To create and execute awareness campaigns is the everyday livelihood of many communications professionals. It’s not every day that a communications campaign aims to increase awareness among everyone, everywhere, and issues calls to action about matters of life and death. There are a few in that category.

Yet, well before our ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention communications and content pros put money, time, talent, and emphasis on the importance of vaccines through National Immunization Awareness Month (National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM) | CDC) each year in August. Now, with just over 50% of eligible Americans fully vaccinated, with recent COVID-19 booster shot news, and with the social and other-media constants of mis- and dis-information on the virus and vaccines, there’s an unprecedented need and opportunities for National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM).

The Immunization Awareness campaign and its resources could use a boost of its own. Here’s LaurelComms’ shot to do just that.

Information, Knowledge Leads to Action

Launched by the National Public Health Information Coalition in August 2013—timed near the traditional back-to-school season—NIAM’s aim has always been sharing information, education and approachable scientific data and knowledge about all vaccines, and their importance and impact in individual and community health. Though the coalition, which represents state and local public health officials, still plays an important NIAM role, the CDC now leads efforts together with other partners, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics. The organizations, along with many other entities, contribute content and tools to the NIAM portal.

And what a powerful portal! Its communications, content, services, relevance, and value predated this month and will extend well beyond. The comprehensive site talks of the “importance of [all] vaccines for people of all ages,” but the big, ongoing story and the bulk of the content is COVID-focused. The clearly stated goal is for “everyone to get a COVID vaccine easily.”

Two Audience Targets

The COVID resources generally target two interrelated audiences: healthcare professionals and parents and patients. With communications and content in every possible format, loaded toolkits, FAQs, fact sheets, testimonials, and more, this year’s NIAM effort will help the healthcare community “discuss vaccination options, foster support for immunizations, make a strong vaccine recommendation and have patients be up to date.” There are key messages for healthcare teams to use with adolescents, and other sub-segments. An overarching message to healthcare professionals makes the point: “You have the power to protect against vaccine-preventable diseases.”

For parents and patients, in addition to COVID, an additional focus is to “get back on track with routine vaccines.” Again, there are toolkits, content in all formats, guides, tables, and scheduling tools to track immunizations for children, adolescents, and adults. Among the key messages to highlight parental responsibilities and a healthcare provider partnership: “Work with your doctor or nurse to ensure your children have all their routine vaccines.” The positioning harkens back to NIAMs’ roots–to convey that vaccines help prevent measles, pneumonia, polio, whooping cough, shingles, flu, mumps, rubella, tuberculosis and, more recently, growing HPV awareness.

Add Audiences and Resources

While NIAM’s communications and content approach has grown over time, and is laudable in its coverage and resources, perhaps there are a couple key opportunities. The resources and links for parents and patients could be extended with materials for educators, grandparents, social service agencies, even for kids themselves. Tools for organizations, company leaders, HR professionals might add to NIAM’s reach and impact, especially now as business grapples with what to do, when, to ensure employee health and well-being. Partners do help to multiply the reach and resource mix for distinct audiences and communities.

Yet like many a day- or month-long event, an immunization awareness campaign–about the urgency of COVID vaccinations now, and about all vaccinations on an ongoing basis–that leads to understanding, change and action requires communications, content and connections all the time, every single day.

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