Clinical Informatics Program

The Clinical Informatics Program is a continuation of a line of investigation pioneered by Dr. Hooker. Briefly, patients with a lifelong medical history in a single medical practice are used to objectively identify signals in the electronic medical record associated with the absence or application of vaccinations. The best-case scenario medical practice–having only complete and uniform electronic records–is rare. Therefore, data collection is a painstaking process that can involve a combination of paper, PDF, and electronic records kept over the lifetime of patients.

Finding doctors with the commitment to health freedom required to work with us on this project is a huge challenge. At this time, it happens almost exclusively through personal networks. Many of these doctors have great reservations about participating simply because it’s a list they don’t want to be on for fear of no longer being able to care for their patients. There remains an open call for willing participant practices simply because they are so rare.

Recent Study

A new study coauthored by all four members of Children’s Health Defense’s Science and Research Team compares health outcomes in vaccinated and unvaccinated children using electronic medical records from eight U.S. pediatric practices.

The research is part of CHD’s Clinical Informatics Program, which includes medical records for nearly 4,000 completely unvaccinated children followed from birth through their fifth birthday, making this the largest vaccinated-versus-unvaccinated study completed to date.

The analysis included 6,239 children and examined nine health outcomes. Researchers reported that vaccination before 13 months was associated with significantly higher odds of rhinitis, ear infections, respiratory disease and strep infections. The study also found a dose-response relationship for strep infections, with odds increasing as vaccine exposure increased. Developmental delay was not significantly different overall, but was significantly elevated among children in the highest vaccine-exposure group.

The authors conclude that the findings warrant larger, independent prospective studies comparing vaccinated children with truly unvaccinated controls to better understand long-term pediatric health outcomes.

View Study: Comparative Health Outcomes of Vaccinated versus Unvaccinated Children: A Retrospective Cohort Analysis