HONESDALE - As the 2012 – 2013 school year draws closer, parents feel pressure to have classroom supplies, uniforms and bus schedules in order before their child’s first day of school.  The clinicians of Wayne Memorial Community Health Centers remind parents the preparations should not stop there.  The start of a new school year is an ideal time to schedule well-visits and verify that immunizations are up-to-date. 

Alexander Pinsky, MD, a board-certified pediatrician from WMCHC’s Carbondale Pediatric Center stressed the importance of all required school immunizations, but particularly the pertussis or “Whooping Cough” vaccine. This year, he said, "we have seen several documented cases of pertussis in a short period of time, and because this disease is easier to contract in close quarters such as classrooms, it's important that students receive their booster shots before school begins", Pinsky said

According to the Centers for Disease Control’s website, increased pertussis activity has been reported in a majority of states in the US for the first half of this year. 

To facilitate the prevention and detection of health problems in school age children enrolled in Pennsylvania’s public and private schools, the Pennsylvania Department of Health has established the School Health Program. One facet of this program requires kindergarten, sixth and eleventh grade students to have a school medical examination.