They are rare to go there backwards. “Less than 10%” estimates Dr. Louis Sala, retired general practitioner, responsible for vaccinating young children at the center of Lespinasse, north of Toulouse. The majority of 5-11 year olds, whose vaccination was opened to all on December 20, are vaccinated without flinching, sometimes even with envy. Like Kenza, 11 years old: “My mom is a fragile person, she can die of covid, so I prefer to be vaccinated to protect her”, she explains, just after the injection. “My big brother told me it hurt, but not at all,” she smiles.

A little longer, it is also for prevention, that little Lucie, 6 years old, was vaccinated: “When my daughter is sick, it often goes down into the bronchi, so I prefer that she be vaccinated for the protect ”explains, Lucie, his mother.
Others go there with less willpower: “I don’t really want to” slips a 9-year-old girl. “Yes, but she has no choice” retorts her mother, “for us, being vaccinated is obvious”.

Sometimes the fear of the bite forces the parents and the doctor to forcibly vaccinate. “There are a few children who had to be held in order to vaccinate them” explains Dr Louis Sala. But in the vast majority of cases “everything is going for the best”.

For the doctor, it is “the pedagogy” and the course specially designed for children that allows the vaccination to take place in good conditions. “We wanted the child to always be followed by the same person, until vaccination, unlike adults,” explains Leï Latrous, the manager of the vaccination center. “We also wanted children not to be vaccinated in the midst of adults.” Thus, a separate room is dedicated to them.

An increasing influx of young patients

Since the opening of vaccination for 5-11 year olds in this center, the appointments are full. “At the beginning, we only offered half-day appointments. Faced with the influx, we went for a full day. We will certainly ask to expand to meet demand, ”explains the manager. “We have had 140 children since December 20. This Wednesday, all the slots are taken, or around thirty vaccinations per day, ”explains Clara Haoues, a 24-year-old sixth-year medical student, who works in reinforcement in the center. For now, only three vaccination centers are open in Haute-Garonne: Lespinasse, Villefranche-de-Lauragais and Montastruc-La-Conseillère. But others should open by the beginning of January, announced the Regional Health Agency. Among them: Bagnères-de-Luchon, Toulouse – La Daurade, Villeneuve-de-Rivière and the Toulouse University Hospital, which remains dedicated, for the moment, to the vaccination of children with risk factors.