Summer is time for sunshine, family fun, camps, and a well-earned break from school routines. Before calendars fill with practices, homework, and early mornings, it is a smart time to take care of the health appointments children and teens may need for a healthy start to their year.
Planning for a Healthy School Year
Annual physicals, sports clearances, vaccines, and preventive care visits help make sure students are ready for the school year ahead. Scheduling early can help families avoid the last-minute rush once school begins.
During a back-to-school visit, your child’s provider can review growth and development, school or sports forms, vaccination needs, screenings, healthy routines, and any concerns about sleep, stress, or emotional well-being.
Back to School Checklist
How to Protect Yourself Simple steps can help reduce your risk:
- Schedule annual physicals and preventive care visits.
- Complete sports clearances and needed school forms.
- Review required and recommended vaccines.
- Check vision, hearing, dental health, and other screenings.
- Ease back into healthy sleep, meals, and activity routines.
- Prepare a school health kit with essentials like a thermometer, age-appropriate medications, tissues, and basic health supplies.
Taking care of these items now can help your child head into the new school year feeling prepared, supported, ready for the classroom, the field, and everything in between.
Where to Go for Care
Families can schedule annual physicals, sports clearances, vaccines, and preventive care visits with a BHS pediatric office or their primary care provider.
BHS pediatric offices include Berkshire Health Pediatrics in Pittsfield, Berkshire Health Pediatrics at East Elm in Pittsfield, and MACONY Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine in Great Barrington. Find our BHS pediatric offices contact information by clicking here.
BHS Urgent Care can also help with last-minute physicals, sports clearances, minor illnesses, or non-life-threatening concerns when a primary care appointment is not available. BHS Urgent Care has three convenient locations in Williamstown, Lenox, and Pittsfield. Click here to schedule an urgent care visit today.
Schedule Early and Start Healthy
The first day of school will be here before we know it. Scheduling care now can help your child start the year healthy, confident, and ready to thrive.
Contact your child’s primary care provider or a BHS pediatric office to schedule annual physicals, vaccines, sports clearances, and preventive care appointments before the school year begins.
This information is provided as a service of Berkshire Health Systems and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent conditions or offer any medical advice.