With four children, I can’t tell you how many trips I made to the doctor’s office, especially with the first one.

Every little cold and cough can be frightening for new moms. Thank goodness I had a patient pediatrician, one that left no stone unturned when it came to treating her patients.

Dr. Debbie Smith, or “Dr. Debbie” as she is called by the kids and us parents, would always enter the examination room and ask her young patients, “What’s going on with you today?”

When the kids were younger, I would chime in with the symptoms and when they got older, they would describe to her “what was going on.”

Most of the time, we were there to see her for a fever or the dreaded ear infections. My poor son had so many he eventually had to have tubes put in.

But there were obviously other occasions, like when my middle daughter was coaxed by the neighborhood kids to jump off a second-story balcony at our house.

I flew to the doctor’s office and when Dr. Debbie came into the room, she promptly sent us to x-ray, which confirmed what we all expected — a broken leg.

Then there was the time my oldest daughter developed pneumonia. She spent nearly a week in the hospital and Dr. Debbie was there not only to follow up on her condition every day, but she also assured me everything was going to be OK. And when my son had pneumonia when he was a baby, she did the same.

I’ve told many a person, that I had so much trust in Dr. Debbie’s care for my kids, if she told me I needed to jump off the roof of my house to get them well, I would have jumped.

Pediatricians take care of our most precious possessions and when they advise we listen.

This week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control approved the use of the Pfizer vaccine for ages 5 to 11 years old.

Some parents will be hesitant to get their children vaccinated.

For those, I would encourage you to talk to your pediatrician — the doctor you trust to provide treatment and medical advice as it applies to your children.

I don’t have young children living in my house anymore, but if I did, I would be talking with Dr. Debbie and taking her advice as to how to best keep them protected.