NEW YORK, Dec. 29, 2020 /PRNewswire/ – The Ad Council and the COVID Collaborative today announced a new resource designed to address healthcare professionals' questions about COVID-19 vaccination. The videos–which feature an introduction from Dr. Anthony Fauci–include experts from a diverse coalition of leading healthcare organizations and medical institutions sharing information around COVID-19 vaccine development and safety with their fellow physicians and nurses.

The video series was developed in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and top health and medical institutions. The content will be shared with the medical community to increase understanding and confidence about the efficacy and safety of the new vaccines. Topics addressed include safety, availability, cost, side effects, vaccine administration, answering patients' questions and more.

"I'm urging healthcare professionals to please get vaccinated," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, NIAID Director. "It's critical to protect yourselves and your family—but it's equally important as healthcare providers to show confidence in the vaccines so that other people will follow suit and get vaccinated. Together, we can help a substantial portion of the population decide to get vaccinated and ultimately end the pandemic as we know it in this country."

The informational content is part of the Ad Council and the COVID Collaborative's ongoing COVID-19 Vaccine Education efforts, which will release a wide range of communications designed to reach many audiences over the coming months.

"Our nation's healthcare workers have been working tirelessly to fight this pandemic and protect our communities, and now it's our turn to help them," said Lisa Sherman, President and CEO of the Ad Council. "We're proud to team up with some of the nation's leading medical and health experts to help physicians and nurses get the facts they need to feel confident in choosing to be immunized against COVID-19, and ultimately, advise their own patients about the vaccines."

The videos were created pro bono by advertising agency Group SJR in partnership with top medical associations and institutions including:

• American Hospital Association
• American Medical Association
• American Nurses Association
• Black Coalition Against COVID
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Morehouse School of Medicine
• National Association of Hispanic Nurses
• National Black Nurses Association
• National Hispanic Medical Association
• National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
• National Medical Association
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

"Transparency surrounding COVID-19 vaccines—including the science behind the development and authorization process, safety, efficacy and side effects—will be essential to build trust and ensure people in the U.S., including people in minority communities, are ready and willing to take the vaccine. We must continue to make sure physicians have the science-based evidence and information they need to help them promote vaccine confidence among their patients and the general public," said AMA President Susan R. Bailey, M.D. "Science and ingenuity have given us the tools to vaccinate our population, and if enough of us roll up our sleeves, these vaccines will reduce death and severe illness and help us eventually reclaim normalcy in our communities.

"Ending the pandemic requires all of us eventually to get vaccinated, even folks who have in the past had reason to be skeptical of vaccines," said Deval Patrick, Co-Chair of the COVID Collaborative. "Meeting this challenge requires unprecedented collaboration, which is why we committed our network to partner with the Ad Council, the CDC, and others to produce high quality content and help increase confidence."

To reach healthcare workers, the content will be distributed via professional and community networks including:

• American Public Health Association
• Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
• Infectious Diseases Society of America
• National Association of County & City Health Officials
• National Medical Fellowships
• UnidosUS

This vaccine education effort builds on the success of the Ad Council's unprecedented, multi-pronged communications campaign to help the nation combat COVID-19. To date, that work has resulted in $408.9 million in donated media value, 58.4 million engagements and 31.2 million visits to Coronavirus.gov.