We’re so grateful to Michigan mom Amanda Hernandez for partnering with us to share her family’s story! View Amanda’s full blog post here.
Lily just turned 9 months old and I wasn’t sure what we were going to do for her appointment. Should we postpone it or should we go? A week before the scheduled appointment, the doctor’s office called me up and we discussed what the best option was for Lily. They said that since Lily is 9 months old and was up to date on her vaccines, she didn’t have any that were required at this time. I want to make sure that we would stay up to date on her vaccines during the pandemic.
They wanted to postpone the appointment for 1 1/2 months unless I had something that I really needed them to look at. Luckily, everything is going really well and I didn’t have any questions that I needed answered or things to be looked at. They did say that if she was a different age such as her 6 month appointment or her 1 year old appointment, they would recommend her coming to the office for a curbside visit just for her vaccines. So if this is still going on when Lily turns 1 in July, we will do some kind of office visit whether that be in our car just to get the vaccines or a full appointment.
Lily’s pediatrician explained how important it was to stay up to date on vaccines so that there are not breakthroughs of the diseases that vaccines prevent against. They said that they were coming right up to the cars fully covered in masks, gloves and more and doing the vaccines since they are so important.
To be honest, although I am all for vaccines, I did not know if it would be recommended to delay vaccines for a bit during this crazy time or if they were so important that we should get them done no matter what. I stressed about it for a bit and totally trust our pediatrician so I know that what they recommend truly has my kid’s best interests in mind.
My doctor’s office always provides up to date information about vaccines including information from I Vaccinate which is my favorite source for information about vaccines in Michigan. I Vaccinate provides information based on real medical science and research to help Michigan parents protect their kids from vaccine-preventable diseases.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are recommending parents to continue critical medical care for their children, including vaccinations, particularly in young children and newborn care. Doctors are using practices suggested by the American Academy of Pediatrics to minimize risk of contracting the virus while giving these services to kids. They are having doctors separate sick patients from well patients. Our pediatrician is seeing babies in the morning and then sick patients in the afternoon to keep them very separate.
If a clinic is limiting well child visits, the CDC and American Academy of Pediatrics are encouraging newborn care and vaccines for kids through 24 months old take priority. Talk to your child’s medical office for more advice to see how they are handling office visits and vaccines at this time. I know that my family’s health and safety are my absolute number one priorities and I’m sure you feel the same about your family. Stay safe and healthy!