It is critical that the current whooping cough epidemic should not undermine public trust in vaccination programs, write Jodie McVernon and Julie Leask.

Even though we have had a whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine since the 1950s, the disease is proving difficult to control and beat. Dealing with its resurgence requires clear communication about the importance of vaccination as well as research to understand why we can't beat this elusive bug once and for all. Whooping cough has killed seven infants in Australia since 2008 and left many more needing hospital care. But efforts to understand the illness must recognise the myriad reasons for the current outbreak. Vaccine refusal is one part of the cause, but more testing as well as better tests...