Current News
The Kidz Docs, a healthcare facility that serves all children - including high-risk children who are not yet eligible for vaccination, is still requiring masks in our office at all times for patients 2yrs and up. Thank you for your help in keeping our office a safe place for all patients.
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July 2022: Updates
Dr. Shen is retiring from clinical work on August 1, 2022. Please join us in thanking her for her 25 years of service to the the children of our community. Please see the note below from Dr. Shen:
"It has been an honor for me to care for so many families at The Kidz Docs for the past 25 years. Although I am looking forward to my post-retirement plans, I will miss the families here very much. - Cindy Shen, M.D."
Our July and August well visits are almost completely booked. We are now scheduling into September for well check and medication check appointments.
Starting Thursday, July 7, The Kidz Docs will be using a new service, Phreesia, to help make checking in to your appointments easier. You can check-in from any smartphone, tablet or computer - and from the privacy of your own home. Please double check on the patient portal that we have your current e-mail address and phone number, and you can use mobile check-in at your next appointment. The first time you check in with Phreesia, it may take a few extra minutes to fill in your information - please take the time to do this before arriving for your appointment.
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Appointments Available - Moderna COVID Vaccine (6mos-5yrs) Update: 6/30/2022
Vaccination for our youngest patients has begun! Our second shipment of Moderna COVID vaccine for kids 6mos-5yrs is here, earlier than expected! We have opened up vaccine clinics on Tuesdays and Fridays. Please call our office to schedule an appointment.
There are additional sites in the community:
Fairfax County Health Dept: http://ow.ly/jG8y50JCEYY
Alexandria City Health Dept: www.alexandriava.gov/Vaccines
Arlington County Health Dept: www.arlingtonva.us/Government/Programs/Health/COVID-19/COVID-19-Vaccine/COVID-19-Vaccine-Clinic-Registration
DC residents: https://mayor.dc.gov/release/mayor-bowser-and-dc-health-announce-covid-19-vaccines-infants-and-children-6-months-and
Montgomery County Health Dept:
https://montgomerycountymd.gov/covid19/vaccine/
Prince George’s County Health Dept:
www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/3730/COVID-19-Vaccine
Children 3yrs and above: www.walgreens.com/findcare/vaccination/covid/19/landing
Children 18mos and above: www.cvs.com/minuteclinic/services/covid-19-vaccine
Nation-wide vaccine locator: Vaccines.gov
There are 2 vaccines available: Pfizer (3-dose) and Moderna (2-dose). Whichever vaccine you start with, you must continue with the same one for the whole series. The Kidz Docs plans to continue with the Moderna vaccine for this age group.
Questions about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines? Check out the following resources:
AAP Healthy Children: healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/ask-the-pediatrician/Pages/what-should-parents-know-about-the-covid-vaccine-for-kids-under-5.aspx
CHOP Vaccine Education Center: /www.chop.edu/news/health-tips/should-my-child-get-covid-19-vaccine
Your Local Epidemiologist: yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/p/fda-meeting-for-5-covid-vaccine-q
If you have a direct, specific question about the COVID vaccine, please send a message to our doctors/NPs via the patient portal. If you'd like to have a discussion about the COVID vaccine with one of our doctors or NPs, please call or request a televisit consult appointment - this way, we can be sure to have time to thoroughly address your questions or concerns.
Vaccines for patients aged 6mos-5yrs were unanimously approved by expert committees advising the FDA and CDC. Both agencies have approved the vaccine. It is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, and all your Kidz Docs doctors and NPs!
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Update: 6/1/2022
We are currently experiencing extremely high call volumes and increased demand for appointments, in addition to staff shortages. It's due to many factors: a COVID surge, an unexpected "winter" virus surge in spring/summer, summer camp form requests, and a mental health crises.
Please help us help you. Please utilize the patient portal to request well visits and follow-up appointments. Please utilize the patient portal for non-urgent questions, refill requests, and form requests.
We continue to hire additional employees as they are available. We have limited the number of new patients our office accepts. Our staff and physicians continue to work extra hours to try to meet the increased demand. Please be kind to them.
Thank you again for your cooperation, patience, and flexibility during this difficult time.
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Infant formula shortage (updated 5/18/2022)
We know that many of our families with young infants are struggling to find enough formula.
Please see the links below for some helpful information on navigating this situation. In addition, we are working with formula companies to increase the number of samples in our office. If you are currently out of formula, or will run out in the next 2 days, please contact us as we are prioritizing our current samples for these emergent situations.
http://www.healthychildren.org/.../Are-there-shortages-of...
www.hhs.gov/formula/index.html
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Summer Schedule is Open (updated 4/28/2022)
Our schedule is now open for booking appointments for the entire summer through Friday, September 2. (7/10/2022 update: Almost all of our July and August appts are filled. We are now scheduling into September for well checks.)
Every year, the demand for August check-ups is extremely high. Although all our doctors and nurse practitioners work extra days in August to try and meet this high demand, we do expect these visits to fill quickly. If having your child’s yearly check-up in August is important to you, we recommend calling soon to schedule.
Before your child’s check-up, it is helpful to gather all forms needed for camps and the upcoming school year. Please fill out all the parent sections prior to your appointment. The doctor’s section of the form requires us to review all information the parent has filled out prior to signing.
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New patient update 1/27/2022
At this time, we are seeing all newborn new patients.
The following process is for new patients transferring from another practice:
- New transfer patient appointments will be opened for the following month at 7:30a on the last Thursday of the current month.
- New transfer patient appointments are subject to availability.
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Sick appointments are available daily by appointment (no walk-ins), both in-person and via telehealth. All patients and family members 2 yrs and above are asked to wear a face covering. For more information about how we are responding to the pandemic and keeping our staff and you safe, please visit our COVID-19 page.
The current public health emergency is extremely fluid, and we continue to adjust our schedule and procedures to align with the current guidelines. Thank you all for your flexibility as we work to keep our staff and patients safe and healthy! As this situation continues to unfold, we plan to be here for you through it all.
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Email Address: Please use [email protected] if you need to email us any forms for completion.
We invite you to take a few moments to browse our website and familiarize yourself with our practice. We hope that it will serve as a valuable resource for you. You'll find all of the helpful information you need about our practice including sport physical, child immunizations, well child care exams, our doctor and nurse practitioner bios, service details, directions to our office, and new patient forms.
The Kidz Docs looks forward to walking alongside you as you guide your child along a path of optimal health and wellness.
