University Medical Center pediatricians stress that parents should keep well-child doctor appointments for their children and make sure their children are getting the required vaccinations.
“The last thing we want in the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic is to have an outbreak of measles or pertussis (whooping cough),” said Dr. Karen Burgess, associate professor and chair of the Department of Pediatrics at The University of Alabama College of Community Health Sciences.
Burgess is also a pediatrician at UMC, which the College operates. She said UMC is reaching out to parents of its pediatric patients to come in for well-child checks and vaccinations. Parents should also feel free to contact their UMC location and schedule those appointments:
- UMC Tuscaloosa – (205) 348-1220 (Pediatrics Clinic direct line)
- UMC Northport – (205) 348-6700
- UMC Demopolis – (205) 348-0087
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians are urging doctors to maintain vaccination schedules as rigorously as possible, particularly for the youngest children.
Not getting immunizations put children at risk for measles, mumps and rubella, diphtheria and whooping cough and other life-threatening illnesses. The American Academy of Pediatrics’ committee on infectious diseases worries that a drop in administered immunizations for children could lead to another health crisis.
Booster shots are also a concern. Public health experts fear that if booster shots are missed – for diseases like measles, mumps and rubella for 4- and 5-year-olds, and tetanus and whooping cough for 11-year-olds – immunity could begin to wane. At age 11, children should also receive their first meningitis vaccine, and the HPV vaccine series is recommended for pre-teens to protect against certain types of cancer, public health experts said.
Though doctors note that vaccine-preventable diseases can be more deadly to children than COVID-19 seems to be, parents are understandably focused on the threat at hand.
“We’re working really hard at UMC to ensure that all of our children who need vaccines are coming in for their vaccines,” Burgess said. “Parents should definitely not skip well-child visits.”