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July 24, 2024
Net cast wider for whooping cough vaccinations
Atereano Mateariki
Posted On July 24, 2024
Download AudioA Māori GP says expanding the range of healthcare workers able to do vaccinations will save lives – and take some pressure off general practices.
The Public Health Communications Centre says pertussis or whooping cough is on the rise, but fewer than a third of Māori who gave birth earlier this year were vaccinated.
Dr Mamaeroa David, who work in a Henderson practice as well as a being a Maori advisor to the Immunisation Taskforce, says the best time to get the free vaccines is during pregnancy, because of the high level of immunity it gives to the pēpī.
But she says accessibility is an issue, and the best way to increase immunisation rates could be to have the vaccinations done by midwives, lead maternity carers or community pharmacists.
“The good thing about that is a lot of community-based pharmacists know our communities really well, they do after-hours service, you don’t need to book for an appointment so whanau really thinking about accessing those vaccinations through other community services beyond our GPs is also a thing our whanau could consider,” Dr David says.
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