As stewards of children's health the physicians at The Children's Clinic have the following recommendations regarding COVID-19.
1. We recommend that ALL STAFF, FACULTY AND VISITORS TO SCHOOLS BE FULLY VACCINATED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. The greatest source of increasingly dangerous variants remains the pool of unvaccinated people. Vaccination remains the most powerful means to limit and eventually stop the pandemic. Restated, if the vast majority of eligible people were vaccinated this disease would take the same course as did polio and smallpox, two diseases which decimated populations but were stopped in their tracks through aggressive vaccination campaigns.
2. We strongly recommend that all children aged 6 months and up receive the COVID vaccine. By so doing we would expect three significant benefits.
- We would protect those that receive the vaccine even though we know that typically younger people have milder disease. Students with underlying health issues such as respiratory conditions, kidney conditions, heart conditions are at particular risk of severe illness (requiring hospitalization) or even death.
- Vaccinating children would protect adults within the household that are at greater risk of severe illness, again those with respiratory conditions, cardiac conditions, and diabetes to name but a few.
- Children make up a significant percentage of the population of the United States. Vaccinating as many children as we can will raise the herd immunity and provide improved collective protection against infection.
3. The CDC and AAP recommend universal mask wearing for all staff, students, and visitors in grades 5K and up when there are high levels of COVID in community, with less stringent recommendations when the level is medium or low. Along with the other public health measures of frequent hand-washing, social distancing, availability of rapid testing, and adequate ventilation systems these strategies will facilitate continuation of in-person learning within a significantly safer environment.
We all look forward to the day when the disruptions that we have suffered come to an end and we can return to a much anticipated normalcy that we once enjoyed.
Last, we invite all students, staff and faculty as well as the citizens of Angelina and surrounding counties to refer to our website where we have addressed the most commonly expressed fears and even phobias of this vaccine. The best sources of information regarding COVID/SARS COV2 in our opinion include the Johns Hopkins website, Texas Health and Human Services website, and the CDC. We will update our website information as significant changes are recommended based on new data which is continually emerging as we learn more and more about this virus and its behavior.