Pediatric Immunizations in Woburn and North Andover, MA
Our Practice Vaccine Policy
Protecting our patients & communities through immunizations is one of the most important services that we provide at Woburn & North Andover Pediatric Associates, and each one of our providers takes great pride in doing so. After decades of rigorous study, there is abundant data that clearly illustrate the benefits of timely vaccination. Many people are surprised to hear that every single disease that we immunize against has the potential to kill or severely injure a child. However, thanks to modern medicine, most parents of this generation have never seen a child with polio, tetanus, whooping cough, or bacterial meningitis. They have never comforted a friend or family member whose child has died from one of these diseases or needed to care for a child with lifelong disability as a result of a vaccine-preventable illness.
When the danger of these illnesses does not seem imminent, some might question the need to vaccinate against them. The bacteria and viruses that cause these diseases still exist and in some parts of the world they are very active & can be brought back to our area as people travel the globe. In recent years, there have been outbreaks of mumps, measles, and whooping cough in the U.S. that have sickened unimmunized individuals, children too young to be vaccinated, individuals unable to be vaccinated for medical reasons, and those with compromised immune systems.
Childhood vaccines have been proven to be very safe. Based on an extensive body of high quality research studies, we know there is no evidence of a link between autism and vaccines or vaccine additives like thimerosal. In fact, after thimerosal was removed from American vaccines between 1999 and 2001, there was no change in the frequency of autism diagnoses in this country. Vaccine side effects are generally mild and significant adverse events are exceedingly rare.
For these reasons, we feel strongly that every child should be vaccinated according to the recommended schedule of core vaccinations published by the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics. This schedule has been extensively studied for safety and effectiveness, and it has been designed to protect children when they are most vulnerable. As such, we will not accommodate delayed or reduced vaccine schedules of any kind. We cannot, in good conscience, practice in a way that puts our patients and communities at risk
We recognize that this issue is important to many parents and that conflicting information from different media sources can be confusing and frightening. We present you the information above with the hope that it will help you make an informed decision about your child’s health and safety. We would be happy to provide you with further information regarding vaccines and vaccine-preventable illness, and encourage you to bring your questions or concerns to your primary care provider. Please be advised that families who do not adhere to this policy will need to find a different health care provider who shares their alternative views.
Our Schedule
We follow the immunization schedule as recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and American Academy of Pediatrics. The following is a list of the typical vaccine schedule but exact scheduling may depend on on your child’s history:
Newborn Visit: Hepatitis B (if not already given after birth)
1 month: None
2 month: Vaxelis (DTaP, IPV, HiB, Hep B), RotaTeq, PCV20
4 month: Vaxelis (DTaP, IPV, HiB, Hep B), RotaTeq, PCV20
6 month: Vaxelis (DTaP, IPV, Hib, Hep B), RotaTeq, PCV20
9 month: None
12 month: Hep A, MMR, Varivax
15 month: Pentacel, PCV20
18 month: Hep A
2 year: None
2 ½ year: None
3 year: None
4 year: ProQuad (MMR, Varivax) Quadracel (DTaP, IPV)
5 year: None
6-8 year: None
9 year: Gardasil
11-12 year: Tdap, Menactra
13+: catch up only