Don’t assume your child wants a COVID-19 vaccine, parents and public health experts warn – CBC

‘Kids are smart and they have a lot of questions,’ Regina doctor says

May 26, 2021

Regina registered nurse Heather Flynn said she was so excited to book her 17-year-old son a vaccine appointment as soon as he became eligible last week that she overlooked one key thing: She never talked to him about it first.

“I didn’t have a discussion with him. I just told him, ‘I booked your vaccine, you’re going to get it,'” she said. “Probably not the best idea on my part, because he felt cornered.”

Flynn just assumed the teen would be eager to get the COVID-19 vaccine — like his older brother and parents — but soon discovered that he was vaccine hesitant. Her son didn’t want to talk about his concerns with CBC News, but Flynn said he was anxious about information he gathered on social media and from friends.

“And boy, did I just want to grab him and take him to a vaccine clinic and sit on him. But can I do that? No,” she said.

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/child-vaccine-covid-19-parents-assume-1.6040198