Advanced Pediatrics is very pleased and excited to announce its annual Flu Fest, the 2021 round!

This marks a return to a highly popular approach to influenza immunization, suspended last year because of COVID, and altered this year because of COVID, again.

As many of you know it is recommended that all people 6 months of age and older be immunized against influenza once a year.

About 1/3 of all colds and flus in the winter are caused by the influenza virus, so getting immunized against the influenza virus gets rid of about 1/3 of all your colds and flus for that year.

And this year, we will almost certainly see lots of influenza.  Getting rid of 1/3 of your child(ren)’s colds and flus will eliminate 1/3 of your child(ren)’s COVID scares this winter, too.

Our influenza vaccine Flu Fest will be in October, well before any influenza viruses arrive in Ohio, or even the US.

This year also marks the return of the live influenza vaccine, called FluMist, a nasal spray immunization, no needles, not a shot.  The FluMist was offered for many years until one year the manufacturer erred and halted deliveries, no harm done.  We waited some years to be sure the format was truly safe and it is.  The FluMist is available to all children over the age of 2 with the major exception of children with severe asthma.  The FluMist, as a live viral vaccine, performs a bit better than the dead, or injected version of the flu vaccine.  If your child qualifies for using FluMist, we recommend that choice.

All children under 2 years old, all children over 2 with severe asthma, have to get the flu shot, not nasal spray format (FluMist).

Our office is proud to offer only preservative-free flu shots.

FLU FEST 2021 WILL BE ON THREE WEEKDAY AFTERNOONS AND ONE SATURDAY MORNING IN OCTOBER

The afternoons are:

Wednesday, October 6

Tuesday, October 12

Tuesday October 19

The Saturday morning will be October 16.

Sorry, no ice cream.  Another reason to be mad at COVID.  We will organize delivery of the flu vaccine, by nasal spray, or shot, with a line of people masked and 6 feet apart with rapid exit after the immunization.  We love people hanging around and enjoying a scoop of Mitchells’ Ice Cream, but not this year.

SIGN UP NOW WHILE SLOTS ARE STILL OPEN

To register for FluFest , call 216-591-1515