Ken McLeod PO Box 51 Moruya NSW 2537 8 September 2009

Associate Professor Anthony Brown Associate Dean and Head, School of Rural Health Sydney Medical School Via Email: tobrown@med.usyd.edu.au Dear Professor Brown RE "REVIEW OF SYSTEMIC ISSUES RELATED TO THE DEATH FROM WHOOPING COUGH (PERTUSSIS) OF DANA MCCAFFERY." I am the author of the complaint to the NSW Health Care Complaints Commission regarding the activities of the so-called "Australian Vaccination Network" (AVN) and its president, Meryl Dorey, (attached.) Consequently, the HCCC is in the process of investigating the AVN. My complaint establishes beyond doubt that the AVN and its President Meryl Dorey (despite their claim to issue balanced information), issue statements and advice that are clearly wrong, selective, baseless, misleading, deceptive, biased, and a danger to public health, while engaging in bizarre conspiracy theories, fear campaigns and invasions of privacy. Nowhere in all my research into the AVN did I find any statement from the AVN supporting vaccination in any way. I have not heard from the HCCC of any outcome of my complaint. I have only just become aware, via communications with Mrs. McCaffery, of the "Review of systemic issues related to the death from whooping cough (Pertussis) of Dana McCaffery." I wish to make this submission to the Review, and ask your indulgence, in spite of this late approach. Regarding Term of Reference c: “Identify whether there have been Federal and/or State Government programs to inform all adults to have regular booster vaccinations and assess the effectiveness of any such programs.” I can only add my humble observation. I have no doubt that while there are such programs, they are not effective. I am a well-informed 61 year-old grandfather, with a proactive GP, yet I never knew until a few weeks ago that I needed a Pertussis booster. Why not?

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Regarding Term of Reference p: “Recommend strategies governments can adopt for responding more effectively to organised anti-vaccination campaigns and messages.” First I should explain some of my background: I worked for 30 years in Search And Rescue (SAR) in the Commonwealth Government, working my way up to Manager of SAR Policy in Head Office and Vice-Chairman of a United Nations Committee. I had to deal with many people like Meryl Dorey; in my case, they were often crackpot inventors who could never accept that we knew what we were doing and that their inventions really were inferior to our existing equipment. The usual tactic we adopted, (and by "we" I mean managers, the Executive, and our Ministers), was to be awfully nice and say as little as possible, but usually giving in to them in the end just to make them go away. That never worked. The result was that we were lumbered with dangerous inferior equipment and they never did go away. All we had achieved was to encourage them. In retrospect, what we should have done was tell the truth to everyone, including the Ministers and the media. I can see the Health Departments and politicians adopting the same failed strategy that we used back then, and it is not working. Meryl Dorey is now the default “talking head” whenever the media want to run a piece on vaccination. The media, in their ignorance, regard her as credible, and in their determination to provide balance, will approach her. This is of course a “false balance”, but the general public do not see that; all they see is an articulate and seemingly well-informed spokesperson on vaccination issues. How wrong they are: by giving her air time, the media has built up her reputation, falsely, and apart from a few brave individuals like Professor McIntyre and Dr Chris Ingoll, she is unchallenged. That is why I submitted my complaint to the HCCC: I saw that Meryl Dorey was not being challenged or even corrected, and so I and a few others formed the “Stop the AVN” organisation.i I must point out that it is not our responsibility to do that, it is the responsibility of government to set the record straight. We have only stepped into the vacuum. (And some vacuum it is, we now number 989 members.)

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So I submit: 1. The AVN's dishonest campaign against vaccination is effective and has led to drops in vaccination rates, and some deaths. 2. Following the death of baby Dana McCaffery who died of Whooping Cough earlier this year, the "Stop the AVN" campaign began to challenge Meryl Dorey, in the absence of any action from any government or health department. 3. It is the responsibility of government to do that, not us, nor Dana's parents. 4. Meryl Dorey will not be humoured into acquiescence regarding the benefits of vaccination. 5. Ignoring her has not worked, and never will. 6. Meryl Dorey must be challenged every time she issues an incorrect statement, via the media units of the Commonwealth State and Territory Departments of Health. 7. If necessary, Ministers for Health should make statements under Parliamentary Privilege pointing out her disregard for the truth. 8. Eventually, the media and the public will wake up to her, and turn to (we hope) more reliable sources of information. I recognise that if Meryl Dorey and the AVN were to magically disappear overnight, their places would be taken by some other crackpots. The strategy I outlined above should be used on them also. For your consideration.

Ken McLeod

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i I was in fact a late joiner; the credit must go here to Daniel Raffaele. See http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=76305414878&ref=mf

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