Immunization Schedules
The standard immunization schedule for children starts right at birth when newborns are vaccinated for Hepatitis B. From there, your child should be getting regularly vaccinated according to the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended vaccination schedule.
There is a long list of shots that kids need nowadays. It can get a little confusing and overwhelming for parents. If you are not sure whether your child is due for a certain vaccine, your pediatrician can help.
When a child is very young, they will need a laundry list of vaccines to be allowed into certain preschools or daycare centers. In the first year of life, your child will need to receive at least three Hepatitis B shots, vaccines for rotavirus, IPV, Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis. From there, your child will need a regular set of vaccines as they age. Many times, the best pediatrician will Immunization Schedules during your child’s regular well visit checkups so you do not even have to worry about scheduling an appointment specifically for your child’s vaccinations.
Many times, kids need to be up to date on Immunization Schedules to attend certain types of events, camps, or school programs so it is important to keep a watchful eye on where your child is on their vaccination timeline. In recent years, there has been an uptick in parents choosing to not vaccinate or not fully vaccinate their child in fear that the vaccines are connected with developmental delays and disorders. A doctor published an essay claiming to have proved a connection between immunizations and developmental disorders. While the claim was quickly proven false, the essay spread like wildfire across the world and ignited an anti-vaccination movement. Many mothers and fathers made the decision to not vaccinate their children.
In reality, vaccinations and immunizations are a victim of their own success. Over the past century, we have seen the nearly complete end to many viruses and diseases that would have been life-threatening only decades ago. Instead, the insurgency of the anti-vaccination movement has allowed once eradicated diseases and viruses to remerge in certain parts of the world.
Having a great pediatrician, like a Pediatrician Rockwell, MD, can really help make sure your child is fully vaccinated much less of a headache. During a regularly scheduled well child visit, you can sit down with your child’s care provider and discuss any and all questions you may have about your child’s care and wellbeing. If you do have any suspicions about the efficacy of the vaccinations your child is scheduled to receive, this can be a great opportunity to express those thoughts and concerns to your child’s care provider. Odds are, they will be happy to take a moment to talk further about how the vaccination works and what role they play in ensuring not just your child, but your entire community stays healthy.
With the rise of COVID-19 across the world, we have all got a much more intimate and comprehensive understanding of how important vaccinations and viral contamination really is in our communities. For the most part, vaccinating a child is not just to protect the child. For the most part, children are very resilient and healthy individuals, therefore getting sick would not affect them in the same way an eldery person would. It is also to protect the immunocompromised and older members of the community. By ensuring that a large majority of people in a community has the antibodies to fight off an infection, it slows the spread of the viruses among the community as a whole and ensures that those that would be most affected are safe.
Overall, Immunization Schedules are an important, vital part of ensuring that all members of our community are healthy and can enjoy social interaction without the worry of exposure. If you are unsure about your child’s immunization status, give your pediatrician a call to schedule an appointment.
