The Immunisation Foundation of Australia is proud to announce the creation of Australia’s inaugural Whooping Cough Day on November 8.
Whooping Cough Day provides a platform to shine a spotlight on the threat posed by whooping cough and simple ways that people can remain protected.
With the theme “Get Up-To-Date. Vaccinate!” the campaign encourages people to check if they are up-to-date with whooping cough vaccination, providing practical information about boosters and how to access them, and emphasising the importance of adult, pregnancy and childhood protection.
Although the devastating impact of whooping cough on babies is now better understood, community awareness of the threat that whooping cough poses to adults and the need for boosters remains concerningly low.
This concern is being felt especially by medical experts in the field. They tell us that epidemics of whooping generally occur every three to five years and – with the most recent Australian epidemic peaking in late 2015 – we are facing the very real possibility of outbreaks across the community as early as early as this summer.
Our hope is that Australians from all walks of life will take action to remain up to date with whooping cough vaccination. We all have a role to play in controlling the spread of whooping cough and reducing the risk of infection, no matter our age.