Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies has announced a program in the west of England to offer vaccinations to pregnant women against the illness know as Whooping Cough.
The vaccine can offer short term protection for the child as the mother will pass it on to the baby while still in the womb, whereas once the baby is born then they can not receive the vaccine until the baby is two months old.
The vaccination program is targeted at women between 28 and 38 weeks pregnant, but is still available to women who are at a later stage.
The symptoms of whooping cough include sever coughing fits the sound of which give the illness its name. While still relatively rare there have been a rise in recent years which has promoted health chiefs to start this immunisation drive.
