Theo Bickel
i…it
Photo courtesy of ICHS
Children 6 months to 4 years old are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.
Public health officials evaluated safety data and concluded that the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are safe for young children and are effective in reducing severe COVID-19-related illness, hospitalizations and deaths in young children.
“This is a very exciting time,” said Teresa Lee, a physician with International Community Health Services (ICHS). “Finally, families have a safe way to protect their children from the serious health risks of COVID-19.”
For more than two years, parents of young children have been battling the COVID-19 pandemic by abandoning normal daily activities to protect their children. The mandate to vaccinate infants and young children over 6 months against COVID-19 now provides families with greater freedom to participate in normal educational, social and recreational activities.
“I’ve been eagerly waiting for an opportunity to vaccinate my 7-month-old daughter and 2-and-a-half-year-old son to protect them from Covid-19,” Lee said. “Vaccinating my children will also help protect other vulnerable family members they visit, such as their great-grandparents.”
COVID-19 vaccine protects young children
The COVID-19 vaccine remains the most important tool we have to protect people from COVID-19. However, some people still believe that cases of COVID-19 in children are always mild.
“There is a lot of misinformation about children and vaccines,” said Dr. Ashish Jha, director of the White House’s COVID response. Some argue that COVID is not a “big problem” for children.But the truth is we know kids can get sick [COVID-19]. “
According to the American Medical Association, there have been more than 2 million cases of COVID-19 among children aged 6 months to 4 years in the United States, more than 20,000 hospitalizations and more than 200 deaths since the pandemic began.
The CDC reported that during last winter’s Omicron wave, hospitalizations for children under 5 were five times higher than at the previous peak of the pandemic.
More than half of hospitalized children aged 6 months to 4 years had no underlying disease. Acute COVID-19 infection is less life-threatening for children, despite a large number of child deaths—more than 1,000 in the U.S. alone. But a small number of children may develop a dangerous condition in which many organs become inflamed, known as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in childhood (MIS-C) or pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome (PIMS), which can lead to lasting organ damage if left untreated. deal with. Another problem is long-term COVID. All of these conditions can be prevented by vaccination.
Pediatricians and healthcare providers are encouraging their patients with young children to consider their safety and well-being and to get them vaccinated against COVID-19.
“Wearing masks and social distancing is often out of the question for our youngest children and babies,” Lee said. “Instead, like other diseases, vaccinating children against COVID-19 is the best way to protect them.”
what parents can expect
The FDA has authorized the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines. The ingredients are the same as the adult and adolescent vaccines, but given in “child-sized” doses.
The Moderna vaccine is given in a two-dose series, given four weeks apart.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is administered as a three-dose primary series, with the second dose administered three weeks after the first dose and the third dose administered more than eight weeks after the second dose.
As with other vaccines, side effects are usually mild. The most common side effects are pain, swelling or redness at the injection site, headache, fever and fatigue. Symptoms usually appear one to two days after vaccination, are mostly mild, and go away within a few days.
The COVID-19 vaccine is free for anyone, regardless of insurance or immigration status.
ICHS provides COVID-19 vaccine for children 6 months to 4 years old
ICHS patients can call (206) 788-3700 to make an appointment with their care provider for a COVID-19 vaccine. Scheduled appointments are only available for ICHS patients.
For vaccination sites near you, send your zip code to the six-digit 438-829 (GET VAX) operated by the Washington Department of Health or call the hotline at 1-833-VAX-HELP (833-829-4357), then according to#. Provide language assistance.
The COVID-19 vaccine is free regardless of immigration or health insurance status. If you have health insurance, please bring photo ID and insurance card.
ICHS will host a one-day pediatric COVID-19 vaccine clinic on Saturday, August 6, 2022 for community members aged 6 months to 4 years to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Visit ichs. com for more details.
