WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — As we inch closer to the end of summer and the first day of school across our area, WPTV is helping you make sure your kids are ready.
Part of that is having all their required vaccines. And local pediatricians said their offices are flooded with patients.
WPTV education reporter Stephanie Susskind is examining what you need to know and navigating how to get the care you need in time.
There are less than three weeks to go before that first day of school, and if your child is starting kindergarten, seventh grade, or is new to the county, you need to make sure they have the necessary shots or they won't be allowed inside school doors.
"I know that we have to do this every year, so I start early," parent Dara Mosquera said. "I usually start calling in April or May to schedule for the summer."
With three kids from kindergarten to high school, Mosquera is taking care of her back to school doctor's appointments at Palm Beach Pediatrics.
"My 15-year-old is in marching band, so he has summer health forms that he has to have turned in, actually by today," Mosquera said.
Doctors said if you haven't booked your appointments yet, time is running out.
"How busy are you right now?" Susskind asked Dr. Shannon Fox-Levine, the owner of Palm Beach Pediatrics. "This is our busiest time of the entire year."
Fox-Levine said her office offers weekend physicals this time of year to help make sure everyone gets in before the first bell rings.
"Seventh grade is one that a lot of patients and parents are not understanding how critical that is. Because the school will not let them come if they have not had their vaccine and also their annual physical within 365 days," Fox-Levine said.
Fox-Levine added that, typically, kids receive the shots needed for kindergarten when they are four years old. And the increase in vaccine hesitancy we saw during the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided, with families getting back on track.
"It's not just about a visit to get the shot you need for school. It's about the general health and well-being of the child. We do a lot of mental health screening now," Fox-Levine said.
"We all see the need in our community and we want to fill that gap," said Dr. Flora Bentsi-Enchill, a Delray Beach dentist who's with the T. Leroy Jefferson Medical Society.
For those who don't have insurance or a primary doctor, the T. Leroy Jefferson Medical Society will host a community health fair on Saturday, July 27 with physicals, dental and vision screenings, and more.
That health fair will take place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Max M. Fisher Boys and Girls Club, located at 221 West 13th Street in Riviera Beach.
"This is for the people in the underserved areas. Some of them don't even have health insurance and their students don't have a chance to do the back to school events, back to school physicals, and screenings that they need," Bentsi-Enchill said.
So for those who still have the doctor on their back to school checklist, Mosquera said it's best to plan ahead.
For a complete list of the childhood immunization requirements to attend Florida schools, click here.
