Amid Push to Vaccinate Children, Other Challenges Deluge Pediatricians

At one clinic serving low-income children, treatment for health problems that have gone unchecked during the pandemic is more in demand than coronavirus shots.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Near the end of one of the first days that 5- to 11-year-olds could get a coronavirus shot last month, Dr. Anne Steptoe, a pediatrician, sat hunched in her cramped office between packages of diapers, onesies and children’s books, cataloging the week’s patients on her laptop.

One teenage girl had been sleepless and suicidal; another was anemic. Several young boys had gained weight during the pandemic. A 10-year-old had been plagued by asthma attacks and was using her inhalers incorrectly. Another child of the same age needed a mental health consultation after angry outbursts at school.

The rollout of the shot for young children brought relief for many families eager to shore up protection amid a wave of new virus cases. But much of the upfront demand has already been met; many parents who were eager to get their children vaccinated have done so. The success of the campaign, made even more urgent with the arrival of the Omicron variant, depends on the next phase: reaching the hesitant and undecided, including those who have not given thought or gained access to the shot.