When whooping cough tries to make a comeback in people of college age, it’s up to science to arrange a new “study group.”

Role: Copywriter, researcher, and content consultant

Industry: Health and Pharmaceutical

Objective: Populate a clinical study evaluating a potentially improved vaccine for tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap).

Challenge: Most people in the Western world have already been vaccinated for Tdap, but a new formulation started in the 1990s showed evidence of weakening over time.

Approach: Most of the people in the cohort with waning immunity were now of college age. This meant that we could target student populations at colleges near study sites with focused messaging. By combining a bold color scheme with some clever wordplay, we developed an eye-catching and instantly recognizable tagline to Reduce the Whoop (pertussis is also called whooping cough). Other materials invited students to join a study group that could advance world medicine.

Key Deliverables:

• A full suite of outreach materials including print ads for student publications, email banners, social media activations, doctor-to-patient letters, flyers, posters, and a brochure.