As you know, children, preteens, and teens have specific vaccination requirements for school or day care. Furthermore, certain immunizations are recommended at specific ages. (See recommendations for ages 7 to 18 and 6 and younger.)
The number of summer pediatric visits is generally very low, so this is a great time to get families in for vaccines, immunizations, and boosters too!
Here are some helpful tips to engage parents and improve immunization rates:
- Review charts for immunization gaps before the scheduled appointment and ensure chart is accurate and thorough.
- Proactively outreach parents to schedule their child’s vaccination appointments.
- Educate your care teams about scheduling visits within the guideline time frames.
- Continue to review immunization records before each appointment (even sick visits) and ensure that records are up to date. This may be a terrific opportunity to catch up on missing immunizations.
- Advise parents on the importance of timely completion of each vaccine series.
Your influence is key in the development, health, and well-being of children.
This measure is based on the American Academy of Pediatrics Bright Futures: Guidelines for Health Supervision of Infants, Children, and Adolescents (published by the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health). For more information and resources on childhood immunizations and health activities, visit the Bright Futures website.
