I don’t know whether to despise Jenny McCarthy or admire her.
She was the tipping point that helped get us to the current anti-vaccination debate in the United States. Starting around 2007 she emerged as a polished, articulate and attractive mother who fearlessly and proudly spouted completely inaccurate and irresponsible gibberish on vaccines. She recruited the likes of Jim Carrey. She did the rounds on every talk show you could find.
In scenes you can see over and over and over again, McCarthy easily dispatched members of the medical community brought on to debate her and her cronies about the role of vaccines in autism.
When Investment Rhymes with Canada
Canada has a proud history of achievement in the areas of science and technology, and the field of biomanufacturing and life sciences is no exception.
Why is the healthcare community completely overmatched in the court of public opinion on such important public health matters? There are many reasons, unfortunately, but among the most depressing are healthcare’s total lack of political will and its inability to step into the sunshine and absorb public scrutiny on issues where they could be the greatest changemaker.
Healthcare – in particular hospitals – have amazing amounts of unused clout. They are typically their cities’ biggest employers and could strike fear into any politician by using that leverage.
They also carry both respect and knowledge which, if used correctly, are things people may actually heed to and accept.
But the industry lives in risk-averse fear – focused on driving patient volume and fund-raising (at least the non-profit hospitals), avoiding privacy and malpractice lawsuits, and terrified that one angry politician could rewrite the rules on reimbursement or what’s considered charity care.
Healthcare is also a terribly insular community. It’s never really talked to patients like consumers or thought about connecting with people in terms the way the talk-show polished McCarthy did. They’ll trot out stolid doctors who prefer their clinical conventions and solemn tones than what it takes in a public debate.
Many of the ideas around defeating anti-vaccination proponents center around screaming at them in the exam room. That’s not going to work.
I hate watching those videos (she actually defines autism as fungus on top of vaccines). But McCarthy – and others since – just continue to put on a clinic of persuasion and misdirection (it should be noted McCarthy has said as recently as last year she is not anti-vaccine. I think this is bogus).
Where are our doctors and medical industry leaders who make these vaccines?
I also think another problem is that healthcare, because of its closed culture, can’t take real heat like Hollywood stars or politicians can.
A few years back, Cleveland Clinic CEO Dr. Toby Cosgrove tried to advance a real conversation about obesity in this country. The backlash – and it was middling by all modern standards – forced an apology and a retreat.
The saddest thing? Cosgrove was right. And our country is worse off without a better public discussion about obesity with healthcare thinking at the forefront.
Do you know what beats the anti-vaccination movement? Every healthcare CEO going to every Hollywood star with kids that they’ve helped heal to do a slicker, “the-more-you-know” styled commercial with a montage of stars and CEOs alike saying:
“My name is X and I vaccinate my children. Vaccinations are safe, my children are healthy, and these injections help defeat the world’s most deadly diseases. Please, vaccinate your child.”
Health systems and healthcare interest groups pay for it to run everywhere from Nickelodeon to the Food Network.
Healthcare needs to jump into the public arena with both feet – and fight Jenny McCarthy with Jenny McCarthy.
