Week 6: Working in Remote Teams

This week, we are required to write about working in remote teams. We have all submitted our position papers, and now our research turns to the ethics of our topic, preventive health care.

We've had our team established since very early on in the semester, to our advantage I believe. We've been in contact with each other, thanks to Facebook Messenger, always asking questions and running things by each other. We've gotten to know each other quite well by now, as well as you can know someone these days without meeting them.

Susan Cain (2012), has written about the genius of the individual. Research has shown that some of the most creative minds of history have been loners. Sir Isaac Newton & Steve Wozniak, two undoubted geniuses of history.

I share this philosophy. I've always found it hard to talk to people face to face, and collaborate with people in person. I found it especially difficult when I was in a band, it proved easier and more productive for me to come up with things on my own, then present to the band as whole later on.

However, I see working in remote teams as a way of overcoming these problems. We are not working side by side with each other. We're not working in the same room or even the same building. The internet has given us the potential to work together without being together (Cain, 2012). Research has shown that teams in academia, not individuals, produced some of the most influential work. People working remotely, sometimes in different universities (Cain, 2012).

Working in this way requires strict deadlines and a team of people working for the same goals and objectives. We have all established that we all want A grades on this, so we all want the same outcome. We all seem to know our strengths and weaknesses, which I'm sure will all come to the fore when working on this report together.

Cain (2012) brilliantly points out what she calls "contradictory impulses"; "we love and need one another, yet we crave autonomy and privacy". This is what the internet can provide to creative people. Working in a remote team can be possible for even the most shy and private of us. We can all work for the same goals, while still retaining privacy.

In any case, I feel confident working in this team. We're all working toward the same goals and the same grade. We've all agreed to work on this report through Google Docs, which is very handy and easy to access.

"The scientists of today think deeply instead of clearly. One must be sane to think clearly, but one can think deeply and be quite insane" - Nikola Tesla.

Cain, S. (2012) The Rise of the New Groupthink. Retrieved from https://mobile.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/opinion/sunday/the-rise-of-the-new-groupthink.html?referer=http://t.co/QkQLEnzd

Week 4: Why the debate on vaccination is important

This week, I want to talk about why this topic is so important. Why does the debate matter? Why are vaccines so important to me?

Science clearly says why immunisation is important. There have been thousands of studies done on their safety, effectiveness and even the ingredients. Their importance is shown time and again when the coverage rate for a certain vaccine drops. Mumps outbreak in Auckland earlier this year. Numerous schools closed last year throughout New Zealand. Whenever an infant dies because of some unvaccinated child, the importance of immunisation is revealed.

However, the anti-science crowd somehow think there is a conspiracy. There are no reputable studies to be found to say why you shouldn't vaccinate. There are endless books, YouTube channels, websites funded by natural/alternative medicines to say why the pharmaceutical companies are all out to get them. Doctors are to be feared and mistrusted too, except for the ones that agree with them. Doctors like Mercola, Tenpenny, ex-doctor Wakefield.

The recent propaganda film, Vaxxed has been doing the rounds, with the tour bus following in its destructive wake. Australia has banned the pro-disease activist, Polly Tommey, who called doctors "murderers". Recently in Australia, they have passed a law that means you can't send your child to school unless they're fully immunized, the very topic I'm writing for. Their vaccination rates have increased to safer levels, much to the pro-diseasers' dismay. We may recall a few months back, when the Vaxxed film was screened here in New Zealand and they were met by 2014 New Zealander of the year, Dr Lance O'Sullivan's indignant response. He was invited to the event by a fellow doctor and was disgusted to see these people flouting such science denialism, endangering children's lives with their lies.

Anti-vaccine rhetoric is dangerous and a threat to our safety. We, as science enthusiasts, teachers, students or professionals, need to stand up against this abuse of science and keep arguing.

Week 3: Summarising the debate

Hello everyone. 

This week, I'm going to break down the two sides of the argument. The topic I have chosen, "Children should not be allowed in schools  (or pre-schools) unless they are fully immunised", while contentious, has still proven difficult to find a fair breakdown of the debate. There is a wealth of information and studies showing the safety, effectiveness and need to be vaccinated. But, as mentioned in my earlier blog, the opposition has been more elusive. 

The most recent controversy in the world of vaccine debates has come from a so called documentary film, called Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe, (Bigtree, D.M., & Wakefield, A.J. 2016). Wakefield and (some) supporters of the Vaxxed film claim they are not anti-vaccine, but just pro-choice. Most are just full on anti-vaccine. The film's marketing claims "The film they don't want you to see". The film's premise is alleging the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) was involved in a cover up that destroyed evidence and hid data that showed a link between autism and the MMR vaccine. It revolves around two retracted studies that showed this link. They claim to have a whistle-blower within the CDC that is coming out and telling the truth. This is a quote (not included in the film) from their CDC insider, Dr. William Thompson (Carey, M. 2017),

I want to be absolutely clear that I believe vaccines have saved and continue to save countless lives. I would never suggest that any parent avoid vaccinating children of any race. Vaccines prevent serious diseases, and the risks associated with their administration are vastly outweighed by their individual and societal benefits.

Is this the information the Vaxxed crew don't want us to know? As Dr Thompson mentions, there are risks involved, because in science and medicine alike, nothing is perfect. Some people may be allergic to certain ingredients for instance. These people that can't be vaccinated are the ones that rely on the rest of the community to be immunised. However, all risks considered, there have been plenty of studies showing there is no link to autism.

The other reference I will use here is from a recent study explaining the importance of herd immunity and maintaining a high coverage rate to protect the population (Hayman, D.T.S., Marshall, J.C., French, N.P., & Carpenter, T.E., 2017). With New Zealand being such a desirable country to live, learn or work, with families emigrating here from all over, we are exposed to people from outside our highly immunised population. Other countries are making the same effort in trying to eradicate these diseases, but it has to be a global effort in such a connected age. 

Hayman, D.T.S, et al. showed that younger children are at a much higher risk of measles, particularly 0-2yrs  and 12-17yrs. The efficacy, or effectiveness, of the MMR vaccine is increased when the children have had both doses, otherwise the likelihood of infection and subsequent outbreak is increased. The study found that this was true for the majority of the cases from 2007-2014. In fact, 82% unvaccinated and 17% were from children vaccinated only once. 

The herd immunity coverage rate is 95%, which means that 95% of the population must be immunised to prevent the spread of Measles. Because of this herd immunity, it means that vaccinating is not a personal choice that only affects the individual, it affects the entire community, all the people that can't be vaccinated due to legitimate medical reasons. 

It's clear to me that making full immunisation a compulsory part of schooling in New Zealand is the logical step to eradicating these infectious, preventable diseases.

References:

Bigtree, D.M. (Producer), & Wakefield, A.J. (Director). (2016). Vaxxed: from cover-up to catastrophe [Documentary]. USA: Cinema Libre Studio

Carey, M. (2017) A look back at the so called "CDC Whistleblower" story and how Vaxxed is misleading Retrieved from https://leftbrainrightbrain.co.uk/2017/02/10/a-look-back-at-the-so-called-cdc-whistleblower-story-and-how-vaxxed-is-misleading/

Hayman, D.T.S., Marshall, J.C., French, N.P., & Carpenter, T.E. (2017). Global importation and population risk factors for measles in New Zealand: a case study for highly immunized populations. Epidemiology and Infection (145) 1875-1885. Retrieved from https://www-cambridge-org.ezproxy.massey.ac.nz/core/journals/epidemiology-and-infection/article/global-importation-and-population-risk-factors-for-measles-in-new-zealand-a-case-study-for-highly-immunized-populations/AA7A61E06F421945937D0BCB01DD11A8