BACKGROUND:
Influenza and pneumonia are among the leading causes of illness and premature death nationally and locally. Public awareness and education are effective strategies to increase immunization rates which help reduce illness and deaths related to these diseases. With flu immunization rates significantly lower in vulnerable communities, a targeted public awareness/education campaign was created to educate residents about the importance of getting immunized against influenza.

OBJECTIVE:
Demonstrate how partners can increase immunizations and education among the elderly and other at-risk populations.

METHOD:
With funding from Franklin County Board of Commissioners, communication specialists from the Franklin County Board of Health, the Columbus Health Department & other partners collaborated to launch a full-scale public awareness campaign. The campaign included the following:
Television advertising (all networks) and PSA’s
Radio spots
Bench billboards
New website
Billboards
Print advertising
Door hangers for home delivery
NBC 4 Call 4 (on air health professionals answering viewers questions)
This campaign, targeted towards inner city neighborhoods and minority communities, was designed to help increase rates of immunizations for flu.
The campaign ran in October, November & December.

RESULT:
Significant number of individuals were able to locate and receive flu vaccinations in their communities in the most convenient locations. Number of hits to the website and call to the hotline demonstrated the high level of impact achieved by the campaign.

CONCLUSION:
Partnerships of media, public health, private provider & community leaders can impact immunization efforts, awareness and education in a community.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
To illustrate how a strategic public awareness campaign can assist providers/coalitions in educating and increasing immunization efforts.