Schedule your children’s checkups at their clinic now in order to avoid the back-to-school rush.
When you make the appointment, be sure to ask which immunizations your child needs. If you have a child entering kindergarten, third grade or 12th grade, he or she will be required to be caught up on certain shots.
Iowa law states that all students in licensed child care and schools must show proof of immunization against serious diseases that spread easily. Students without proof of vaccines cannot attend classes or participate in school activities.
If all the students in your child’s school get routine vaccinations, then your child will have higher protection against diseases that can cause permanent damage or even death in young persons.
Protect your own child and the whole school by keeping your children up to date on shots.
Our current generation in the U.S. has never experienced the kinds of significant numbers of child deaths from diseases that used to be dreaded. Although vaccines have mostly eradicated many illnesses in the U.S., some still widely circulate in other parts of the world and are only a plane ride away from your family. See the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for a list of these diseases.
Besides immunizations, a well child exam screens for any irregularities, such as speech delays, vision problems, curvature of the spine or obesity. Your child’s clinic will monitor growth spurts and answer your questions about development. Read about growth spurts at the Johns Hopkins Medicine website.
If your family doesn’t have health insurance, contact Dallas County Health Navigation at 515-993-3750 for help in scheduling a well child exam at a free clinic and/or getting free immunizations. Call now to choose a convenient appointment this summer.
Ann Cochran is the health navigation coordinator in the Dallas County Public Health Department.
