April 08, 2022
Bloomfield praises Māori lead in Covid response
Outgoing Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield has paid tribute to iwi and Māori health providers for their efforts during the pandemic.
Dr Bloomfield is stepping down in July, a year before his contract is set to end.
He says it was an honour to work says working alongside Māori, particularly during Covid.
“The very first communities to mobilise were iwi Māori, to protect their whakapapa, their kaumatua and kuia because they still had a vivid memory of the pandemic 100 years before and they set the scene, they showed us the way and it was after that that other communities mobilised,” he says.
Dr Bloomfield says much of the success of the vaccination programme was due to the hard work done by iwi and Māori providers to get all people vaccinated.