AdventHealth Pediatric Doctors Highly Recommend COVID-19 Vaccine

Orlando, FL -  At today’s regular weekly briefing, AdventHealth pediatric doctors in Orlando highly recommend the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 12 to 15.  Dr. Fatma Levent, medical director of pediatric infectious disease at AdventHealth for Children said that her 18-year-old is fully vaccinated, her 16-year-old has had the first shot and she looks forward to getting her 14-year-old vaccinated. She said that the Pfizer vaccine is pretty similar to other childhood vaccinations. "Of course it is a new vaccine. I recently reviewed it with our review committee. It is very safe and effective in children between 12 and 15. It is very similar to other vaccines that are very well-received in this age group." Dr. Sarah Li, an AdventHealth Medical Group pediatrician, said that with children receiving the vaccination, families can feel more comfortable about traveling this summer.  "As more people get vaccinated in the community, we should feel a little bit safer. The vaccine is just a new tool or weapon in our arsenal to make sure that we are that much safer. But we still need to get more people vaccinated to be that much safer." Levent emphasized that the key to ending the pandemic is stopping person-to-person transmission of the virus and, in turn, mutations of the virus. The vaccines are the best way to halt transmissions and new variants of COVID-19 that are more contagious or more deadly. She noted that about 370 people are hospitalized with COVID-19 across AdventHealth’s hospitals in Central Florida, a slight decline over prior weeks, but still a sign that masks, good hygiene, and vaccines are needed in the community.