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KaylaHodkey

ProfessorCampbell

ENC1102RoughDraft

February13,2017

TheVaccineWar

Whenformulatingaresearchquestion,itisimportanttohavebackgroundinformationon

thetopicbeingstudied.Beinginterestedinthemedicaldiscoursecommunity,Iknowthereare

manycontroversialsubjectsbeingdiscussedamongstsociety.Oneofwhich,isthelinkbetween

autismandvaccinations.Formanyyears,peoplewhoopposevaccinationshaveusedmedical

terminologyasapersuasiverhetoricalstrategy.Thisstratagemmakestheirargumentsseemboth

credibleandeducational.Althoughlackingevidence,thistactichascausedlonglastingdamage

tothepublicsknowledgeofhealth.Withtheintentionstofocusonhowthemisuseofmedical

lexisanduseofexaggeratedlanguageisintegratedwithinsociety,Iplantodiscusshowithas

beenredefinedtocreateascarerhetoricfortheantivaccinemovement.

Afterextensiveresearch,Ifoundadocumentary,TheVaccineWar,thatinvestigatesthe

scienceandpoliticsofvaccinationsafety.Iwasabletoheartheopinionofbothinternaland

externalcommunities.Thisnotonlygavemetheopportunitytocompareopinions,butalsogave

mebackgroundinformationonwhypeoplestartedbelievingthatvaccinationscauseautism.

Article, Ileallymphoidnodularhyperplasia,nonspecificcolitis,andpervasivedevelopmental

disorderinchildren,waspublishedin1998inthemedicaljournal,TheLancet, byaBritish

gastroenterologist,AndrewWakefield.Itprovidedcasehistoriesfortwelvechildren,exploring

incidences ofchronicenterocolitis (inflammationofboththe small intestineand thecolon),

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inflammatoryboweldiseaseandregressivedevelopmentaldisorderaswellasimmunization

withtheMMRvaccine(Ziv2016).In2010, TheLancet retractedWakefieldspapersayingit

was scientifically flawed and his findings could not be replicated. However, despite these

revelations,organizationscameoutinstrongsupportofWakefield,continuingtobelievehis

science(Palfreman&McMahonTheVaccineWar).Iperformedrhetoricalandtextualanalysis

onAndrewWakefieldsretractedpublicationandidentifiedthepersuasiverhetoricstrategiesthat

wereusedtocausesuchahugecontroversyinsociety.Wakefieldspublicationuseslanguage

basedonfearmongering.

In some cases the onset and course of behavioural regression was precipitous,
with children losing all communication skills over a few weeks to months. This
regression is consistent with a disintegrative psychosis (Hellers disease).

AndrewWakefieldsphrasessuchasbehaviouralregressionwasprecipitousandchildren

losingallcommunicationskills,instantlypersuadestheaudiencetofeelfearfulanddoubtful.

However,incorporatingcomplexmedicalterminologylikedisintegrativepsychosismaygive

theaudienceasensereassuranceandcredibility.

causal link between measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine and this syndrome,
a rising incidence might be anticipated after the introduction of this vaccine in
the UK in 1988.

Wakefield evokes panic amongst the audience by suggesting that a possible link to autism,

throughvaccinations,willbeseenwhentheMMRvaccineisintroducedintheUnitedKingdom.

This sentenceserves as scarerhetoricforaudiencesintheUnitedKingdomthatturnsthem

againstvaccinatingtheirchildrenforfataldiseases.Infact,accordingtostatisticsvaccinationsin

theUKplummetedafterthepublicationofWakefieldsflawedstudy.Figure1highlightsthe
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resultsofthetwelvechildrenbyorganizingtheinformationintoatablerestatingthatexposureto

theMMRvaccinationistheresulttoautism.

Someonewhoispartoftheexternalmedicalcommunitymaybecomealarmedwhenseeingthe

outcomesofthestudy.Theauthorliststheageandfeaturesassociatedwithexposuretothe

MMRshot,makingparentswithyoung,newlyvaccinatedchildrenfeelparanoidandpushes

future parents toward the notion that vaccinations are harmful. Thus, causing longlasting

damagetopublichealthandknowledgeofexternalmedicalcommunities.

Themisuseofmedicalrhetoricisbeingintegratedinsocietyto,notonlygenerateafalse

senseofcredibility,butserveaspersuasivetechniqueaswell.RealmsofRhetoricinHealthand

Science, anarticleintheUniversityofTorontosmedicaljournal,studieshumaninteraction

through the theory of persuasion. Persuasion can go two ways in the medical discourse

community.Patients,withoutnoticeablesymptoms,mayneedtopersuademedicalexpertsthey
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areillandmedicalexpertsmaypersuadepatientstheyarenotill,despitethewaytheyfeel(Segal

&Derkatch138139).Bydeepeningtheunderstandingofpersuasiveappealsoccurringinand

aroundmedicineandhealthcare,peoplemaycreate,interpret,analyze,andunderstandhealth

messagesmoremindfully,whilescholarsandpractitionersmayuserhetoricalresearchtosuggest

improvementsindiscourseandpractice(Lingard,Reznick,DeVito,&Espin,2002).Oxfords

Research Encyclopedia of Communication published an article, Rhetorical Approaches to

HealthandMedicine,thatfurtherexplainsthewaypeopleuselanguagetopersuadeothersin

hopes to strengthen or modify their actions to build a sense of identity and belonging

(Malkowski,Scott,&Kernen20162).Bypointingouttheuseofpersuasiverhetoricinboth

internalandexternalcommunitiesIcanrelatethesescholarlyarticlestothelanguageusedinmy

surveys,interviews,andwebarticles.

Interviewsareaninteractivegenre,theyaredynamicanddialogic;theyunfoldinreal

time and depend on the exchange between speakers with their own knowledge, attitudes,

opinions, and beliefs (Segal & Derkatch 140). Interviewing the internal medical community

lends to the rhetorical tactic of speaking to the correctness and effectiveness of language.

Interviews have been conducted through emails for two major reasons. Time and textual

analysis.Doctorsareverybusypeopleandwanttorelaxwhentheyhaveabreak.Emailscanbe

repliedtoonthedoctorsterms,notrequiringunnecessaryhassle.Theyalsogivedoctorsthe

opportunitytothinkaboutwhattheywanttosaywithoutfeelingpressured,thusresultingina

morethoughtful,descriptiveresponse.Emailedresponsesallowmetogetexactlywhatwassaid

bythephysicians,withouthavingtorecallwhatwassaidthroughmemorywhichmaycause

detailstodropoutandtheadditionofnewonesretrospectiveaccountsofwriting(Prior509).
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Ihave,selectively,handpickedfourmedicalexpertstointerviewandaskedonesimplequestion:

Do you believe that vaccines cause autism? If

yes, why? If no, why do you think other people
think so?

Onlyonequestionwillbeaskedsotheirresponsesareelaborateanddescriptive.Ihavechosen

two medical professionals from Baptist Childrens Hospital in Miami. I chose this hospital

because it is a specialized hospital for children. I first, emailed Jennifer Couceyro, ARNP,

advancedregisterednursepractitioner.SheistheheadofP.A.C.T,pediatricadvancedcareteam

an interdisciplinary palliative care team that provides services for pediatric and N.I.C.U,

neonatalintensivecareunit,patients.Second,IemailedShaliniR.PatelMD,medicaldoctor.

SheisacertifiedpediatricianandanassistantprofessoratUSFMorsani.Togetawiderange

ofopinion,Idecidedtoemailtwophysiciansthatspecializeinfamilymedicine.Alexander

FishbergMD,medicaldoctor,andToddSontagDO,osteopathicdoctor,bothprovidecarefor

peopleofallagesaswellasadministervaccinationsandprenatalcare. Ichosetoemailthe

interviewquestions,soIcouldstudyandanalyzethelanguageusedwithinaninternalmedical

community.Whileonlyoneofthefourmedicalprofessionalsreplied,Iwasstillabletoanalyze

thelanguagethatwasused.Dr.ShaliniPatelrepliedthefollowing:

I do not think that vaccines cause autism. Many people do believe that they do
because of a study that has misrepresented the results and their significance.
Many celebrities have used that study and used media platforms to perpetuate
these erroneous results. In addition, the first signs of autism correlate with the
administration of MMR vaccine at 12 months of age. Because of this temporal
coincidence, many parents believe that the administration of the vaccine caused
autism.
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As we can see, Dr. Patel points out that the reason an external community may think that

vaccinationsarethecausetoautismisbecauseofAndrewWakefieldserroneousresults.From

thewordchoice,IcangetanideaofheropinionaboutWakefieldsretractedmedicalstudy.She

continuestoexplainthatthefirstsymptomsofautismareusuallyseenwheninfantsaregiventhe

MMRvaccination.

Icreatedasurvey,depictedbelow,togettheopinionofabroader,externalcommunity.I

postedthelinktoFacebookandTwitterandreceivedfiftyoneresponses.

Whileoverhalfoftherespondentsbelievedthatvaccinesdidnotcauseautism,twoindividuals

believed they are the cause to autism, and others either responded saying they didnt have

enoughknowledgeonthecontroversyorthattheyhadneverheardthisdebateamongstsociety.

Respondent3says:

Yes - medical research has proven a link

between the vaccine and onset of autism in
childhood medical road to health vaccines.
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Thisrespondentsaysthatmedicalresearchhasprovenalink.Wakefieldspublicationin1998

clearlyhashadlonglastingdamageupontheknowledgeof,notonlythisindividual,butmillions

ofothers.

AnarticlefromNaturalNews,TenreasonsWhyYouShouldn'tVaccinateYourChildren

is,assumedly,apartofanexternalcommunity,says:

Vaccines don't work with outbreak after outbreak proving that

vaccinated people are the most immunocompromised, and are
always the ones contracting the diseases against which they were
vaccinated. All vaccines contain deadly chemical additives
parents need to know that all vaccines contain deadly,
neurodamaging chemicals like aluminum, mercury and
formaldehyde. Many vaccines are also loaded with monosodium
glutamate (MSG), antibiotics and even genetically modified

Exaggeratedlanguageisusedtocreateascarerhetoric.Wordslikeimmunocompromised,

deadlyandneurodamaginginstantlypersuadestheaudiencetofeelfearfulanddoubtful.The

phraseallvaccinescontaindeadlychemicaladditives,iseasilyrefutedbymanydoctorsand

scientific studies, however, the authors exaggerated use of persuasive language sways the

audiencesemotionbyevokingangstandfear.Incorporatingmedicallexisandterminologylike

monosodiumglutamateacompoundthatoccursnaturallyasabreakdownproductofproteins

mercuryandformaldehyde,andgeneticallymodifiedorganismsmaygivetheaudiencea

senseofcredibilityandreassurance.Whereas,anarticlefromTheU.S.DepartmentofHealth&

HumanServices, FiveImportantReasonstoVaccinateYourChild, asourcefromtheinternal

communitymaysay:

Immunization protects future generations. Vaccines have reduced and, in

some cases, eliminated many diseases that killed or severely disabled
people just a few generations ago. For example, smallpox vaccination
eradicated that disease worldwide. Your children dont have to get smallpox
shots any more because the disease no longer exists. By vaccinating
children against rubella (German measles), the risk that pregnant women
will pass this virus on to their fetus or newborn has been dramatically
decreased, and birth defects associated with that virus no longer are seen
in the United States. If we continue vaccinating now, and vaccinating
completely, parents in the future may be able to trust that some diseases of
today will no longer be around to harm their children in the future.
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Althoughthisevidenceusesvividimagery,itdoesnotintendtoprovokenegativeemotionssuch

asfearandconfusion,butinsteadgivesanindividualasenseofhopefulnessandreassurance.

Noticethatmedicalterminologyisnotneededtocreatethesepositiveemotions.Throughthese

examples, one can see how persuasive language is used as a rhetorical strategy. While a

differenceofopinion,bothuseaformofpersuasiverhetoricallanguage.Thearticleagainst

vaccinationsusescomplexmedicalterminologytotrystrengthentheircredibilityanduseswords

toscaretheaudience,aidingtotheanitvaccinemovement.However,thearticleinsupportof

vaccinations uses factual evidenceto outline thepositiveoutcomes thathave beenachieved

throughvaccinations.Thus,leavingthepublicconfusedbytwokindsofknowledge,withinthe

medicaldiscoursecommunity.Thecollectivebutdryconclusionsofthescientificcommunity

andthepersonalanecdotesofantivaccinationists,eachexpressinganideaoftheirown.

Withmyprimarysources,Ireceivedextensivefeedbackfrombothinternalandexternal

communities and could compare the differences in language between internal and external

communities.Thus,giventheopportunitytoreceivenewperspectivesandpointofviews.Iused

thesamequestionforbothsurveyandinterviewbecausetheinternalandtheexternalmedical

communitiesdifferinmanyaspects.Themedicaldiscoursecommunityplaysalargeroleinthis

controversialtopic.Thehighlevelofexpertiseamedicalprofessionalobtains,ultimatelygives

themtheresponsibilitytoeducateandinformthepublicabouthealth.Theyareaconcentrated,

focused community that carries a great deal of knowledge in regards to medicine. While,

individualswithintheinternalmedicalcommunitybelievevaccinesarenotthecausetoautism,
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individualsintheexternalcommunitybegtodiffer.Anexternalmedicalcommunitydoesnot

holdthesamelevelofmedicalknowledgethataninternalmedicalcommunitymayhold.The

opinionsofanexternalcommunityvary.Somepeoplearepartoftheantivaccinemovement,

whileothersbelievethatherdimmunityformofimmunitythatoccurswhenthevaccinationof

asignificantportionofapopulationprovidesameasureofprotectionforindividualswhohave

notdevelopedimmunityisvital.

WorksCited

Segal,JudyZ.,PhD,andColleenDerkatch,MA."RealmsofRhetoricinHealthand

Medicine."RealmsofRhetoricinHealthandMedicine(n.d.):13842.Web.

TheVaccineWar.Prod.JonPalfreman.Dir.KateMcMahon.N.p.,n.d.Web.

Malkowski,JenniferA.,J.BlakeScott,andLisaKernen."RhetoricalApproachestoHealthand

Medicine."OxfordResearchEncyclopediaofCommunication(2016):135.Web.

Lingard,L.,R.Reznick,I.Devito,andS.Espin."Formingprofessionalidentitiesonthehealth

careteam:discursiveconstructionsofthe'other'intheoperatingroom."Medical

Education36.8(2002):72834.Web.

"Vaccines.gov."U.S.DepartmentofHealthandHumanServices.U.S.DepartmentofHealthand

HumanServices,n.d.Web.26Jan.2017.

"WhataretheReasonstoVaccinateMyBaby?CDCFeatures."MahoningCountyBoardof

Health.N.p.,n.d.Web.26Jan.2017.

"Tenreasonswhyyoushouldn'tvaccinateyourchildren."NaturalNews.N.p.,n.d.Web.26Jan.

2017.
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Lancet,TheEditorsOfThe."RetractionIleallymphoidnodularhyperplasia,nonspecific

colitis,andpervasivedevelopmentaldisorderinchildren."TheLancet375.9713(2010):

445.Web.

Prior,Paul.TracingProcess:HowTextsComeIntoBeing.WhatWritingDoesandHowIt

DoesIt.Ed.CharlesBazermanandPaulPrior.Mahwah,NJ:LawernceErlbaum,2004.

167200.Print.

Ziv,Stav."FatheroftheAntiVaccineMovementStickstoHisStory."Newsweek.N.p.,16Mar.

2016.Web.16Feb.2017.

"Whatisherdimmunity?"VaccinesToday.N.p.,08Dec.2016.Web.16Feb.2017.