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No baloney: vaccine issue rattles school trustees. Again

The never-ending local controversy over Gardasil human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine has again reared its head at the Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board, this time over a pamphlet that some trustees want distributed to parents of Grade 8 gi
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The never-ending local controversy over Gardasil human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine has again reared its head at the Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board, this time over a pamphlet that some trustees want distributed to parents of Grade 8 girls before Algoma Public Health begins to administer Gardasil in local schools.

The pamphlet was produced by the pro-life organization Alliance For Life.

It hasn't been approved for distribution by other Catholic boards, says Huron-Superior Director of Education John Stadnyk.

It was rejected by the Huron-Superior board last night, but the debate over whether to use the brochure locally took on a life of its own, reminiscent of the debates around the vaccine itself last year.

The debate began in earnest when Kathleen Rosilius, one of the trustees pushing for the pamphlet, said there have 220 adverse effects to the HPV vaccine already and that isn't mentioned in the information that will be going out to parents.

Gardasil is hailed by many as one of the major health advances of the early 21st Century.

"The long-term effects of the vaccine on young girls are completely unknown," says the Alliance For Life pamphlet (shown above).

Board Chair Marchy Bruni cut Rosilius off, saying she was just telling trustees something they already knew from a letter she sent them yesterday.

Grace Tridico, another trustee who backed the pamphlet, said she believed trustee Rosilius should have been allowed to express her views.

"She has a right to speak," Tridico said. "Trustees have received her letter. The public hasn't."

Tridico said the pamphlet is written in a very professional way and, most importantly, has been cross-referenced with a number of reputable sources.

"They have no hidden agenda. They just want to make sure that info goes to the public," said Tridico. "They know there is information that hasn't gone out to the parents. It includes information that every parent needs to make an informed decision."

Tridico asked for a recorded vote.

In his report to the board, Stadnyk advised against letting the pamphlet be included in information packages going to parents of girls in Grade 8.

He suggested a letter from Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops is more authoritative and the board may be challenged to verify information in the Alliance For Life pamphlet.

Stadnyk included a draft cover letter from the board that could be sent to parents, together with the Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops letter and an information package from Algoma Public Health, instead of the pamphlet.

Rosilius asked whether Stadnyk had spoken with the bishop about the pamphlet.

"In fact I did talk with Bishop Plouffe on the matter," said Stadnyk. "He had no strong position on the Alliance for Life pamphlet. But he thought it would be confusing to parents, especially after the board changed its position on the issue, because he thought the pamphlet tended to be biased against the vaccine." Trustee Lindsay Liske wondered why the board would distribute a pamphlet that came from a faith-based group that isn't Catholic.

Newly elected Vice-Chair Regis O'Connor supported the motion to include the pamphlet.

"No one has seen the other side of this case," O'Connor said. "We are an educational institution and if we are afraid to disseminate both sides of this to parents, we are remiss. It's a balance situation."

O'Connor went on to say that, even if the board had a problem with the source of the pamphlet, they could get the same information from other sources.

Tridico asked Stadnyk whether he had any conversations with Dr. Northam, the local medical officer of health, or anyone else at Algoma Public Health about the pamphlet.

"Yes, and they consulted with the department responsible for dissemination of information for this vaccine," Stadnyk said. "So far I have not gotten a written response. But I do know they had some concerns with the pamphlet being in an envelope with their information."

Newly elected Chair Marchy Bruni said the board has to be careful.

"If we start opening up the door, we could have all kinds of things we can't confirm," he said. "We can't just be sending everything out to the parents, especially if they are that biased."

O'Connor, Tridico and Rosilius supported the motion to include the pamphlet.

Trustees Liske, John Caputo and Sandra Turco voted against the idea.

Trustees Conrad Bobiwash and Gerald Beerkens were not present for the vote.

Chair Bruni cast the deciding vote to strike down the motion, saying he felt it was necessary to avoid setting a dangerous precedent.

O'Connor called a point of order, saying Bruni did not have a right to speak on the issue just before he cast his vote.

"All you have to do is leave the chair before you express your opinion," O'Connor told him.

"If I have to vote then I should be able to speak," Bruni said. "We are trying to establish an open dialogue here. Maybe some people in the room are interested to hear my reasons why I vote the way I do."

"Baloney!" said O'Connor. "Let's just throw Roberts Rules of Order right out while we're at it. You spoke before the vote and again as you voted."

"Well, Trustees Rosilius and Tridico spoke several times," Bruni said. "You should be fair with everybody and we should allow people speak several times if they want."

The last words on the matter went to trustee Sandra Turco.

"It is my opinion that trustees should speak to the chair with respect," she said. "Not using words like baloney."

Later, in an interview with the media, Stadnyk said the HPV vaccine will be administered in Huron-Superior schools very soon.

"There's a certain window of time because we need to give them enough time to make sure each of the girls have all three doses," said Stadnyk. "I expect things will get underway very quickly once we notify Algoma Public Health of the board's decision tonight."

The information packages that will be sent out to parents will include information from Algoma Public Health, a letter from Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops and a letter from Stadnyk.


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