Culture

Medical Professionals Say The Government’s Graphic COVID Ad Is “Inaccurate”

"Frightening people isn’t a good way to get people on side. Reminds me of the Grim Reaper ads in 1980’s."

by Edwina Storie  12 July 2021

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In the midst of Sydney’s COVID-19 outbreak and the rapidly increasing case numbers (112 today, 77 yesterday), the Federal Government released a graphic ad in Sydney last night, featuring a young woman hyperventilating alone in a hospital bed — and medical professionals are calling into question the representation’s accuracy.

The ad is incredibly distressing to watch. As the woman struggles to breath she appears to desperately look for assistance, and it concludes, “Stay home. Get tested. Book your vaccination.”

It has been criticised for not only showing a woman who looks to be under 40 — so she would likely be ineligible for a vaccine unless she went to her doctor just last week, signed an indemnity form and got the AstraZeneca shot (even though the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation recommends Pfizer for people under 60) — but medical professionals say she would have medical assistance by her side.

Jaleema Truman who is a trauma clinical nurse specialist at Prince Alfred Hospital says the patient would not be left alone in such distress, “ever, regardless of COVID.”

“Even if it’s one-to-one nursing in ICU with a private patient, they would be in full PPE with airborne precautions. So seeing her like that in respiratory distress, never in my career would I leave a patient sitting like that. And I’ve never known a nurse that would. So that’s very inaccurate.”

Turman, who works in the emergency department and assists in ICU with trauma patients says she personally found the ad triggering.

“As a clinician, I thought it was distasteful and awful and inconsiderate of people’s feelings.”

 

While the ad encourages people to get vaccinated, the issue of getting vaccinated has, for many young people, been access. Pfizer vaccinations still haven’t been opened up to people under 40 who are not in the priority groups.

Bill Bowtell, who was involved in the controversial 1987 Grim Reaper ad, and is the Adjunct Professor of UNSW Strategic Health Policy Consultant, said on ABC News Breakfast this morning, “The point about health messaging is that it has to be honest and truthful and authentic. That is an ad with an actor pretending to have COVID.”

“It’s not honest or truthful or authentic and my clinical colleagues tell me that in fact the symptoms she is displaying are not those of a person who would have COVID.”

Truman concludes, “Positivity and kindness is the way to go … But to put more fear into us, I think you’re going to find people in the other direction.”