Nurse Gave Vaccine That We Didn't Want (Part 2) - Newnan,GA

What do you WANT to have done? Do you want to sue? Do you want the pediatric office shut down?

I understand you're mad, but I don't think you're clearly thinking through here. What, realistically, do you expect to have happen? If you push this, at most, the office will get fined for lack of paperwork due to HIPPA (provided that there was none that was mistakenly not provided to you).

Your child will be fine. He will not be scarred for life from receiveing 1 vaccination. That is the reason that there are many boosters of all of these shots. And for the record, those of us that do follow all vaccinations...our kids are fine. Mine have never had an adverse reaction - in any way - to what they've received.
Obviously you're seeing some redness around the site, so that would indicate a reaction for your child. But I think you may be looking for things you can blame this accident for.
Stuff happens. It's done.

So try to see through the cloud of anger right now, and think, realistically what you want to see happen here with this office. And then, realistically, what's ACTUALLY going to happen. I'm going to suggest that no matter how far you take this, you're not going to be satisfied with the end result.

Switch pediatricians, and try to move on.
I'm sorry this has happened to your family.

My husband is a physician, and we both find it absolutely abhorrent that the nurse was so careless, and that they aren't allowing you to speak to your doctor about it. That speaks VOLUMES about their professionalism & accountability. I would search for a new doctor IMMEDIATELY, and also let them know that you will be reviewing them on Yelp, Health Grades, Rate my Doctor, and whatever other internet review boards you can find.

**ETA**Although I am extremely pro-vaccination, I believe it is ultimately the parents' job to determine if/which vaccinations their children get.

Well, you could probably make a report to medical board. It's not going to change the fact that your child was given a shot you didn't want them to have.

My husband would be just like you, livid beyond belief. I love the people that tell you that you only have "a little knowledge" when you decide NOT to vaccinate, but most of them blindly go in and vaccinate with out doing ONE inch of independent research. Funny.

My husband searched every vaccine, found out what ingredient was in every vaccine, researched the every pro and con and we made our choices on that. Did I mention he has a medical degree? How many people who get the full schedule of vaccines do that much research...probably not.

Well as a mom who chooses the similar path as you...who posted a few months back about a same situation. I can tell you this...you will get over it...you will learn that the next time you go in for an appointment that you have to be on the top of your game and make triple sure that they do it correct. I luckily was able to catch the mistake they were making before they fully gave the medication. My little one maybe recieved 1/4 of what was in the syringe.

You can fume and make a big stink about it...but unless you are willing to really put your heart and soul into this and take them to court and go all out...you really are not going to make too much of a dent. they might say something to make you happy next round...but vaccines are becoming the norm and they really do not care to please those of us who pick and choose.

My pediatrician and nurse now know very well not to step over any lines with me but I highly doubt they are this careful with others. I made a decent size complaint and then let it go after that and just remember now that I am my little ones advocate and I make the calls in the office.

As far as his behavior after the vaccine goes...at any point in time you can get red after a shot, as they get older they can flinch among a lot of other things and this can happen. The shiver/shakes thing...could just be something that he does when he is cold and you never noticed it until now and you are doing it now because you are so angry and worried that you are noticing every last thing he does....and YES I truly think this is what is happening and yes, there are things that you kids do that you may not ever notice until something triggers you to pay attention to it.

So as a mom who has been through this and chooses a different road. Make it clear to your office that this is not acceptable and pray that they will change.

That is horrible! Especially because the vaccine in question isn't normally given until age 2. I would keep calling until you get the doctor. If you have to go up there to the office, do it. Do NOT stop at just talking to the nurse who made the mistake. My guess is she won't let the doctor know because it's her job on the line. The doctor NEEDS to know, not only to protect other patients from future mistakes, but to give your son a once-over for both the pain at the injection site and the shaking.

My son started doing a weird shake after he got a flu-shot at 6 months -- one that I didn't authorize or want. When I told him I didn't want to give the flu shot, the doctor basically said, "He needs this, we need to do it," and stuck it in. It was horrifying. (I switched pediatricians the next day.) My son hasn't had any repercussions from it -- the weird tic/shaking went away over about a week and his new ped said sometimes children can have neurological reactions to vaccines. Scary all around.

Anyway, bottom line, get in to talk to the doctor about what happened, then find a new one asap. Good luck!

While I am not anti vaccine, I respect your wishes to choose what vaccine you want for your child. That is not the issue with this question.

However, I do believe you are blowing this way out of proportion. Please, take a deep breath, calm down and think things through rationally vs emotionally. You cannot make good decisions based on emotions.

How do you know for a fact that the injection site that is sore is from the injection you didn't want? Many kids do get sore and are just fine after injections. Call your Dr. if you feel he is in any type of danger or go to an Urgent Care or ER.

So what do you want to happen if you make a big case out of this? Are you willing to pay all sorts of legal fees? Are you just trying to "get even" with the nurse? Do you jsut want to sue them for something? GEES, the people in this country are so sue happy. Everyone thinks the answer is an attorney and they get $$. If you choose to sue, you will be spending a small fortune, are you ready for that? The Dr.'s office has heard your complaint.... so what do you want? Everyone makes mistakes.... it is unfortunate this mistake happened but you also hold partial responsibility because you were there when she injected him 3 times vs 2, correct? Did you sign off on it?

Again, I am not trying to be rude... I know you are livid but get realistic. Maybe change your pedi to one who is geared more toward your thoughts on vaccines. Think about your real motives for wanting to "punish" this Dr's office and his nurse.

I would be very angry too. In the meantime, though, I might consult with an integrative MD to see if there are steps I can take to mitigiate the damage, if any, from the mistake that happened.

I would also consider contacting a couple of qualified attorneys in case any damage was done (and hopefully there wasn't) or if there are any suggestions for further steps to take. I would not wait to do this - there are time limitations.

Good luck.

Check out www.nvic.org. They have a page set up to report vaccine reactions. Even if they seem insignificant they should all be reported. Like the swelling in his leg and what sounds like mini seizures.

http://www.nvic.org/reportreaction.aspx

This actually happens more often than you would think. It's awful. You should tell your story on Dr. Tenpenny's page on facebook. She is the nations leading doctor on the dangers of vaccines. Dr. Tenpenny and many others with similar experiences can tell you what action to take. There, you will also learn everything you want and need to know to feel 200% comfortable with your decision to not vaccinate, if that's what you choose to do. As for the shot, I would go to your health food store TODAY and buy some Indian Healing Clay. It's about $7. Mix a little bit with some water and put it on the injection site. It will help draw out some of the toxins of that vaccine. Good luck.

Also, I just read some other answers you got, you do NOT have to have vaccines to get into school. Schools will not come out and tell you that you have the right to an exemption form. There are exemption form in every state. You know the signs that some schools have that say, NO SHOT, NO SCHOOL? NOT TRUE!
And, you are right about the dangers. My son had his first seizure right after his MMR shot. Every time after that whenever he would get even the lowest fever, he would have seizure. It was awful.

i know you're very upset, and you have every right to be, try not to work yourself up anymore, it's not good for you or your little one :( contact your state board of medical examiners and report the incident - good luck and i hope everything turns out fine!

I would take him back to the doc and DOCUMENT this mis-given shot and the outcome of it! That would be the VERY least I would do. I can't believe you can't get the doctor, I would be sitting in the lobby with a poster board that said, "this office gave my child a shot without my permission", or something like that...I bet the doc would be out to talk to you in a nano second. Get a copy of the medical records too so you have documentation of this so if something does happen in the future, you have proof of what happened. I'm against ALL vaccines and shots, so this upsets me. Good luck!!!

What can you do? You have to just feel angry and then let it go. You don't want to go around carrying anger for a long time. It is bad for you. Also, make sure to write a formal letter of complaint to go in that Nurse's file (I read your original post and it sounded like it was the nurse's fault and not the doctors, right?). I would also immediately find a new pediatrician. If you find a more "alternative" pediatrician then the nurses there would never make this kind of mistake bc they would agree with your view of vaccines. The nurse who helped you does not believe there is anything wrong with vaccines and only thinks they are beneficial, so that is why she does not think this is a big deal. I do vaccinate my kids, and I did do my research on it first...I just came to a different conclusion than you did. But I think it is totally appalling that this nurse made such a mistake. AND did not at least fall all over herself apologizing to you like she should have. I don't know what else you can do. Also, you could complain to the doctor or doctors there in person - let them know what happened and how the nurse reacted and how horrified you are.

I worked at a medical staff office at a hospital for awhile. If you can find out what hospital your doctor reports to then write a letter and send to that hospital's medical staff office. The complaint goes into the doctor's personal file. Doctors do not like getting these types of letters in their files. After a number of complaints then the doctor gets severely reprimanded. He/she can eventually get privileges taken away and or license revoked if there are too many complaints.

I agree with the advice of writing a letter to the doctor too. They may trash it but you can keep a copy for your records.

While I completely disagree with you about the supposed dangers of vaccines, I do agree that the nurse should not have given your child something you explicitly had refused.

Besides writing a letter outlining the situation and your concerns (offices get very worried when things happen in writing, so don't keep calling; write a letter and send it registered mail), and reporting it perhaps to whatever association accredits this pediatrician, the only other recourse I see is for you to "vote with your feet" and find another doctor -- being sure to tell the current one exactly why you are leaving and that you will be sure to let other parents know your experience there.

I know you may not credit this, but your son's reaction to the shots may not be to the one you did not want. A child can have no apparent reaction to a shot one time, and a reaction the next time. That is normal. As for the worry you feel, remember that you cannot alter what happened and that worrying about what might happen in some unpredictable future only takes your attention and mental energy away from enjoying your child here, now, today. If something happens, it happens. Worry about it when it happens and enjoy him now.

i totally understand and agree with your POV and would be livid in your shoes!
if you decide to proceed with some sort of legal action you would be totally justified. the downside is that it will keep you in a place of anger and upset and not be good for your life overall. but the doctor's office would certainly deserve it.
at the very least, report the vaccine reaction to NVIC (vaccine damage is grossly under-reported, which makes it hard to research as the statistics are skewed) and angie's list.
good for you for being a thoughtful well-informed mother. hope it all works out okay.
khairete
S.

Which vaccine was it? Could you include that for us?

Dawn

What about http://vaers.hhs.gov/index ?

Further, if you are concerned about his reaction to the vaccination, you can take him to the ER or back to the pediatrician.

Why in the world did you not notice they were doing this? Ask what it was they were doing?

I can't imagine being in the doctors with my child, him getting a shot, and me not knowing what the heck was going on.

I say call the doctor, demand to speak directly to your doctor. See what he or she has to say before you decide what action to take. Then, depending on the doctor's take you can decide what to do from there.

As for your son having red mark, that is not uncommon. Try putting some ice (or cold pack on it). If he's still having problems later on and/or is running a fever (which could explain the shiver/shake thing), have the doctor take a look. It could be cellulitis which happens a lot. They will most likely recomment cold pack 3 times a day and possibly an antibotic which can be very critical to taking care of it. If it is this, it isn't a reaction to the vaccination but rather to the injection itself. My daughter never had a problem either but this last time, the one injection site (she had 4 plus a TB test) was red and raised the next day, it was sore and she run a fever with no other symptoms (which went down w/out medication). When they rechecked the TB test, they checked her arm. Icing and antibotic took care of it.

At my daughter's doctor, we discuss the vaccinations, then I have to sign for EACH one separately when the nurse comes in. You didn't sign for that vaccination and should also not be charged for it...I know that is not the point of your question but it is another side of it.

I'm not opposed to vaccinations but I can see how you would be angry when you told them not to administer the vaccine. When you talked about the injection sites not appearing on his leg my daughter never had markings from shots. After her last shots the nurse tried to find the site to place the bandaid but we couldnt find it. She just put the bandaid in a spot her my daughters leg because of course she had to have a bandaid.

Hannah - We do chose to vaccinate but just wanted to say your post was right on!

Audrey - I hope your little guy feels better.