Hillary Clinton’s recently diagnosed pneumonia made a lot of headlines, but did you know that pneumonia is the 5th most frequent cause of hospitalization in the U.S.? More than 1.1 million pneumonia cases lead to hospitalizations every year.
Secretary Clinton was able to get back on the campaign trail relatively quickly, thanks in part because she had been vaccinated for pneumonia, but 4 in 10 seniors aren’t vaccinated—even though Medicare beneficiaries can get this and other vaccinations for free. That’s why n4a partnered with the Alliance for Aging Research on a new campaign, “Our Best Shot: The Importance of Vaccines for Older Adults,” to promote the basics of vaccines: how they work, why they are important for older adults, which ones are recommended and the role they play in protecting your health and the health of your loved ones.
To test the effectiveness of materials aimed at increasing the use of vaccines (such as for shingles, flu and pneumonia) among older adults, four of our leading Area Agencies on Aging across the country piloted the community toolkit: Atlanta Regional Commission, Los Angeles Community & Senior Services, Toledo Area Office on Aging and Pima County Office on Aging. To learn more about this effort and the importance of vaccines to healthy aging, join us Thursday, September 22nd for a Twitter chat @Aging_Research from 1:00-2:00 pm ET. #OurBestShot @n4aACTION @nsuper1