Protect Me With 3+ Contest Sponsored by Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey and New Jersey Department of Health Aims to Increase Youth Vaccination Rates
Newark, NJ, October 11, 2016 – The Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey, in collaboration with the New Jersey Department of Health, today announced the launch of the fifth annual Protect Me With 3+ poster and video contest. The contest challenges New Jersey youth in middle and high school to raise awareness about the importance of adolescent immunizations: tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis (Tdap), human papillomavirus (HPV), meningococcal conjugate and flu vaccines. Last year the contest had over 200 entries from students across New Jersey.
“It is crucial that adolescents take advantage of health check-ups to ensure that they receive all of the necessary immunizations and booster shots,” stated Dr. Arturo Brito, Deputy Commissioner for the New Jersey Department of Health. “The Protect Me With 3+ contest helps to educate and inform adolescents and their parents about recommended vaccines that adolescents need to remain healthy.”
Beginning on December 5, 2016, youth can participate by submitting a video up to 30 seconds long or a hand drawn poster integrating key facts about one adolescent vaccine by January 27, 2017.
Prizes will be awarded to the top three entries in the video and two poster categories. The winning entries will also be distributed during statewide immunization awareness activities.
Additionally, students who submit entries by December 30, 2016 will be entered into random drawings to win prizes courtesy of Protect Me With 3+ event sponsors. For more information about Protect Me With 3+ sponsorship opportunities, visit www.protectmewith3.com/sponsors.
The top five finalists in each of the three categories will be posted on www.protectmewith3.com for public voting in March. The winners will be announced and honored at an awards banquet in April.
New Jersey teachers are encouraged to make the Protect Me With 3+ contest a class project. As an added incentive, prizes will be awarded to the classrooms with the most eligible submissions in each of the three categories. For more information and materials for educators, visit www.protectmewith3.com/teachers.
“Parents of teenagers often overlook the importance of vaccines after childhood. However, adolescence is a critical time to take action to prevent infectious diseases. Protect Me With 3+ enables the Partnership to reach both parents and youth to explain the medical importance of immunizations,” stated Ilise Zimmerman, Executive Director of Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey. “We hope that even more New Jersey youth will participate in the Protect Me With 3+ contest this year, so adolescents can encourage their parents to continue to take the steps needed to keep them healthy.”
Information regarding eligibility, video and poster submission guidelines, and contest rules can be found at www.protectmewith3.com.
About the Partnership
The Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation, licensed by the New Jersey Department of Health (DOH). Its mission is to improve the health of women, children, and families. The Partnership has more than 20 years of experience mounting community-based, consumer-friendly and culturally competent educational programs to parents, caregivers, pregnant women and individuals of child-bearing age. For more information visit, http://partnershipmch.org.
To learn more about vaccinations, visit the New Jersey Department of Health’s website: http://www.state.nj.us/health/cd/imm.shtml.