Pregnant women are reminded to get the whooping cough vaccine. The PHA is reminding pregnant women to get the whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine between 16 and 32 weeks of their pregnancy.

In 2019 in Northern Ireland 205 cases of confirmed whooping cough were reported to the PHA. During this time, when social distancing measures were in place, the number of cases declined, but now that we are mixing more frequently there is the risk that cases of whooping cough could rise again.

The majority of children who are reported as having whooping cough are infants under six months of age and so are too young to be protected by their routine childhood immunisations which are given at two, three, and four months of age. They can however be protected by their mother receiving the vaccination during pregnancy.

Book through our reception staff or ask when you are seeing your midwife.