COVID-19 updates
Always use The Ministry of Health website as the source of correct and up to date information
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The Ministry of Health is releasing further information on deaths associated with COVID-19. COVID-19 deaths includes all cases that died who were classified as an active case of COVID-19 at the time of death. In some of these cases, the underlying cause of death may have been unrelated to COVID-19. The Ministry’s clinical criteria for reporting a COVID-19 death will continue to be guided by the World Health Organization’s definition for deaths due to COVID-19. Click here to read more information Kia ora koutou Testing was at the core of our elimination strategy and was essential for finding and stamping out COVID-19 in our communities. Under an elimination strategy we only used the most sensitive, PCR tests to make sure we found each and every case. With high rates of vaccinations, we can now introduce a wider range of testing options that provide increased accessibility, convenience, and speed. We thank you for your contribution to date and look forward to continuing to work with you as we take the next steps in our ongoing response to COVID-19. continued...
A new way forward The COVID-19 Testing Strategy for Aotearoa New Zealand (the Strategy) provides a new way forward in our testing response to the pandemic. See a copy of the COVID-19 Testing Strategy for Aotearoa New Zealand here. With the move to a minimisation and protection strategy, supported by the COVID-19 Protection Framework (CPF), the Strategy provides a roadmap to help us navigate our way through the presence of COVID-19 in the community to keep our whānau and all New Zealanders safe. In alignment with Te Tiriti o Waitangi, equitable access to, and options for testing are central to the Strategy, ensuring those at greatest risk are prioritised, and results are delivered in a timely manner. Innovations in testing technology will be adopted to use testing modalities in settings to ‘use the right test at the right time for the right group of people.’ The next phase of our response supports management of the virus in the community, in an environment with less widespread restrictions. The Strategy will sit alongside community level management and wrap-around health and welfare services for people isolating at home as part of a toolkit to enable a more rapid and local response. Testing modalities – using the right test Broader use of testing technologies and adoption of innovation is a key part of the new testing strategy and the use of rapid antigen testing will play an important role in our testing approach, particularly for surveillance testing. Nasopharyngeal PCR tests will continue to be used as the primary diagnostic test, but this will be supplemented by saliva-based PCR testing, rapid antigen testing and rapid PCR tests. Targeted testing - testing the right people at the right time The Strategy is centred around three different potential scenarios, where COVID-19 is either contained, spreading or unsustainable, aligned to the three CPF levels. In each of these scenarios a different approach is required, with testing playing a different primary role, such as. · Green, to quickly find new clusters of cases. · Orange, to detect where are cases are spreading, particularly for high-risk groups. · Red, to protect individuals and communities at highest risk as well as essential systems. The Strategy sets out an approach to testing under each of these levels for different groups as follows: · Symptomatic individuals · Asymptomatic surveillance testing for those: - coming into regular contact with people known to have COVID-19 - working with people with a higher chance of having COVID-19. - working with individuals at highest risk of serious illness - who are regularly in contact with large groups of people, including communities at greatest risk of high levels of transmission and/or severe illness · Essential and mandatory testing (contacts of cases, international arrivals, border workers, boundary crossing, education workers) · Patients and hospital visitors He waka eke noa We welcome you all on our journey ahead. Our top priority remains the health and wellbeing of all New Zealanders and to keep our whānau and diverse communities safe. We will work with the health and disability sector and all our diverse communities and stakeholders to build sufficient and sustainable testing capacity within each region of the country. We are committed to ensuring equitable and timely diagnosis of COVID-19, to support the public health response and individual clinical care. We look forward to collaborating with our testing partners, colleagues in the health and disability sector, government agencies, our disabled communities, and Māori and Pacific communities to implement the Strategy. We will adjust and adapt the Strategy as necessary through processes of evaluation and feedback. We are asking you to share the Strategy through your networks and with your communities. We want to hear from you. You can provide feedback on the strategy by 16 December as follows:
Thanks for all that you have done in helping us reach this point in our response. Our job is not done but we are confident that the Strategy provides a clear roadmap for us on the next steps in our journey. Equipped with this toolkit we will reach our destination, a place where all New Zealanders feel safe, are healthy and can have the freedom to do the things we enjoy, with our family, friends and whānau. Ngā mihi maioha Ngā mihi, Booster vaccinations will be available throughout Aotearoa from Monday. While the priority is still getting people fully vaccinated, healthcare, border workers and kaumātua who have been fully vaccinated for six months or more can now get their boosters, Director General Ashley Bloomfield said today. ‘Vaccination is the best protection against COVID-19. Booster doses will be available free for anyone in New Zealand aged 18 or older who has completed their two-dose course more than six months ago,’ Dr Bloomfield said. Click here for the full update Guidance on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in health and disability care settings during the COVID-19 pandemic. Health workers can download the Āwhina app to stay up-to-date on the latest information relevant to COVID-19 and the health and disability sector. The information and documents on this page are updated frequently. If you have any questions, please email ipc@health.govt.nz. Click here for more information There were 21,031 first and second vaccine doses administered yesterday, made up of 6,664 first doses and 14,367 second doses. To date, of New Zealanders aged over 12 years, 91 percent have had their first dose and 82 percent are fully vaccinated. Click here to read the full update What saliva testing isPeople may find providing saliva as a sample for COVID-19 testing to be a more comfortable and convenient way compared to a nasopharyngeal or nasal swab taken by a healthcare worker. Saliva samples can be self-collected and dropped off at a collection point or observed by health care worker. Testing is then undertaken by accredited laboratories and follows almost the same process as the testing of samples from nasopharyngeal swabs – both are Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) tests which identify genetic material in the virus. Saliva can also be used as a sample for some rapid antigen tests, which is processed differently. There is more information on the Rapid antigen testing page. Click here for more information There were 22,178 first and second COVID-19 vaccine doses administered yesterday, made up of 5,103 first doses and 16,089 second doses. To date, 89 percent of New Zealanders aged over 12 years have had their first dose and 79 percent are fully vaccinated. Click here for the full update In some situations, health and disability, education and corrections workers may be able to get an exemption from being vaccinated against COVID-19. However, there are very few situations where a vaccine is contraindicated and, as such, a medical exemption is expected to be rarely required. Exemptions should be limited to situations where a suitable alternative COVID-19 vaccine is not readily available for the individual. Exemptions should be for a specified time, reflecting, for example, recovery from clinical conditions or the availability of alternate vaccines. It is likely that most people who are not medically exempt can be safely vaccinated, with some requiring extra precautions. Click here for more information Waikato will move to Alert Level 3, Step 2 on Tuesday 2 November at 11:59pm, meaning outdoor gatherings can increase to 25 and public facilities, such as libraries and zoos, and retail can open with mask-wearing, contact tracing and physical distancing. High vaccination rates mean we can move forward with confidence, but public health measures remain extremely important as we ease restrictions. Cabinet has agreed in-principle to a shift down for Auckland to these same settings next Tuesday 9 November at 11:59pm. Vaccination rates are climbing steadily, with fewer than 5000 doses to go before 90 percent of people have had their first dose. Click here to read the full update Covid is already in our community and we know that general practice is going to play a huge part in the management of this disease. We realise that there is a lot of anxiety about how we will do this. I can assure you that there is a huge amount of work being done by your PHOs, your DHB and nationally. Please find attached 2 documents that will aid you in your management of Covid. The first is how to risk stratify your patients and then how to manage them. It gives advice on which should be monitored with a pulse oximeter and then further management advice. The second is a document for patients. I would advise handing it out with pulse oximeters, but would be beneficial for all patients to help reassure them that we are here to look after them. We hope this will reassure you that we can do this and thank you all for your ongoing mahi and dedication in the most extraordinary of times. Covid booklet Covid home monitoring in mild to moderate cases |
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