Videos: Vaccines and Related Topics

On this page you can find descriptions of the various video series and the types of information offered. If you are seeking a particular video and cannot find it, or if there are topics you would like us to address by video, please email us at vacinfo@chop.edu.

Videos about vaccines, vaccine safety, and more

Vaccine Conversations

“Vaccine Conversations” is a series of videos that feature Dr. Paul Offit, Director of the Vaccine Education Center, and pediatricians from other institutions who are influential on social media. In each video, the doctors discuss common topics and questions related to vaccines.

Dr. Offit Answers YOUR Questions @ Vaccines

This series includes videos in which Dr. Offit responds to common vaccine questions being asked by parents and family members, including questions about spacing out vaccines, the use of fetal cells to make vaccines, adding aluminum to vaccines, HPV vaccine safety and more.

Doctors Talk Diseases

The Doctors Talk series features CHOP doctors discussing important aspects of vaccine-preventable diseases that many parents — and even some young physicians — have not seen because of the success of vaccines, such as pertussis (whooping cough), measles, meningitis and HPV.

Vaccine Makers Project

See the videos and animations created as part of our Vaccine Makers Project. These include popular animations, such as “A Virus Attacks a Cell” and “How COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines Work,” as well as short films and clips featuring vaccine scientists, disease survivors, and aspects of scientific research.

Science Made Easy

In these short videos, Dr. Offit discusses scientific concepts related to infectious diseases and the immune system, such as viral transmission, the so-called “immunity debt,” blood clots and vaccination, how to evaluate research studies, the blood-brain barrier and more.

Talking about Vaccines with Dr. Paul Offit: Vaccine Safety and Science 

This series include more than a dozen videos that address the safety and science of vaccines, including natural infection vs. vaccination, vaccine ingredients, delaying or spacing out vaccines, vaccine testing, vaccines and diseases, types of vaccines and more.

Talking about Vaccines with Dr. Paul Offit: Age Groups and Vaccines

These short videos answer common questions about vaccines for different age groups, including who should get the hepatitis B vaccine; info about MMR, influenza and Tdap vaccines; adolescent and teen vaccines; vaccines during pregnancy; combination vaccines; school requirements and more.

Talking about Vaccines with Dr. Paul Offit: News Briefs

These short videos address recent vaccine news and developments, including “2022 NY Polio Case: Why and What Does It Mean?” and “Is Aluminum in Vaccines Associated with Asthma?”. Check the dates listed with each video to see when they were released.

Talking about Vaccines with Dr. Stanley Plotkin: Vaccine Science and Development

These short videos feature Dr. Stanley Plotkin answering common questions about vaccine science and development, like “What is an adjuvant and why are they used in vaccines?” and “How can we still use a fetal cell line from the 1960s to make vaccines today?”

Hilleman: A Perilous Quest to Save the World’s Children

This 1-hour documentary film tells the inspiring story of Dr. Maurice R. Hilleman, a man with a singular, unwavering focus: to eliminate the diseases of children. From his poverty-stricken youth on the plains of Montana, he came to prevent pandemic flu, develop the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, and invent the first-ever vaccine against human cancer (hepatitis B vaccine). Through exclusive interviews with Dr. Hilleman and his peers, rare archival footage, and 3D animation, this film puts a human face to vaccine science, revealing the character that drove this bold, complex, and heroic man. Watch the trailer, find out how to view or license the film, or learn more about the project at HillemanFilm.com.

Vaccines: Separating Fact from Fear

This 27-minute video, produced in 2001, answers questions about vaccine safety, including “Are vaccines necessary?” “Are vaccines safe?” “Why are there too many vaccines?” “Can a baby get 4 or 5 vaccines at a time?” and “Do vaccines cause chronic illnesses?".

Vaccines and Your Baby

This 28-minute video, produced in 2002, explains vaccine basics like “How are vaccines tested for safety?” and “Can babies handle vaccines so young?”. The series also describes vaccines commonly recommended in the first year of life and the diseases they prevent, including chickenpox, hepatitis B, pneumococcus, Hib, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, measles, mumps, rubella and polio, among others.

Disease-specific video series

HPV-related videos

Talking about Vaccines with Dr. Paul Offit: HPV (Human Papillomavirus)

These short videos answer common questions about human papillomavirus (HPV) and the HPV vaccine, such as "What are the health issues related to HPV and how long does HPV infection last?" and "If my partner has genital warts, but my Pap test is normal, am I infected with HPV?”.

COVID-19-related videos

Talking about Vaccines with Dr. Paul Offit: COVID-19

In these short videos, Dr. Paul Offit answers dozens of common questions about COVID-19, discussing topics like how mRNA vaccines work, what ingredients are in COVID-19 vaccines, who should get COVID-19 boosters, what we know about side effects like myocarditis and blood clots, how we know infertility is not an issue, what we have learned about long COVID, and more.

Talking about Vaccines with Dr. Hank Bernstein: COVID-19

These short videos feature Dr. Hank Bernstein answering common questions about COVID-19 vaccines, including "What stops the body from continuing to produce the COVID-19 spike protein after getting an mRNA vaccine?” and “How long will COVID-19 vaccine immunity last?” Dr. Bernstein also answers the question “Does my child really need to be vaccinated to prevent COVID-19?” in this series.

My COVID-19 Vaccine Experience

These short videos, in English or Spanish, share personal experiences and decision-making related to receipt of COVID-19 vaccine. You’ll hear from people of all ages and backgrounds as they share why they decided to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Many also described what they felt after getting vaccinated.

Perspectives on COVID-19 Vaccine for Kids

These short videos feature personal experiences from clinicians caring for kids with COVID-19; families affected by flu, another virus sometimes perceived as insignificant in kids; and survivors of polio, another virus that causes long-term effects. These individual stories of loss, suffering and pain remind us that vaccines — or opting not to get them — can change the course of one’s life

Meningococcus-related videos

Meningococcus Vaccine

Meningococcus can cause meningitis (inflammation of the lining of the brain) and sepsis (an infection of the bloodstream). The consequences of infection are often immediate and devastating. About 15 of every 100 people infected with meningococcus die within hours of becoming ill. This video will help you learn about meningococcus and why college students should get the meningococcal vaccine.

We would like to thank Cariad Chester, the intern who produced and directed this video as well as the cast, listed in order of appearance: Morgan Williams, Sean Bryant, Eddie Montenegro, Maddie Williams, Catherine Martlin, Jason Heo, Fernando Maldonado, Cariad Chester, Travis Mattingly, Kenyetta Givans, Zachary Kronstat, Josh Gregory, Ximena Violante, Tom Powers, Erin Curtis, Will Duncan, Sarah Vogelman, Isabel Newlin, Marjani Nairne, Sam Panepinto, John Oh, Eric Verhasselt, and Beth Kotarski. Produced: 2012.