MMR Scare

If I ask you who Andrew Wakefield is, you might not know. If I ask you if there might be a link between the MMR vaccine and autism in children, you might say yes, because there has been a link proven about it. Many, many concerned parents up and down the country in the past few years have not given their babies the MMR jab because they feared the link to autism was too high to take a chance. This was, and still is, very understandable. After all, who wants to take risks with the health and welfare of their children?


Andrew Wakefield was a UK MD until today. He was struck off the medical register for his 'professional misconduct' regarding his misuse of the MMR research, which led to an almost epidemic surge in some areas of measles, which is easily protected by a MMR jab. Measles can be a very dangerous condition, especially in young children, so this doctor abused his position as he chased his piece of fame. He convinced enough parents to doubt, that they jeopardised the health of the very little people they wanted to protect.


This man will no longer be able to act as a doctor in the UK, but he is now living and working in the USA, having been discredited in his home country. He has 'lost' a part of his work in the UK, but has fallen on his feet in another country. But what about all those parents who risked everything precious to them on his say so? What of all those children who suffered measles needlessly? All because of one man's ego.


Sometimes we say glibly that doctors play God, and here is one instance where that is true. This man played God, and won!! What can we learn from that?