Interview: Dr. Grigoletto, MD, FAAP
Dr. Grigoletto is a Diplomate of the American Board of Pediatrics and a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and formed Island Heights Pediatrics, where she works now. She has been my pediatrician for the past 16 years.
1. Do you believe that vaccines should be required for children? Why?
“Yes, I firmly believe that all children and young adults should receive all of the recommended vaccines according to the schedule published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Vaccinating children and young adults may be the single most important health-promoting intervention we perform as doctors, and that parents and caregivers can provide for their children. The recommended vaccines are the results of years and years of scientific study and…show more content… What is the most common vaccine that you have distributed?
“I have distributed many flu shots children and young adults who are taking precautions for the flu epidemic we have been facing this year……. In the state of New Jersey, children ages kindergarten to high school, who are attending public schools, are required to receive different doses of the Polio, Chickenpox, Tetanus, and Hepatitis B vaccines, along with other shots as they get older.”
3. Have you experienced any situations where patients have refused vaccines?
“As a practice, [we]* do not believe in refusing to vaccinate, so if you have conflicting views, we will ask you to find another health care provider. However, we do not recommend this or encourage anyone to see a physician who does not vaccinate. Remember, these are children’s lives at risk.”
*Practice is shared with another physician, Dr. Pintus-Emma, who shares the same views as Dr. Grigoletto
4. Which vaccines have patients refused? What is their reasoning against vaccines?
Dr. Grigeletto does not see patients who do not vaccinate, so I did not ask this question.
5. What are some possible dangers of
