There's a reason child vaccination rates are falling - and it's not social media
Falling childhood vaccination rates in the UK are being linked to logistical and social barriers rather than just misinformation. Local initiatives, such as pop-up clinics in vacant retail spaces, are being tested to improve accessibility for overwhelmed parents.
Why it matters
It provides a nuanced look at public health policy, suggesting that infrastructure and accessibility are as critical as public messaging.
[BBC] Twenty-week-old Grayson easily could have become one of the tens of thousands of British babies left unvaccinated against polio.
His mother, Lily, agrees with the principle of immunisation. But overwhelmed by the early weeks of motherhood, and suffering from post-partum depression after a traumatic birth, she was daunted by the prospect of a long journey to a doctor's surgery. "I've been through the trenches, awake all night. You don't want to leave the house, or go to a different town."
Weeks ticked by, and eventually Grayson missed the polio and diptheria jabs he was supposed to get at eight weeks old. By that point he was officially classed by the NHS as "overdue" for vaccination; effectively, he was on his GP's naughty list.
Then Lily realised there was a clinic practically on her doorstep - at a location she hadn't expected.
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