Forest Park Pediatrics

Next up Dr. Meyer, Medical Assistant Stephanie and Dr. Ankney! Way to go team! #WashUMyBestShot

We are so proud of Dr. Ruby-Ziegler and Dr. Schmandt for being the first in our office to receive their COVID-19 vaccination! The current vaccines are approved for 16 years and older. We encourage anyone in our patient families who qualify at this time for the vaccine through their employer to get one. We have applied to be a distributor of the COVID-19 vaccine but we do not know if or when we will receive it. Once we hear supply is available for the greater community, ...whether at our office or other providers, we will do our best to keep our families updated. Please remember that even with the COVID-19 vaccine, it will still be necessary to wear your mask and maintain social distancing. Clinical trials for adolescents 12-15 years old are just beginning which means it is still many months before we have vaccines approved for them and even longer for our younger patients. #washumybestshot

During this pandemic, our focus is to always take care of our patients. We will do everything we can to keep your kids safe and healthy. Please do the same for us by making choices that will help stop community spread of COVID. Stay home when you can. Wear a mask whenever you are around people you don't live with. Limit social interactions as much as possible right now. Please help us. #pleasfrompeds #pleasfromSTLpeds #pleasfromMOpeds

With the announcement yesterday of the easing of youth sports restrictions in St. Louis County, we anticipate the opening of elementary schools will soon follow. Attached is a letter sent to local school district leaders - complete with 92 signatures comprised of community pediatricians, pediatric infectious disease specialists, pediatric adolescent specialists, and pediatric nurse practitioners. We hope this communication will show the collaboration and support amongst physi...cians with school districts to best serve the teachers, students, and staff we all so highly regard. https://www.ksdk.com//63-9f7cc5f1-c8fe-4d18-b29c-e30bfcaf9

"Well protected classroom is where children need to be" Article courtesy of our great community of local pediatricians, supported by the doctors of Forest Park Pediatrics. https://www.stltoday.com//article_fdfc045e-38a9-5453-b654-

We know everyone is stressing about back to school with COVID continuing to spread in our community. The decision to choose virtual over in-person learning is a personal one for each family and is determined by factors such as high-risk family members and steps their schools are taking to reduce risk of transmission. The CDC has created a School Decision-Making tool to help families review their options and make the decision that is best for their children. "Choosing whether... or not to send your child back to school can be difficult. When weighing decisions about your child returning to school, it is important to consider your family’s unique needs and situation and your comfort level with the steps your school is taking to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Some considerations may include the specific risks to members of your household if a child were to become infected in school, as well as access to school meal programs, social services, extended day childcare services and extra-curricular activities, social-emotional support from peers and educators, and school transportation. The questions in these tools are designed to help you weigh the risks and benefits of available educational options before you make decisions. Recognizing that there may be many unknowns, answer each question with a check in the column that most closely reflects you and your family today. When you are finished, review your answers. Remember, each family is different so certain questions may be particularly important to you. Multiple checks in the Unsure or Disagree columns might warrant a conversation with school administrators, your healthcare provider, or your employer. Parents may also want to use the tool to make their views, concerns, and suggestions known to school administrators" https://www.cdc.gov///schools-childcare/decision-tool.html