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Fictional Vs. Real-Life

There is no shortage of medical shows on TV. ER, House, Gray's Anatomy, to name three. Hospitals are frequent settings even on everyday dramas. But the series premier of Eli Stone -- a new show on ABC -- generated controversy earlier this year before the first episode even went to air. It showed an attorney claiming that a child developed autism after taking a vaccine. This concerned the American Academy of Pediatrics which feared some parents would choose not to immunize their children because of the episode. It's cases like this that beg the question, to what extent do these fictional shows influence real-life medical decisions? To get an answer, ideastream's Eric Wellman spoke to Dr. Charles Emerman, Associate Chief of Staff at MetroHealth Medical Center.