Extension Hours For Back-To-School Immunizations 

By Knox County Health Department

Beginning  July 27, the Knox County Health Department (KCHD) will offer extended hours to better accommodate parents seeking back-to-school vaccinations for their children. KCHD’s Travel and Immunization Clinic, and West and Teague Clinics will be open from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday from July 27 through August 7.

“The extra hours per week will enable our staff to see dozens more patients during the time school rush typically peaks,” said KCHD Assistant Public Health Officer Kelly Cooper, M.D., MPH. “We’re happy to offer this for parents, but we still encourage them to make an appointment with their child’s physician or our staff, before the rush begins and to avoid wait times.”

For those who choose to have their child vaccinated at the health department, KCHD has launched an online registration form, which will be a time-saver for parents.

All students entering preschool, kindergarten or seventh grade and those entering a Tennessee school for the first time should receive state-required immunizations. Before the first day of school, parents must also provide their child’s school with a state immunization certificate, which documents receipt of the vaccinations.

For those who choose to have their child vaccinated at the health department, KCHD has launched an online registration form, which will be a time-saver for parents. At the appointment, parents should have their photo ID, insurance card if applicable, and their child’s vaccination record if they have it. Appointments are available at the health department Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at each location:

Main Offices and Clinic, 140 Dameron Avenue, 865-215-5071

Teague Clinic, 405 Dante School Road, 865-215-5500

West Clinic, 1028 Old Cedar Bluff, 865-215-5950

Both the vaccinations and the state immunization certificates are available at physician offices or at the KCHD locations noted above. Parents may contact their child’s physician or the KCHD Immunization Program office, 865-215-5150, to determine if their child has received the required vaccinations. More information, including a list of the state-required vaccinations by grade level, is on KCHD’s website at knoxcounty.org/health.

Tennessee’s vaccine requirements follow recommendations from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Childhood immunizations are vital in protecting children from potentially serious diseases. The CDC estimates vaccinations will prevent more than 21 million hospitalizations and 732,000 deaths among children born in the last 20 years.

About Knox County Health Department:

The Knox County Health Department (KCHD) is a governmental agency dedicated to making every person a healthy person. KCHD conducts disease surveillance, prevention and control; emergency preparedness; nutrition and physical activity promotion; tobacco use prevention and control; health equity promotion; adult and child immunizations; and much more. KCHD’s mission is to encourage, promote and assure the   development of an active, healthy community through innovative public health practices. For more information, visit www.knoxcounty.org/health.