National Vaccine Information Center

NATIONAL VACCINE INFORMATION CENTER

In your search for information about childhood vaccinations, you have found this site for the National Vaccine Information Center.

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Figure false: This screenshot of the National Vaccine Information Center’s (NVIC) homepage is reproduced with the permission of NVIC and can be accessed at www.NVIC.org. Use of the Web site in these e-readings does not imply an NVIC endorsement of statements or opinions of the authors. NVIC is a charitable non-profit organization founded in 1982 to prevent vaccine injuries and deaths through public education and advocates for the inclusion of informed consent protections in public health policies and laws.

Reading and Discussion Questions

Use the sample NVIC.org screenshots and the full National Vaccine Information Center Web site to evaluate the site’s authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, and coverage. Consider the questions below, and then enter your responses in the spaces provided and click the SUBMIT button.

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Figure false: National Vaccine Information Center
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Figure false: National Vaccine Information Center
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Figure false: National Vaccine Information Center

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1. Locate information on the site that explains what the National Vaccine Information Center is and what its mission and purposes are. Does that information establish that those who write the material on the site are authorities on the subject? Explain.

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2. How have those who created the Web site tried to establish the accuracy of the information they provide? What are their sources for the information?

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3. Is the site’s purpose to provide an objective look at childhood vaccinations? If so, do you feel that the site achieves this purpose? If not, what is its slant on the subject?

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4. How up to date is the information provided on the site?

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5. In your opinion, does the site cover its intended subject well? Explain.