COVID19 Vaccines for 5 to 11 year olds

We are very hopeful that within the next week children age 5 to 11 years old will be eligible for the Pfizer COVID19 Vaccine. We will be having indoor vaccine clinics at our office, similar to what we have done for the influenza vaccine. The dose is different for this age group so we will NOT be able to offer COVID19 vaccines for patients 12 and older. They can easily schedule an appointment through the mass vax finder website. We will send out a notification once we have more information.

We know a lot of you have questions about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine in children. Below we have some great resources put together by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC about the COVID19 Vaccine.

Be on the lookout for messages through mychart about how to schedule your child’s COVID19 vaccine once it is approved.

Parent FAQs about COVID19 Vaccines

Was the COVID19 Vaccine Rushed?

CDC COVID19 Vaccine Info for Children and Teens

Infant Boppy Recall

The US Consumer Product Safety Commision just announced a recall for an infant boppy. The product goes by Boppy Original Newborn Loungers, Boppy Preferred Newborn Loungers and Pottery Barn Kids Boppy Newborn Loungers. If you have a boppy for your baby, please check the product name and click the link below to find out how to get a full refund:

Boppy Recall Info

Flu Clinics

It’s Flu Clinic Season – the most wonderful time of the year!

As part of our effort to maintain safety and physical distancing for our patients, we are offering flu vaccines by appointment only as we did last year. We were very pleased with how our outdoor clinics worked last year – and we heard many of you were also happy with the system.

Starting this week, we will have “walk up” outdoor clinics in Billings Field on Thursdays. We will also have weekend availability, likely starting in October. You will be able to schedule appointments for these clinics via MyChart. Only patients of RPA will be able to receive Flu Vaccines.

A parent will need to be available to hold their child if necessary. To keep our clinic flow moving, if your child is having a difficult time at the outdoor clinic, you may be asked to re-schedule to an in-office visit. Please schedule separate appointments for each of your children.

Flu clinic appointments are subject to availability of flu vaccine. Please check your MyChart often for availability.

Please note – our outdoor flu clinics are not for needle-phobic patients. Please call the office to schedule an in-office appointment for these patients.

If you are coming to the clinic, please utilize street parking and not park in the RPA parking lot, as we will still be seeing patients in the office, and need to reserve the lot for them.

We have now opened a limited amount slots for tomorrow, September 16th. Please do not be discouraged if you are not able to book a slot, as we will continue to open additional appointments as we are able. We are confident we will be able to get our patients vaccinated quickly and efficiently.

We have a link to the CDC Flu Vaccine Page for the most updated information for the flu vaccine this season. You can also read more at our own Flu Vaccine Page.

At this time, we do not have any updates regarding COVID Vaccination through RPA.

Stay safe and healthy!

BACK TO SCHOOL UPDATES

We hope that you all had an excellent summer!

As you are probably all aware, the FDA has fully approved the Pfizer COVID19 vaccine, now named Comirnaty, for ages 16 and up. It still remains available under emergency use authorization for children 12-15. As a reminder, Roslindale Pediatrics strongly recommends that all of our patients eligible for the vaccine receive it. If you are looking for a place to get yourself or your child vaccinated, please see the Vaxfinder site at

https://www.mass.gov/covid-19-vaccine

Currently, there are very few contraindications to receiving the Covid vaccine. Unless you meet the CDC criteria for contraindication, we are not able to write exemption letters.

CDC considers a history of the following to be a contraindication to vaccination with COVID-19 vaccines:

-Severe allergic reaction (e.g., anaphylaxis) after a previous dose or to a component of the COVID-19 vaccine

-Immediate allergic reaction of any severity to a previous dose or known (diagnosed) allergy to a component of the vaccine

https://www.cdc.gov/coronav.../2019-ncov/vaccines/facts.html

Additionally, as our school aged patients are gearing up for the school year, we wanted to share the following resource regarding masks, as it is likely that many children will once again be required to wear masks in school this year.

https://www.healthychildren.org/.../Mask-Mythbusters.aspx

Finally - it's almost Flu Shot time! Stay tuned for updates soon as we get our flu clinics up and running.

Wishing all of our families good health and patience with the changing guidelines as we head back into the school year.

Sun Protection

We know many of you are excited to finally be able to enjoy being outside now with family and friends, but make sure to protect your children from the sun! Apply sunblock with SPF 30+ 15-30 minutes before exposure and reapply every 2 hours and after swimming. Babies under 6 months should avoid direct sunlight since they are too young to use sunblock. Read more about sun protection here and here.

If your child suffers from a sever sunburn, give us a call.

Camp and College Forms

It’s that time of year again! With things heading back to normal, we know more and more of you are sending your kids to camp and back to in person college, which is great! We just want to remind everyone that if you have forms, we need 72 hours or 3 business days to prepare them for you, and the sooner you can bring them in the better! We now have a convenient drop box at our entrance.

If it has been over 1 year since your child’s last well child exam, please contact us to schedule it prior to requesting the form. Let us know if you have any questions!

Happy Pride Month!

We are proud and honored to care for the LGBTQ+ children of our community! Thank you for putting your trust in us here at RPA. Happy Pride!

Tick Bite - What To Do

With the nicer weather, that means more outdoor time, which unfortunately means a greater risk for tick bites. Make sure after being in any field or wooded area you check yourself and your child head to toe for ticks. If you are worried a tick has been attached for 36 hours or more, please call us. It is very unlikely for Lyme Disease to transmit from a tick bite that is under 36 hours. Click here for a resource by the CDC on what to do if you find a tick attached. And let us know if you have any questions!

Mask Wearing in Office

In the past few weeks there have been a lot of changes in guidelines for people who are fully vaccinated, but regardless of someone’s COVID19 vaccination status, the CDC still recommends wearing masks when in a healthcare setting. Due to this, we are still requiring everyone entering our office over the age of 2 to be wearing a face mask.

Please refer to this link by the CDC to see the updates made for fully vaccinated people.

And of course reach out to us if you have any questions about the virus or the vaccine!

COVID19 Vaccines for 12 and Older

Children age 12 and older are now eligible to receive the COVID19 Pfizer Vaccine. You can preregister your child at the mass.gov website. Once you have an appointment booked, you will need to bring a written consent form. We currently do not have a supply of the COVID19 vaccine in our office, so we highly recommend signing up to receive it elsewhere until we have a supply. Once we have a supply, we will send out a message and update our website and facebook with details on how to sign up for it! You can access our COVID19 Page for more information about the vaccine and reach out to us with any other questions.