Trusting strangers

Trusting strangers

The other day I was speaking about swine flu with a friend of mine who's a doctor. She mentioned she was going to be getting vaccinated soon. I hadn't realized there was a vaccine and she said there was, but there was a shortage and to start with, health care professionals would get the first access. I mentioned in an offhand way that there was a shortage (as there sometimes is with other vaccines) because the government had stopped letting companies make profits from vaccines. As a result, the number of companies making vaccines has dwindled dramatically. Her response was fascinating. She said she would never trust the vaccine produced by people trying to make money during a crisis.
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What is interesting is that I think my friend, who is a wonderful doctor, would be offended if I had suggested that she after all, makes money off her patients and yet she is trusted. And again, this is a perfectly reasonable feeling on her part. She sees herself the way I see a vaccine company and its employees in a competitive marketplace.