1. Home
  2. Public Health
  3. Vaccines

Talk to Your Patients About…

  • TMA has tools to help you talk with your patients when they have concerns regarding childhood and adult vaccinations. Our current series below features frequently asked questions – and answers – on a different topic each month.  

  • Vaccine Testing

    Alt Tag  

    The COVID-19 vaccines are expected to reach the public faster than any previous vaccine. No matter how quickly a COVID-19 vaccine is produced, it still must pass a series of rigorous scientific tests.

    See How Vaccine Testing Works  

  • What is ACIP?

    Alt Tag  

    Two federal agencies oversee the way vaccines reach the U.S. public. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, guides physicians on the best way to use vaccines.

    Learn More About ACIP  

  • Texas School Vaccines

    Alt Tag  

    All Texas public schools (and most private schools) and colleges require students to have certain shots before they can attend classes at the beginning of a school year.

    Make Sure Your
    Child is Up to Date      

  • What is ImmTrac2?

    Alt Tag  

    Keeping track of vaccinations over a lifetime is not easy. People move, change physicians, and lose records. ImmTrac2, Texas’ revised immunization registry, is designed to help people keep their vaccine records in order.

    Find Out More About ImmTrac 2  

  • “Slowing” the Vaccine Schedule

    Alt Tag  

    Before an American child turns 2 years old, he or she will get 27 vaccinations – sometimes up to six shots in one doctor’s visit. For some parents, that seems like too much.

    Here’s Why Kids Should
    Stay on Schedule      

  • A COVID-19 Vaccine

    Alt Tag  

    Of all the solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic, a vaccine is the most attractive. With just one shot, people could transform the disease from a global disruptor to an easily manageable public health problem.

    More About a COVID-19 Vaccine  

  • Vaccine Exemptions

    Alt Tag  

    In 2003, the Texas Legislature allowed parents to opt their children out of getting mandatory public school vaccines. Since then, exemptions have jumped more than 3,000%, to 72,743 statewide.

    See What’s Wrong
    With Exemptions      

  • Cleanliness vs. Vaccines

    Alt Tag  

    Historical data proves vaccines work. Year-over-year rates for vaccine-preventable diseases like measles and whooping cough show the number of cases drops sharply and remains low after a vaccine is introduced.

    See What the Science Says  

  • Vaccine vs. Natural Immunity

    Alt Tag  

    Vaccines are all about reducing the risk of getting a disease; anti-vaccine arguments are designed to downplay how risky those diseases can be.

    Vaccinate Your Child to Help Protect Them From Serious Illness and More  

  • Why Do Some Vaccinated People Still Get Sick?

    Alt Tag  

    Every so often, physicians encounter a patient who still gets sick despite getting vaccinated against that disease. Patients naturally ask, how could this happen?

    Find Out Why  

  • Community Immunity

    Alt Tag  

    Herd immunity – also known as community immunity − is simple: Vaccines protect the people who get them but also anyone those people are near – even those with no immunity – because the illness can’t spread.

    More About How Community Immunity Works  

  • How Vaccines Work

    Alt Tag  

    “What continues to amaze me is that people are really not educated about [vaccines],” said Trish Perl, MD, chief of the infectious diseases division at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. “Some of [vaccine hesitancy] has been propagated by the anti-vaxxers, but some of it is just frankly not knowing.”

    How Does a Vaccine
    Protect Against Disease?      

  • Vaccine-Preventable Diseases

    Alt Tag  

    Thanks to the success of vaccines, some diseases are long forgotten, like polio and diphtheria. As a result, patients and physicians may not know how these diseases look and the ravages they can cause. TMA’s first Talk to Your Patients About series can equip you to talk to your patients and help them better understand childhood and adult diseases.

    Read About Vaccine-Preventable Diseases  
  •  

    TMA is helping to strengthen your practice by offering advice and creating a climate of medical success across the state. 

    Explore TMA Member Benefits

  • What could a TMA membership mean for you, your practice, and your patients?

    Join TMA Now