Vaccines save lives. Mendakota Pediatrics strongly recommends immunizations as the safest and most effective way of preventing disease, disability and death. We advocate for the on-time, routine immunization of all children and adolescents per the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Our ability to confidently provide such a strong recommendation is based on decades of broad national and international pediatric health care experience, data collection, and rigorous, well-designed studies of vaccine safety and efficacy.

Vaccinating children and young adults may be the single most important health intervention we perform as physicians and parents or caregivers.

We recognize that information, especially online and via social media, can be overwhelming and difficult to sort out. We have deep respect for your families and for the trust you place in us to care for your children. We know all parents truly want the best for their children, and we are here to support and guide you in those efforts. We know the decision to vaccinate may be an emotional one for some parents. As physicians and parents, ourselves, we know that vaccinating children on schedule is absolutely the right thing to do for our children and young adults. Should you have questions or concerns, please discuss these with us so we can have the opportunity to address them fully.

Please know that when parents decline to vaccinate their children, they not only put their own children at risk, they also pose a danger to younger infants and children in our community who may not yet have been vaccinated. We remind you of these facts not to scare you or coerce you, but to emphasize the importance of vaccinating your child.

Matthew Straley, MD | Nicholas Lawson, MD | Nora Mulloy, DO | Samrie Beshah, MD Mendakota Pediatrics, Ltd. (Policy first implemented January 1, 2013; revised September 2025)