Ready for child vax roll-out
The Court family have earned a spot in the Taranaki Covid-19 vaccination history books.
Rachel Court was the first adult in the region to receive the Pfizer vaccine, and yesterday her 11-year-old son Ethan became the first child aged from 5 to 11 to get the jab.
Ethan, along with about 20 other children, was part of a ‘‘wet run’’ for vaccinators and staff at New Plymouth’s Powderham St clinic.
The event gave staff the chance to make sure their processes ran smoothly ahead of the child vaccination programme going live today.
From today, the 476,000 children in New Zealand aged from 5 to 11 can get their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, which is about one-third of the Pfizer dose given to adults.
Rachel Court, who is also the Taranaki Covid-19 vaccination programme operations planner, said there were about 14,000 eligible children in the region.
Court, who is a mother of six, said Ethan was the last of her children to get the jab, as his age had restricted him until now.
Ethan said he was not fazed by needles. ‘‘I feel good because it protects me from Covid a bit more.’’
Court encouraged people to book their children’s vaccination appointments online to avoid the risk of waiting in queues, but walk-ins were also likely.
She also said families with more than one child in the eligible age bracket could come at the same time.
That’s what happened in the case of New Plymouth sisters Ayla, 9, and Sierra, 6, Clout.
They were brought along to the clinic by mum Jessica Green, who is triple-vaxed after getting her booster shot. The girls chose to sit on her lap when the needle went into their upper arms.
Prior to getting the jab, Ayla said she was feeling ‘‘nervous but happy at the same time’’.
‘‘Because I just want to be safe and be with other people,’’ the Moturoa School student said.
The Powderham St clinic has been made more child-friendly ahead of the roll-out, with posters on the walls along with a television, which played movies to keep youngsters occupied as they waited the necessary 15 minutes after getting jabbed.
Stickers and lollipops were given out afterwards.
How busy vaccinators would be from today was unknown, but staff were prepared, Court said.
While the Ministry of Health recommended eight weeks between jabs for the 5 to 11-yearolds, in some cases the second dose could be given 21 days after the first, she confirmed.
University of Auckland Associate Professor Dr Siouxsie Wiles said ‘‘real world data’’ highlighted how Pfizer’s child vaccine was safe and effective, and she encouraged parents and caregivers to get their offspring vaccinated.
It was a call echoed by Dr Dion O’neale, who is a principal investigator at Te Pūnaha Matatini.
He called the vaccination programme for 5 to 11-year-olds a ‘‘big step forward’’ in helping reduce the transmission of Covid19 and protecting people against the severity of symptoms if there was infection.
‘‘The low case numbers for Covid that we have seen recently have all taken place against a background of children being out of school and many adults being on holiday. As children return to school, it is important that we have the highest rates of protection possible through getting them vaccinated quickly’’
There were no new community cases reported in Taranaki over the weekend. Last Friday, Taranaki District Health Board announced 200,000 vaccine doses had been delivered across the region, which it described as a ‘‘massive milestone’’.