HNZ: 8 July 2022 NIP Update: Regular reminders | COVID-19 | Flu | MMR

Kia ora PMAANZ colleagues,

We hope you have had a  wonderful week and looking forward to the weekend. Here is an update on what we have been up to this week. Please share these with your networks as relevant, and as always if you have any questions, please reach out. 

Regular reminders

Weekly vaccination data

Latest Māori and Pacific COVID-19 vaccination data is now available here.

We’re also now publishing weekly flu data. This week’s statistics on the influenza vaccine uptake across the motu is available here.

Collateral on Dropbox

Don’t forget we have a range of collateral you and your providers can use to promote vaccinations. Feel free to share this link and the collateral widely: Dropbox - NIP – Vaccine resources for health professionals - Simplify your life

Please note we have recently added te reo Maori translations for Flu, Covid-19 and MMR consent forms.

COVID-19

Second booster eligibility criteria

We have updated our website with the clinical criteria for priority groups who are eligible for a second booster. You can read the Epidemic Notice here.

Rollout of the new Vaccinating Health Worker role

Recently, we announced the rollout of the new Vaccinating Health Worker (VHW) role. This role builds on the success of the COVID-19 Vaccinator Working Under Supervision (CVWUS) role and allows vaccinators to administer a wider range of vaccines than an authorised CVWUS.

As a result of the new VHW pathway becoming available and very few new registrations to commence CVWUS training, we are ending the learning pathway and training for the CVWUS role, effective from 11 July 2022. We will send out more details on this to the sector on Monday 11 July 2022. 

Novavax web page updated

You’ll recall we announced earlier this week that Novavax is now available as a booster without a prescription. You can find more information about this on this webpage: COVID-19 vaccines: Getting Novavax | Ministry of Health NZ 

Vaccinations Order queries

If you have questions relating to the vaccine mandates for health, aged care and disability workers, please forward them directly to healthorders@health.govt.nz.

The website has now been updated to reflect the current situation: COVID-19: Mandatory vaccinations | Ministry of Health NZ

Flu

Extended flu eligibility

Our new collateral for tamariki flu (3 – 12 year olds) is now available on our Dropbox. Don’t forget we also have new Pacific-focused flu fact sheets and social media tiles. These are available here, and below are a couple of examples of what you will find there. 

Please note, if the child needs two doses (eg: tamariki under nine who have never had a flu vaccination before) both doses are funded.

The end frame of our Acts of Aroha TV commercial has been updated to promote free flu for children aged 3 – 12 years. This will run throughout July.

Encouraging flu vaccination for vulnerable young children

We have noticed very low flu vaccination rates for young children with respiratory illness – approx. 2,000 young children of the 40,000 eligible have been vaccinated this year. In some regions the figures are concerning, with many DHBs recording fewer than 50 doses in total (eg: Lakes and Tairawhiti = 12 each, West Coast = 14, South Canterbury = 22, Wairarapa = 34, Hawke’s Bay = 39). 

2019 ESR data showed children under one were the largest group admitted to ICU and hospital with Influenza. We can avoid hospitalisations this year by increasing vaccination rates. There is ample vaccine stock. Please push this request to your immunisation and primary care teams.  

MMR

MMR promotion update

For this vaccine, our focus through until September 2022 will be lifting vaccination rates for Māori and Pacific under 5s. We’ll refresh existing collateral, but will look to combine vaccine messages to parents of these young children. We will work with the education sector and our Māori and Pacific teams to help distribute key messages. These are included below for your use too - please continue to do local promotion. 

Top line key messages:

• Measles, mumps and rubella can all be very serious illnesses, but measles is particularly dangerous. It can lead to pneumonia, brain infection and sometimes death, and it spreads very quickly. 
• The MMR vaccination helps protect your tamariki and it’s free.
• If your child is under 5 and you are not sure whether they have had both of their free measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccinations, talk to your doctor, nurse practitioner or local health clinic today.
• High vaccination rates have helped to prevent an outbreak here, and every person vaccinated increases our chance of keeping it out, or of quickly stamping out an outbreak if a case gets into Aotearoa.
• Two doses of the measles mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) will protect 99% (99 out of 100) of people from measles and will protect about 88% (88 out of 100) of people from mumps.

Kia pai to mutunga wiki.

Ngā mihi nui,

Sandy

Sandy Thambiah

Senior Adviser, Engagement

National Immunisation Programme

waea pūkoro: +64 21 248 1288| īmēra: sandy.thambiah@health.govt.nz

133 Molesworth Street, Te Whanganui-a-Tara

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