Bendigo Health is offering the free vaccine to new parents in a bid to reduce the likelihood of new borns contracting the disease.

The vaccine was supplied by the Department of Human Services in response to a sharp increase in whooping cough cases across Victoria in recent years. Whooping cough causes severe coughing spasms and can have potentially fatal complications.

It can be caught through coughs and sneezes from an infected person.

About one in every 200 children under six months of age who catches whooping cough dies.

New parents, or those still in hospital, can get the vaccine from the Bendigo Health maternity unit between 10am and 5pm Monday to Friday, before being discharged. If new parents have already left hospital, they can arrange to receive the free vaccine by visiting their GP.

Family members, relatives and minders are not eligible for the free vaccine but can arrange to get it by visiting their local GP.

Bendigo Health infection prevention and control unit manager Jane Hellsten said it was very important that parents, family members, minders and health-care workers were also vaccinated.