GSK's Whooping Cough Vaccination Campaign Needlessly Vilifies Grannies!

GSK's Big Bad Cough multimedia campaign focuses on a grandma putting her baby grandchild in range of catching whooping cough from her: "Understand the Danger Your New Grandchild Faces." The print ad shown here appeared in a recent Parade magazine insert in my Sunday paper. You can also view the TV Ad here)if it still available online.

According to GSK's PR/marketing earned media machine: "Adults have historically low vaccination rates. For Tdap, the combined diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine for grown-ups, only 17% of adults over age 19 are up-to-date, according to recent CDC [Centers for Disease Control]  data. GSK said grandparent vaccination rates are even lower, coming in at below 10%. Adults are the most common carriers or "spreaders" of pertussis to infants, according to the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases" (see here).

The takeaway message is that grandparents are that danger. But, there's something you should know.

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