Back-to-school health: Your guide to a healthy start

In this episode of Galesburg’s Morning News, Erin Olson and Tammy Nelson from the Knox County Health Department share vital back-to-school health tips for Galesburg families. With school starting soon, they emphasize the importance of vaccinations and physicals to ensure kids are ready for the classroom without facing first-day exclusions. Olson and Nelson highlight upcoming walk-in vaccine clinics on August 5 and 6 at the Health Department (1361 W. Fremont St.), offering all required vaccines, including DTaP, Tdap, polio, hepatitis B, MMR, and chickenpox. The Vaccines for Children program provides free or low-cost vaccines for eligible kids, ensuring accessibility for all. They stress catching up on missed vaccines to prevent outbreaks, like recent measles cases, and avoid school disruptions. The Knox Community Health Center offers school and sports physicals by appointment for preschool, kindergarten, 6th, and 9th graders, with same-day options for families lacking a primary care provider. Beyond health requirements, they share wellness tips, like establishing routines for sleep and breakfast to ease the transition. Knox County Health Department urges back-to-school health prep [caption id="attachment_682600" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Tammy Nelson, left, and Erin Olson and from the Knox County Health Department. (WGIL)[/caption]