversely, I hope that parents recognize that doctors want what you want ― for your child to be healthy. If a health-care provider comes across as a bit too forward in conversations about vaccines, it is only because he or she believes fundamentally in the effectiveness of these tools to keep all of our children safe. In the case of HPV vaccine, we are talking about a tool that prevents a virus that leads to cancer.
HPV vaccine is not only effective, it is also safe. More than 67 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in the United States. This number includes the doses my child received. Initial studies conducted before the vaccine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration found no serious side effects. Studies conducted since in the United States and abroad, by both governmental and non-governmental organizations, have determined that the vaccine’s safety profile is consistent with the other vaccines that we routinely administer to our children.
Efforts to increase our HPV vaccination rate will make Rhode Island a healthier and stronger state.
Richard Ohnmacht, M.D., is a pediatrician who practices in Cranston.