May 13, 2025 • 16 mins
New Zealand’s on high alert – after an Auckland ferry worker tested positive for measles.
They were infectious while on board a number of Fullers360 sailings on May 5, at a Kelston supermarket, and Downtown car park.
Two days later, they were at Unichem New Lynn and Pak 'n Save Mt Albert.
The marine crew member had recently travelled to Asia, but they weren’t infectious on their flight home.
So, how concerning is this latest outbreak? And have we not learned anything from our days of Covid?
Today on The Front Page, University of Auckland senior lecturer and research virologist Natalie Netzler joins us to take us through the do’s and don’ts when it comes to measles.
After the interview was recorded, Health Minister Simeon Brown released updated Health New Zealand vaccination data.
Just over 80% of all kids are now fully immunised by the age of 2 – the highest rate since 2022.
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You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network.
Host: Chelsea Daniels
Sound Engineer/Producer: Richard Martin
Producer: Ethan Sills
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
Hilda.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
I'm Chelsea Daniels and this is the Front Page, a
daily podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Presented by the New Zealand Herald.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
New Zealand is on high alert after an Auckland ferry
worker tested positive for measles. They were infectious while on
board a number of Buller's three sixty sailings on May fifth,
at a Kelston supermarket.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
And downtown car park.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Two days later they were at Unicem New Lynn and
Packensave Mount Albert. The marine crew member had recently traveled
to Asia, but they weren't infectious on their flight home.
So how concerning is this latest outbreak? And have we
not learned anything from our days of COVID? Today on
the front Page, University of Auckland Senior lecturer and research
(00:52):
virologist Natalie Netzler joins us to take us through the
does and don'ts when it comes to measles. And just
a quick note after we recorded this interview, Health Minister
Simeon Brown released updated Health New Zealand vaccination data. Just
over eighty percent of all kids are now fully immunized
by the age of two, the highest rate since twenty
(01:13):
twenty two.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
So this may seem like a silly question.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
But for those of us who don't know or just
don't think about measles because we're I don't know vaccinated,
what exactly is measles and why is it such a concern.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
Yeah, measles is a really dangerous virus, and I think
it's really underestimated. It's highly contagious, and it's spread through
the air through coughs and sneezes and droplets. I think
what's most concerning is that if you're unvaccinated, nine out
of ten people can catch this. If they're exposed, you
get symptoms like cough, red eyes, running nose, spots in
(01:52):
the mouth, and sometimes a fever and a rash. But
what's more concerning is that over one in ten of
those who are infected will need hospital care. The complications
that range from something simple like an air infection, but
right through to things like permanent hearing loss, brain inflammation,
and even death. And we see that one in a
thousand people in New Zealand that are infected will end
(02:13):
up dying, and that's usually from pneumonia. I think what's
even more concerning and people don't really know about, is
that measles can also make our immune system forget. So
if we are unvaccinated and we get infected, then the
measles actually turns off our immune system, so it forgets
some of the things that we're previously been trained to
be protected against, so we actually get more sick in
(02:36):
the period after we have measles from other things that
shouldn't normally make us sex. So it's a really dangerous virus.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Looking at what we know about the current outbreak, how
concerning is it having these locations of interest.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
It feels like we're back in twenty twenty.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
Absolutely. I think for all of those that are vaccinated,
we're really well protected by the measles vaccine MMR gives
ninety nine percent protection after two doses, so we are
all safe. But what's more concerning is that we have
quite low vaccination rates over all for measles at the moment,
and with this one imported case, because it's so contagious,
(03:10):
everybody that's unvaccinated and has been close to this person
or in these areas of interest, they can be exposed
and catch the virus. We've seen lots of cases overseas
and here where we know measles can stay in the
air for a couple of hours after a cough or
a sneeze, so you might walk into a room and
not even know that someone with measles was there before you, right.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
And a fairy into supermarket. Those feel like quite concerning
areas of contact.
Speaker 3 (03:35):
Particularly. I think fairies are quite small, closed spaces, and
things like the bathroom, really you're sort of trapped and
they're breathing that same air. So those are certain areas
that would be high risk for exposure.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
So how good or bad are our vaccination rates at
the moment.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I think what we're seeing at the moment is they're
really just too low. So currently the rates that are
reported that we're between seventy six and seventy seven percent
of our two year olds are vaccinated overall for our immunizations.
But what's really concerning is that this is much lower
in some of our communities due to our really lack
(04:12):
of access and chronic systemic barriers. So what we're seeing
for some of our Mighty communities is around thirty five
percent our immunization coverage and forty four percent for some
of our Pacific communities. This is really concerning because after
the twenty nineteen outbreak of measles and some more, we
saw over eighty people died, but even more tragically, they
(04:33):
were mostly children under the age of four. So we
really need to get our IMS rates up to protect
our children.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
So you mentioned there are some barriers. Why are those
vaccination rates so low?
Speaker 3 (04:44):
I think, really it is very complex. So one of
the real battles we have is misinformation and disinformation all
about vaccines, but particularly about MMR. I think what's really
important is that we get more funding from the government
to make sure that we can have community led in
initiatives to make sure that we deliver vaccines in a
way that is appropriate and is easy. So we see
(05:06):
a lot of access barriers in are harder to reach communities,
but we also see some real champions. We see cases
like the moukor van into Taytikuo, which is taking the
vaccine out to people that can't necessarily get to a clinic,
which is really encouraging. So I think if we could
put more funding into these areas where we can overcome
some of these barriers, then that will make a big difference.
(05:26):
But things like access to clinics, lack of trust using
a communication model that's one size fits all, these are
the barriers we really need to overcome measles.
Speaker 4 (05:39):
Vaccines limit the spread.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Well, you said, you said it was the most effective
way to limit this limit the spread.
Speaker 4 (05:46):
Yeah, you know with the present trum's possession of my
possession is there is people who do not want to
get vaccine and that's their choice, right, and we are
to be able to treat them, and we know how
to treat them and die there. It's wry to have
the betest information al treat Thumb understood that, and we're
focusing on that. But better to get to I get
(06:09):
the vaccine right because it doeses it limits.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Well and it prevents it. Right, It's it's preventing the illness.
You know, two doses per effective and you said that,
you said that is this a vaccine that requires a booster.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
So this vaccine needs two doses to give you lifelong protection.
One dose is better than none. You get ninety five
percent coverage, but it's best to get two doses and
that gives you ninety nine percent coverage against affection for
the rest of your life. Right.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
And the only way like is there any way to
kind of because you usually get it when you're young, right,
So you just have to ask your parents if you
got it, or is there a record or somewhere.
Speaker 3 (06:47):
Yeah, that's a really good question, and I think you know,
normally we would hope that would be part of your
normal immunization schedule, so you get one at twelve and
fifteen months. But what's really important is that people like
me and my vintage you didn't necessarily have good records
of whether or not you'd been vaccinated against measles because
it was introduced and taken back and then introduced again
in the seventies as they got better vaccines, and so
(07:08):
I had no record of my own measles vaccine. So
it's perfectly safe to go back as an adult and
get your catch up doses, which I did and you don't.
It doesn't matter if you had it previously and you're
not sure you can actually safely get those two doses
again to make sure you're fully covered. So I would
strongly suggest that you go along. It is free if
you were born after the first of January nineteen sixty nine,
(07:29):
and that's exactly what I did.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Yeah, I remember in twenty nineteen that summer in outbreak,
I had to frantically call my dad and he had
to rifle through boxes of old paperwork to try and
get my vaccination records. It felt like for a while
there that measles was pretty close to being eradicated at
one point, Right, So what's led to this kind of turn?
Speaker 3 (07:48):
Yeah, I think that's what's so tragic is that it's
vaccine preventable and we could eradicated if we had sort
of the right approach. But I think a lot of
there are a lot of complex reasons why vaccination rates
have driven I think all of us are a little
bit overhearing about COVID, and I think the COVID vaccine
being mandated has made a lot of people have some
sort of fatigue around vaccines. I think again that misinformation
(08:10):
and disinformation really does a road trust, and that's something
that we have to work really hard to communicate the
right information to people so that they can make them
formed decisions. I also think one thing that I rarely
discovered working with our communities around the COVID time to
answer questions, is that a lot of the population, a
lot of us are not actually anti vax We just
(08:32):
want answers to our own specific questions about the vaccine
safety and effectiveness. So what I found is a lot
of mums and dads just wanted to know, my child
has this, you know, this heart condition or they have
this illness, is the vaccine still safe for them? And
I found that if we could answer those questions, which
a GP or a health provider can help answer, then
(08:54):
people were much more likely to go and get the vaccine.
So it really is just making sure that people have
all the right information from good sources so that they
can go and make informed decisions about getting up to
date on their immunizations, because that really is the single
best way to protect ourselves against measles.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Yeah, and I know a lot of people want to
move on from COVID, But do you think we've moved
on a bit too much and have forgotten some of
those key lessons, Like you basically never see anyone wearing
masks out in public anymore when they're clearly sick. My
producer was at the supermarket the other day, for example,
and saw a man coughing all of the food without
making any attempt to.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Cover his mouth.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
There's just some basic things we're probably taught at school,
and it doesn't seem that hyperbolic to say we've forgotten
about them.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Yeah, look, I think again a lot of people are
a bit overhearing about COVID, but that doesn't stop the
fact that infectious diseases are still out there and we're
still getting exposed and falling sick. As I mentioned, there
are very few solutions to measles other than immunization, and
it's the same for a lot of viruses. We don't
have specific treatments for a lot of viral diseases. Munization
(10:00):
is the single best thing you can do, but there
are other things you can do to boost your immune
system as well, for example, getting enough sleep, getting some sun,
eating while reducing stress. These things really keep your immune
system strong. But as you mentioned, it's really important to
stay home if you're sick to stop the spread of
infectious diseases. And if you absolutely must go out, if
you live alone and you need food and you can't
(10:21):
get it delivered, then it is really important to keep
your distance and wear a mask. It's just these basic
rules so that we can try and stop the spread
of these infectious diseases, including measles.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
But we are approaching winter, a lot of people I
know are starting to get sick. It's going around the office,
so probably everywhere, every other office as well. What do
we need to keep in mind as those winter bugs
start to spread about.
Speaker 3 (10:51):
Yeah, I think it's just those basics. Back to basics,
keeping your immune system strong, getting immunized where you can,
Keeping in mind that there's lots of infectious diseases out
there that we don't have specific treatments or vaccines too,
so keeping yourself safe again. Those the best ways to
keep your immune system as strong as possible is to
get enough sleep and reduce your stress, keep moving, a
(11:12):
little bit of vitamin D sunlight, particular in these winter months. Actually,
vitamin D deficiency is a big issue for our immune system,
So getting out into some of that little winter sun,
going for a bit of a walk, getting our bodies moving,
eating well. All these simple basic rules are the best
ways to keep our immune system strong. But again, immunization
is the single best way to protect ourselves against measles.
Speaker 5 (11:36):
Most at risk of those who have not been vaccinated,
so for us that is under twelve months babies and
then anybody who hasn't had two measles containing vaccination. So
in New Zealand we use MMR the measles month through
BELLA vaccination. You need to have two of those to
be completely protected. So those born between nineteen sixty nine
(12:00):
in two thousand and four may have only received one vaccination,
So we're especially asking those people to check your vaccination records.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
With winter approaching and hospitals already filling up, the last
thing our health system needs is an outbreak. There's a
high trust model to the public health response, now, isn't there.
I mean, people are being asked to get in touch
if they believe they aren't considered immune. But if you've
chosen not to be vaccinated, are you really going to
(12:29):
engage with the health authorities? Or am iybe just being
a bit too pessimistic?
Speaker 3 (12:33):
Care Again, I sort of come back to the work
that we did with communities in COVID when we were
answering questions about the virus. So I think one thing
that really comes across here is that these communities, often,
these communities that have low vaccination rates, it's not because
they necessarily just don't want the vaccine. What we hear
from them is that there is certainly a lack of trust,
(12:55):
But often actually what we hear is that it's a
lack of access to the right information. I think if
we have this one size fits all approach for communications
about our medicines and our vaccines that just isn't going
to work. And again I come back to the fact
that the work we did during COVID showed me that
a lot of people are not anti vacs. They just
really want their specific questions answered, and it's about knowing
(13:19):
who to go to for those that information. And I
think one thing that we could really do better as
a nation is having government funding that really backs community
leaders that are trusted within that community, that can help
share the right information and the right way for these
communities so that we get trusts in uplift. And we
saw this actually during COVID. The more work we did
(13:40):
in this, the more investment we made, the higher those
immunization rates got. And we actually saw for a while
they're pecific communities were leading the rates in terms of
New Zealand vaccinations against COVID. So it really is about
getting that communication out and getting it right and making
sure that people really do have the right information in
the right format to make informed decisions.
Speaker 2 (14:02):
It's interesting you bring that up, actually, because I remember
that and it really points to the fact that targeted
messaging for different communities really works. Hey, so if you
had a magic wand ruguess of magic checkbook, would that
be the first thing you do?
Speaker 3 (14:15):
Yeah? Look, if I if I was a billionaire and
I could self fund these things, I think, really it
is about protecting children, and it really is about making
sure that parents understand that the vaccines we have in
New Zealand, they've gone through so many hoops and so
many tests to make sure that they are absolutely safe
for use. But it's also about knowing what, where and
(14:38):
where they can't be used. And so I think what
I would do is fund community leaders in every single
community that are already trusted, that have people's ear, and
make sure that they have the right information and then
make sure that they can pass that on and share
that with communities and maybe have this two way dialogue
where that person is sort of a champion in both directions,
can get the latest sort of information from from health
(15:00):
providers and then pass that into communities, and then they
can pass back the questions and really have that dialogue
so that it's not just one message going out saying
you should do this. Trust us when we've done terrible
things in the past, and you know you should just
sort of forget all that and take this medicine to
stop you from getting sick. It would be more of
a dialogue in terms of making sure that people understand
(15:20):
exactly what is in the vaccine, that it's been tested
rigorously to make sure it's very safe, that it is
the best way to keep our tomadiki out of hospital.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Thanks for joining us, Natalie, Thank you very much for
having me.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
That's it for this episode of the Front Page. You
can read more about today's stories and extensive news coverage
at enzadherld dot co dot nz. The Front Page is
produced by Ethan Seals and Richard Martin, who is also
our sound engineer.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
I'm Chelsea Daniels. Subscribe to the.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Front Page on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts,
and tune in tomorrow for another look behind the headlines.
Hilda.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
I'm Chelsea Daniels and this is the Front Page, a
daily podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Presented by the New Zealand Herald.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
New Zealand is on high alert after an Auckland ferry
worker tested positive for measles. They were infectious while on
board a number of Buller's three sixty sailings on May fifth,
at a Kelston supermarket.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
And downtown car park.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Two days later they were at Unicem New Lynn and
Packensave Mount Albert. The marine crew member had recently traveled
to Asia, but they weren't infectious on their flight home.
So how concerning is this latest outbreak? And have we
not learned anything from our days of COVID? Today on
the front Page, University of Auckland Senior lecturer and research
(00:52):
virologist Natalie Netzler joins us to take us through the
does and don'ts when it comes to measles. And just
a quick note after we recorded this interview, Health Minister
Simeon Brown released updated Health New Zealand vaccination data. Just
over eighty percent of all kids are now fully immunized
by the age of two, the highest rate since twenty
(01:13):
twenty two.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
So this may seem like a silly question.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
But for those of us who don't know or just
don't think about measles because we're I don't know vaccinated,
what exactly is measles and why is it such a concern.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
Yeah, measles is a really dangerous virus, and I think
it's really underestimated. It's highly contagious, and it's spread through
the air through coughs and sneezes and droplets. I think
what's most concerning is that if you're unvaccinated, nine out
of ten people can catch this. If they're exposed, you
get symptoms like cough, red eyes, running nose, spots in
(01:52):
the mouth, and sometimes a fever and a rash. But
what's more concerning is that over one in ten of
those who are infected will need hospital care. The complications
that range from something simple like an air infection, but
right through to things like permanent hearing loss, brain inflammation,
and even death. And we see that one in a
thousand people in New Zealand that are infected will end
(02:13):
up dying, and that's usually from pneumonia. I think what's
even more concerning and people don't really know about, is
that measles can also make our immune system forget. So
if we are unvaccinated and we get infected, then the
measles actually turns off our immune system, so it forgets
some of the things that we're previously been trained to
be protected against, so we actually get more sick in
(02:36):
the period after we have measles from other things that
shouldn't normally make us sex. So it's a really dangerous virus.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Looking at what we know about the current outbreak, how
concerning is it having these locations of interest.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
It feels like we're back in twenty twenty.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
Absolutely. I think for all of those that are vaccinated,
we're really well protected by the measles vaccine MMR gives
ninety nine percent protection after two doses, so we are
all safe. But what's more concerning is that we have
quite low vaccination rates over all for measles at the moment,
and with this one imported case, because it's so contagious,
(03:10):
everybody that's unvaccinated and has been close to this person
or in these areas of interest, they can be exposed
and catch the virus. We've seen lots of cases overseas
and here where we know measles can stay in the
air for a couple of hours after a cough or
a sneeze, so you might walk into a room and
not even know that someone with measles was there before you, right.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
And a fairy into supermarket. Those feel like quite concerning
areas of contact.
Speaker 3 (03:35):
Particularly. I think fairies are quite small, closed spaces, and
things like the bathroom, really you're sort of trapped and
they're breathing that same air. So those are certain areas
that would be high risk for exposure.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
So how good or bad are our vaccination rates at
the moment.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I think what we're seeing at the moment is they're
really just too low. So currently the rates that are
reported that we're between seventy six and seventy seven percent
of our two year olds are vaccinated overall for our immunizations.
But what's really concerning is that this is much lower
in some of our communities due to our really lack
(04:12):
of access and chronic systemic barriers. So what we're seeing
for some of our Mighty communities is around thirty five
percent our immunization coverage and forty four percent for some
of our Pacific communities. This is really concerning because after
the twenty nineteen outbreak of measles and some more, we
saw over eighty people died, but even more tragically, they
(04:33):
were mostly children under the age of four. So we
really need to get our IMS rates up to protect
our children.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
So you mentioned there are some barriers. Why are those
vaccination rates so low?
Speaker 3 (04:44):
I think, really it is very complex. So one of
the real battles we have is misinformation and disinformation all
about vaccines, but particularly about MMR. I think what's really
important is that we get more funding from the government
to make sure that we can have community led in
initiatives to make sure that we deliver vaccines in a
way that is appropriate and is easy. So we see
(05:06):
a lot of access barriers in are harder to reach communities,
but we also see some real champions. We see cases
like the moukor van into Taytikuo, which is taking the
vaccine out to people that can't necessarily get to a clinic,
which is really encouraging. So I think if we could
put more funding into these areas where we can overcome
some of these barriers, then that will make a big difference.
(05:26):
But things like access to clinics, lack of trust using
a communication model that's one size fits all, these are
the barriers we really need to overcome measles.
Speaker 4 (05:39):
Vaccines limit the spread.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Well, you said, you said it was the most effective
way to limit this limit the spread.
Speaker 4 (05:46):
Yeah, you know with the present trum's possession of my
possession is there is people who do not want to
get vaccine and that's their choice, right, and we are
to be able to treat them, and we know how
to treat them and die there. It's wry to have
the betest information al treat Thumb understood that, and we're
focusing on that. But better to get to I get
(06:09):
the vaccine right because it doeses it limits.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Well and it prevents it. Right, It's it's preventing the illness.
You know, two doses per effective and you said that,
you said that is this a vaccine that requires a booster.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
So this vaccine needs two doses to give you lifelong protection.
One dose is better than none. You get ninety five
percent coverage, but it's best to get two doses and
that gives you ninety nine percent coverage against affection for
the rest of your life. Right.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
And the only way like is there any way to
kind of because you usually get it when you're young, right,
So you just have to ask your parents if you
got it, or is there a record or somewhere.
Speaker 3 (06:47):
Yeah, that's a really good question, and I think you know,
normally we would hope that would be part of your
normal immunization schedule, so you get one at twelve and
fifteen months. But what's really important is that people like
me and my vintage you didn't necessarily have good records
of whether or not you'd been vaccinated against measles because
it was introduced and taken back and then introduced again
in the seventies as they got better vaccines, and so
(07:08):
I had no record of my own measles vaccine. So
it's perfectly safe to go back as an adult and
get your catch up doses, which I did and you don't.
It doesn't matter if you had it previously and you're
not sure you can actually safely get those two doses
again to make sure you're fully covered. So I would
strongly suggest that you go along. It is free if
you were born after the first of January nineteen sixty nine,
(07:29):
and that's exactly what I did.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Yeah, I remember in twenty nineteen that summer in outbreak,
I had to frantically call my dad and he had
to rifle through boxes of old paperwork to try and
get my vaccination records. It felt like for a while
there that measles was pretty close to being eradicated at
one point, Right, So what's led to this kind of turn?
Speaker 3 (07:48):
Yeah, I think that's what's so tragic is that it's
vaccine preventable and we could eradicated if we had sort
of the right approach. But I think a lot of
there are a lot of complex reasons why vaccination rates
have driven I think all of us are a little
bit overhearing about COVID, and I think the COVID vaccine
being mandated has made a lot of people have some
sort of fatigue around vaccines. I think again that misinformation
(08:10):
and disinformation really does a road trust, and that's something
that we have to work really hard to communicate the
right information to people so that they can make them
formed decisions. I also think one thing that I rarely
discovered working with our communities around the COVID time to
answer questions, is that a lot of the population, a
lot of us are not actually anti vax We just
(08:32):
want answers to our own specific questions about the vaccine
safety and effectiveness. So what I found is a lot
of mums and dads just wanted to know, my child
has this, you know, this heart condition or they have
this illness, is the vaccine still safe for them? And
I found that if we could answer those questions, which
a GP or a health provider can help answer, then
(08:54):
people were much more likely to go and get the vaccine.
So it really is just making sure that people have
all the right information from good sources so that they
can go and make informed decisions about getting up to
date on their immunizations, because that really is the single
best way to protect ourselves against measles.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Yeah, and I know a lot of people want to
move on from COVID, But do you think we've moved
on a bit too much and have forgotten some of
those key lessons, Like you basically never see anyone wearing
masks out in public anymore when they're clearly sick. My
producer was at the supermarket the other day, for example,
and saw a man coughing all of the food without
making any attempt to.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Cover his mouth.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
There's just some basic things we're probably taught at school,
and it doesn't seem that hyperbolic to say we've forgotten
about them.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Yeah, look, I think again a lot of people are
a bit overhearing about COVID, but that doesn't stop the
fact that infectious diseases are still out there and we're
still getting exposed and falling sick. As I mentioned, there
are very few solutions to measles other than immunization, and
it's the same for a lot of viruses. We don't
have specific treatments for a lot of viral diseases. Munization
(10:00):
is the single best thing you can do, but there
are other things you can do to boost your immune
system as well, for example, getting enough sleep, getting some sun,
eating while reducing stress. These things really keep your immune
system strong. But as you mentioned, it's really important to
stay home if you're sick to stop the spread of
infectious diseases. And if you absolutely must go out, if
you live alone and you need food and you can't
(10:21):
get it delivered, then it is really important to keep
your distance and wear a mask. It's just these basic
rules so that we can try and stop the spread
of these infectious diseases, including measles.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
But we are approaching winter, a lot of people I
know are starting to get sick. It's going around the office,
so probably everywhere, every other office as well. What do
we need to keep in mind as those winter bugs
start to spread about.
Speaker 3 (10:51):
Yeah, I think it's just those basics. Back to basics,
keeping your immune system strong, getting immunized where you can,
Keeping in mind that there's lots of infectious diseases out
there that we don't have specific treatments or vaccines too,
so keeping yourself safe again. Those the best ways to
keep your immune system as strong as possible is to
get enough sleep and reduce your stress, keep moving, a
(11:12):
little bit of vitamin D sunlight, particular in these winter months. Actually,
vitamin D deficiency is a big issue for our immune system,
So getting out into some of that little winter sun,
going for a bit of a walk, getting our bodies moving,
eating well. All these simple basic rules are the best
ways to keep our immune system strong. But again, immunization
is the single best way to protect ourselves against measles.
Speaker 5 (11:36):
Most at risk of those who have not been vaccinated,
so for us that is under twelve months babies and
then anybody who hasn't had two measles containing vaccination. So
in New Zealand we use MMR the measles month through
BELLA vaccination. You need to have two of those to
be completely protected. So those born between nineteen sixty nine
(12:00):
in two thousand and four may have only received one vaccination,
So we're especially asking those people to check your vaccination records.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
With winter approaching and hospitals already filling up, the last
thing our health system needs is an outbreak. There's a
high trust model to the public health response, now, isn't there.
I mean, people are being asked to get in touch
if they believe they aren't considered immune. But if you've
chosen not to be vaccinated, are you really going to
(12:29):
engage with the health authorities? Or am iybe just being
a bit too pessimistic?
Speaker 3 (12:33):
Care Again, I sort of come back to the work
that we did with communities in COVID when we were
answering questions about the virus. So I think one thing
that really comes across here is that these communities, often,
these communities that have low vaccination rates, it's not because
they necessarily just don't want the vaccine. What we hear
from them is that there is certainly a lack of trust,
(12:55):
But often actually what we hear is that it's a
lack of access to the right information. I think if
we have this one size fits all approach for communications
about our medicines and our vaccines that just isn't going
to work. And again I come back to the fact
that the work we did during COVID showed me that
a lot of people are not anti vacs. They just
really want their specific questions answered, and it's about knowing
(13:19):
who to go to for those that information. And I
think one thing that we could really do better as
a nation is having government funding that really backs community
leaders that are trusted within that community, that can help
share the right information and the right way for these
communities so that we get trusts in uplift. And we
saw this actually during COVID. The more work we did
(13:40):
in this, the more investment we made, the higher those
immunization rates got. And we actually saw for a while
they're pecific communities were leading the rates in terms of
New Zealand vaccinations against COVID. So it really is about
getting that communication out and getting it right and making
sure that people really do have the right information in
the right format to make informed decisions.
Speaker 2 (14:02):
It's interesting you bring that up, actually, because I remember
that and it really points to the fact that targeted
messaging for different communities really works. Hey, so if you
had a magic wand ruguess of magic checkbook, would that
be the first thing you do?
Speaker 3 (14:15):
Yeah? Look, if I if I was a billionaire and
I could self fund these things, I think, really it
is about protecting children, and it really is about making
sure that parents understand that the vaccines we have in
New Zealand, they've gone through so many hoops and so
many tests to make sure that they are absolutely safe
for use. But it's also about knowing what, where and
(14:38):
where they can't be used. And so I think what
I would do is fund community leaders in every single
community that are already trusted, that have people's ear, and
make sure that they have the right information and then
make sure that they can pass that on and share
that with communities and maybe have this two way dialogue
where that person is sort of a champion in both directions,
can get the latest sort of information from from health
(15:00):
providers and then pass that into communities, and then they
can pass back the questions and really have that dialogue
so that it's not just one message going out saying
you should do this. Trust us when we've done terrible
things in the past, and you know you should just
sort of forget all that and take this medicine to
stop you from getting sick. It would be more of
a dialogue in terms of making sure that people understand
(15:20):
exactly what is in the vaccine, that it's been tested
rigorously to make sure it's very safe, that it is
the best way to keep our tomadiki out of hospital.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Thanks for joining us, Natalie, Thank you very much for
having me.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
That's it for this episode of the Front Page. You
can read more about today's stories and extensive news coverage
at enzadherld dot co dot nz. The Front Page is
produced by Ethan Seals and Richard Martin, who is also
our sound engineer.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
I'm Chelsea Daniels. Subscribe to the.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Front Page on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts,
and tune in tomorrow for another look behind the headlines.
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