Why the AVN? – What We Do

Our children. Is there anything we wouldn’t do for them?

These little bundles of gorgeousness, obsess, charm and scare the daylights out of us! Every little thing they do is a miracle. Watching them discover the wonders around them can keep us entranced for hours at a time.

But every sneeze, fever and rash has the capacity to frighten us as nothing else can. We lose hours of sleep waking when they wake and then, hours more worrying about them.

Wanting happy, healthy, intelligent children is the ultimate goal for all parents. Whether you are a parent who uses mainstream medical treatments, natural therapies or a combination of the two, there are certain choices you will need to make from the day of your child’s birth through to adulthood.

From nutrition, environmental toxins, disease management or prevention, alternative therapies to mainstream medicine, the choices are endless. A great guide for navigating these choices  is found in the pages of Dr Jennifer Barham-Floreani’s brilliant book How to have WelWell Adjusted Babies — Your Complete Guide to Pregnancy, Birth, Babies & Beyond many have described it as the Baby Bible and I would have to agree.

But once you have decided on what you believe to be the best health choices for your baby and yourself, you start to realise that these choices may not be supported by the government or medical organisations. In fact, these same bodies are trying to take away your very right to make them.

What we do

It is our job to help you protect your right to make an informed choice. We do this by:

• providing buddies (support people) to come with you to doctor’s appointments etc so that you don’t get bullied into vaccinating against your will,
• providing you a place to record vaccine reactions and advice on how to lodge them with the TGA,
• providing support and information for the families of the vaccine injured,
• lobbying politicians in Canberra,
• appearing in government inquiries,
• representing your voice in the media,
• keeping you informed via this website and social media,
• providing a regular newsletter,
• linking you in with support groups, information and seminars, talks and community screenings.
• networking and working with national and international vaccine choice organisations to enable us to work together as a united movement.

Past successes include:

• The AVN’s lobbying saw the introduction of a Conscientious Objector Clause which protected unvaccinated and partially vaccinated children from 1998 until the introduction of No Jab No Play in 2016
• The AVN worked with other citizen groups in Australia to pressure the Federal Senate to hold a hearing into No Jab No Play, giving us all a voice in the legislation. This was held in October 2015.

Your becoming a member will enable us to represent you in the halls of power and via the media. The more members, the more likely we (and therefore you) will be listened to. That is why you should consider joining the AVN now, we need you now more than ever to join the largest vaccine choice organisation in Australia!