AN anti-vaccination campaign has been launched in the Redlands, with letterbox flyers bearing the inflammatory headline “vaccination killed my baby”.
The flyer said it was common for vaccinations to produce a bad reaction and the careers of doctors, nurses and medical staff were at risk if they did not hide this information from the public.
“When a baby dies from a vaccine it is often called SIDS or a coincidence,” the leaflet says.
The flyer says the cervical cancer vaccine is the most dangerous and there is no evidence that HPV causes cancer.
A Queensland Health spokesperson said that many anti-vaccination claims were based on poorly conducted studies that had been discredited or not proved.
These included claims that vaccinations cause SIDS or autism.
“These claims are entirely baseless, irresponsible and dangerous,” she said.
“Most mums and dads take the important step of protecting their kids through vaccination.
“It’s the normal thing to do and the sensible thing to do.”
She said there was a range of credible information available online at qld.gov.au/vaccinate.
Bowman MP Andrew Laming, a former doctor, said he respected the right to freedom of speech, but did not support anti-vaccination views and encouraged parents to ignore them.
“Should they be campaigning like this? It is their democratic right to,” he said.
“Is their message accurate? No, completely inaccurate.”
The World Health Organisation says the measles and rubella vaccine alone has saved more than 17 million lives since 2000.
Dr Jean-Marie Okwo-Bele said the number of measles-related deaths had decreased 79 per cent from 546,800 at the beginning of the century to 114,900 in 2014.
Concerns have been raised bythe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality that progress towards increasing global immunisation stagnated two years ago.
“We cannot afford to drop our guard,” Dr Okwo-Bele said. “If children miss routine vaccination and are not reached by national immunisation campaigns, we will not close the immunisation gap.”