Tips to prepare children back to school (TheStar article)

Tips to prepare your child back to school

The little ones are finally back to their kindergartens or preschools! My son happens to be one of them. I am sure everyone must be having mixed feelings – relief that they will be catching up with their learning but fearing them catching germs, mainly COVID-19.

Besides practising frequent hand washing, wearing face masks, and social distancing, please ensure that your children’s vaccination is up to date. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only disrupted our way of living, the economy, and emotional well-being but also paved the way for more vaccine-preventable diseases to emerge due to vaccine disruption.

With regards to vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic, WHO recommendations include prioritizing pneumococcal and influenza vaccination, especially for vulnerable populations – healthcare workers, children, older adults and pregnant mothers. Vaccination will help in preventing co-infection with COVID-19. For example, it is not unusual to have a lung infection caused by the influenza virus and pneumococcal at the same time which increases the severity of the disease.

With that, I would like to thank The Star for giving me the opportunity to share my thoughts on the importance of influenza vaccination for children as they return to school.

#drjoannchildspecialist #thestar #influenza #parentingtips #backtoschool