Framingham Pediatrics Flu and COVID Vaccines

FLU AND COVID VACCINES HAVE ARRIVED! 

We are pleased to report that Flu and COVID vaccines are now available at Framingham Pediatrics.

As usual, Framingham Pediatrics will offer flu and COVID vaccines in the following ways:

1. Any patient, or sibling, who has a scheduled visit in the office will be offered the flu vaccine during their visit. If you would like a non-scheduled sibling to get a flu vaccine while they are in with your other child, we ask that you PLEASE let us know ahead of time. 
2. Scheduled Vaccine Clinic appointments through MyChart

We ask that you use the MyChart appointment scheduling feature for Vaccine Clinic appointments so that we can keep our phones and staff available for patients who need urgent advice or appointments.

See below for a reminder on how to schedule an appointment with MyChart.

If you want both vaccines at the same appointment, use the "COVID-19 vaccine" option and answer YES when asked if you want a flu vaccine at the same time.

Current Vaccine Clinics:

• Tuesday, October 1, 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. AND 1:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
• Thursday October 3, 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. AND 1:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
• Tuesday October 8, 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. AND 1:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
• Thursday October 10, 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. AND 1:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
• Thursday October 17, 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. AND 1:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
• Tuesday October 22, 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. AND 1:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
• Thursday October 24, 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. AND 1:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.

ADDITIONAL DATES WILL BE ADDED SOON!

FOLLOW OUR WEB PAGE FOR UPDATES.

NO WALK-IN VACCINES WILL BE GIVEN AT ANY TIME

• Click here for Flu Vaccine Information Sheet
• Click here for COVID Vaccine Information Sheet for 12 years and older
• Click here for Modern COVID Vaccine Fact Sheet for 6 months through 11 years
• Click here for Pfizer COVID Vaccine Fact Sheet for 6 months through 11 years

Flu Vaccine

As always, we strongly recommend flu vaccine for all patients 6 months of age and older. Children younger than 9 years of age who have not had a total of at least 2 flu vaccines in their life before this fall will need 2 doses of the vaccine, at least 4 weeks apart. Everyone else needs just one flu vaccine this fall.

The best time to get the flu vaccine is between now and the end of October.

COVID-19 Vaccine

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC recommend everyone 6 months and older get an updated vaccine since protection from last season's vaccines has likely waned. Both groups emphasize that children are not immune from severe disease.

This year, we will only have Moderna vaccine in the office, with the exception of patients before their 5th birthday who have had Pfizer vaccine in the past, and will therefore need the Pfizer product this year as well. Patients 5 years old and over can receive the Moderna vaccine regardless of what they have had in the past. If you have a strong preference for the Pfizer vaccine for this age group, we expect that it will be easily available at many pharmacies in the area.

It is recommended that everybody beyond the age of 5 years receive ONE DOSE of this new vaccine, regardless of the number of vaccines they have received in the past (as long as it has been at least 2 months since the most recent COVID vaccine received). 

Recommended dosing for patients before their 5th birthday depends on how many doses and which vaccine has been received in the past.  

**We currently have vaccine for patients under age 19. We expect to receive the Moderna vaccine for patients over age 19 in a few weeks, and will send another email when it arrives.**

How to schedule a FLU or COVID (5 years and older) clinic appointment via MyChart:

To schedule an appointment via MyChart:

1. You must have a parent "PROXY" account and/or a specific patient account for children 13 years of age and older.
2. OPEN the proxy or patient account. Please note: A proxy can schedule all appointments for patients that they have access to (even if the patient is 13 years of age or older-however, once the appointment is booked, it can only be seen on the patient account). Patients 18 years of age or older must use their own MyChart account to schedule an appointment.
3. On a smartphone, CLICK on the "Schedule an appointment" option under the "menu" icon. On a desktop, CLICK on "schedule an appointment " under the "Visits" drop down list.
4. CLICK "flu vaccine" or "COVID-19 vaccine" (if you want both vaccines at the same appointment, use the "COVID-19 vaccine" option and answer YES when asked if you want a flu vaccine at the same time) and then answer the health questions.
5. If there are no issues, you will be able to CLICK on the date and time you want, ie., Thursday September 19, 11:00 AM.
6. CLICK "Schedule".
7. You will need to complete pre-visit validation prior to the appointment.
8. Repeat these steps for each patient.

CLICK HERE to schedule your appointment on your computer or go the MyChart app on your smartphone or tablet.

****If you get a flu shot at a pharmacy or other location, PLEASE use MyChart to message us with documentation of the vaccination, so we can update your medical record****