Mesa mom able to ‘breathe a sigh of relief’ thanks to COVID-19 vaccine for young kids
Nov 5, 2021, 4:45 AM | Updated: 2:01 pm
PHOENIX — Pfizer’s newly-approved COVID-19 vaccine for kids ages 5 to 11 brings relief for a Mesa mom who wasted no time to get her daughter vaccinated.
Jenea Phillips of Mesa took her 8-year-old daughter, Leah, to get her first dose of the vaccine at Desert Shores Pediatrics, where she’s an established patient, late afternoon on Thursday.
“I feel like we’ve been extra careful [with COVID-19], so having this vaccine will help us breathe a sigh of relief,” Phillips told KTAR News 92.3 FM.
Desert Shores Pediatrics is among the dozens of pediatric practices in Arizona rolling out the vaccine for kids this week, along with pharmacies and community health clinics.
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Phillips said she booked the appointment for the vaccine last week just hours after it cleared its first hurdle with the Food and Drug Administration.
“When I called the office, I actually ended up crying tears of relief,” she said. “It was just kind of this wave of emotions knowing we’d be able to have our entire family protected.”
Phillips’ 8-year-old daughter is the last one in the family to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Her oldest daughter who’s 12 is already vaccinated and only got mild symptoms.
She said having the entire family vaccinated will allow them to do some things differently, including attending gatherings and traveling.
However, as an extra precaution, they plan to continue wearing a mask in some public places until vaccination rates improve.
While some parents worry Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for younger kids was rolled out too quickly, Phillips said she has no hesitations and trusts it was thoroughly tested.
“It’s only a third of the dose for adults, and it shows that there’s basically no adverse reactions and still provides a good immune response,” she said.
As for how her daughter feels about the vaccine, Phillips said she was “a little bit nervous but overall pretty excited knowing that it’ll open up opportunities for her to be safe and play with friends.”
