Unity Consortium Kicks Off Adolescent Immunization Action Week (AIAW25) to Help Parents and Adolescents Stay on TASK with Recommended Immunizations

AIAW 2025 Runs April 7-11 to Encourage Well-Visits and Recommended Immunizations

VENTNOR CITY, N.J., April 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — UNITY® Consortium, a non-profit dedicated to adolescent and young adult immunization and preventive health, urges families to Stay on TASK during Adolescent Immunization Action Week (AIAW), April 7-11, 2025. This nationwide initiative helps ensure adolescents stay up to date on well visits and vaccinations. Organizations across the U.S. are joining Unity to raise awareness and protect teens from vaccine-preventable diseases.

Vaccination is an integral part of adolescent preventive health. However, the growing influence of misinformation is contributing to greater vaccine hesitancy. UNITY’s research found that parents and teens understand the need for trustworthy information but struggle to find reliable sources. Social media, in particular, is seen as an unreliable source, yet its broad influence raises questions and concerns about vaccine safety and effectiveness. Unity provides resources during AIAW to promote fact-based vaccine education so parents and young people can confidently take action.

To help families navigate vaccine decisions, Unity is encouraging parents and caregivers to help adolescents and young adults Stay on TASK with four steps to ensure they are informed and up to date on recommended vaccines:

• Trust credible resources. Look to multiple trustworthy sources. Numerous clinical studies demonstrate that vaccines are safe and effective, and multiple trustworthy medical sources reference those studies.
• Ask your healthcare provider – It’s normal to have questions about vaccines. Speak with your healthcare provider and ensure your adolescent is included in the discussion.
• Schedule an appointment. It’s important to stay up to date on recommended vaccines, and it is safe to get multiple vaccines during one visit.
• Know where to get vaccinated. In addition to getting vaccines at your doctor’s office,   convenient locations include pharmacies, health clinics, and health fairs.

Engage with AIAW 2025 Events:
Unity has exciting and informative events planned for the week of April 7-11. including:

• “Countering Misinformation | Building Trust Together” webinar on Thursday, April 10 at 12:00 pm ET: A conversation about overcoming vaccine hesitancy to increase adolescent vaccination. The event features science communicator and host of The Dose podcast, Joel Bervell, MD; social scientist and Professor of Nursing and Health Policy at the University of Pennsylvania, Alison Buttenheim, PhD, MBA; and medical journalist and infectious disease and global health specialist from KFF and CBS News, Céline Gounder, MD, ScM, FIDSA. The moderator will be Chelsea Clinton, DPhil, MPH, Vice Chair of the Clinton Foundation.
• Young Vaccine Champions: Countering Misinformation, a virtual panel discussion moderated by Todd Wolynn, MD, MMM, executive director of the Trusted Messengers Program at Public Good Projects. A panel of young adults will provide insights on separating fact from fiction, tackling mis- and disinformation and the role of peer influence. The discussion will be available on-demand starting Tuesday, April 8 on Unity’s YouTube channel.

• “Vaccines for the Win!”. Five lucky Instagram followers will win $100. On April 7, share @unityconsortium’s pinned post on Instagram and post it to your own social media. Winners will be announced on Friday, April 11. Participants must be 18 years or older and a U.S. resident to enter.
• AIAW episode of FACTSinnated, Unity’s myth-busting podcast. Cindy Leifer, PhD, Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Cornell University, writer for Those Nerdy Girls, and host of “Immune” on microbe.tv will discuss where to find trusted, science-based vaccine information and how to navigate vaccine mis- and disinformation. The episode will be available on Wednesday, April 9.

AIAW 2025 partnership resources:
AIAW supports sharing science-based information and resources with a turnkey AIAW toolkit that makes it easy to participate in Adolescent Immunization Action Week, including:

• Shareable graphic and video animation outlining the four steps of Stay on TASK
• National public service announcement (PSA) video for sharing on platforms.

“Adolescent immunization helps ensure a healthier future for our communities,” said Judy Klein, President of Unity Consortium. “With the rise of vaccine misinformation, it is more important than ever for families to trust credible sources, ask the right questions, and schedule time with their healthcare provider to get the vaccines they need. That’s what Adolescent Immunization Action Week is about—taking action today for the health and well-being of our young people.”

To learn more about Adolescent Immunization Action Week and access educational resources and toolkits, visit unity4teenvax.org. You can also follow the conversation on social media using the hashtag #AIAW25.

About Unity Consortium
Unity® Consortium is a non-profit organization that unites diverse groups around a common passion – the imperative to protect against all vaccine-preventable diseases to support lifelong health. Our members represent public and private organizations, industry, academia, healthcare providers, retailers and advocacy groups. As one strong voice, Unity Consortium addresses the unique challenges surrounding adolescent and young adult health, prevention and immunization. For more information, visit us at https://unity4teenvax.org and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and YouTube, and like us on Facebook.

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