The author lists this under 'dumb associations':
The other theme is that they, or someone they knew, had the vaccine and shortly thereafter had some adverse reaction attributed to the vaccine. Like the paranoid conspirators, the idea that the vaccine caused the subsequent disease is not amenable to logical refutation. It is a motto in the skeptical world that association is not causation, but it is a concept that is paid little attention.
Who has taken the flu vaccine regularly and not had an adverse reaction, ever? I think it's biased to dismiss all of this real world, empirical evidence because it doesn't fit under your moral argument that HCWs should take it to protect their patients (which I agree with). Instead, scientists that are more familiar with our immune responses should help up put these adverse reactions in context. Without information, my reaction to the vaccine this year was bad enough I probably won't take it again.
The most sick I have ever been was the day after I got my one and only flu shot (it contained a vaccine for H1N1 and two other strains in a single shot). Was it from the shot? Well, it is some evidence, but not enough to outweigh large studies involving thousands of people.
I thought some of you might find this interesting, Random Flu Thoughts. The last part has a pretty good, if elementary, illustration of the importance of base rates.