By Rick Dandes
SELINSGROVE — While doses of the swine flu vaccine began arriving at health care providers around the country Monday, some Valley parents may have a difficult time convincing their children to get the shots.
Katherine Anne Roberts, of Shamokin Dam, has a 15-year-old daughter who does not want to be vaccinated.
“I think she should be,” Roberts said Wednesday with a shrug. “But she doesn’t think she is going to catch it. She has a mind of her own and I can’t force her to take the shot. We’ve had arguments about it. I’ve seen doctors on TV saying that the vaccine is safe. I only hope she’s right and doesn’t get sick.”
Young adults, such as Jeremy Reiff, of Mifflinburg, and Lindsay Guyer, of Middleburg, are in the age group that doctors say should be vaccinated.
Reiff, 20, said his parents “aren’t really worried about anyone catching the swine flu. There have only been a few cases here and there. So, I’m not going to get one of the shots. I’m just not worried about it.”
Neither is Guyer, 19, who hasn’t been convinced by either her parents or her peers that being vaccinated will make a difference.
“I’m not worried about the flu,” she said. “Every year they talk about it, how it keeps you from catching the flu. But I believe if you’re going to get it, you’ll get it.
“No, I am definitely not getting vaccinated.”
Tierny Bridges, of Watsontown, mother of 3-month-old Makenna, said Wednesday she definitely would have her daughter vaccinated.
“The next time we go to her doctor, we will make sure she is protected,” she said. “I haven’t seen all the information about the vaccine, and I know it’s controversial and they are still testing for possible side effects, but if there is even a small chance that it will prevent Makenna from catching the swine flu, I’ll have her vaccinated. At this age, she is very vulnerable to catching a cold and I worry about that all the time.”
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