Vaccination supplies ‘problematic’

Access to influenza vaccines has created a riddle in Southland and Otago, a Southern District Health Board executive says.

Executive director of strategy, primary and community Lisa Gestro told the board Tuesday that there had been conflicting information coming from the Ministry of Health and health professionals on the ground.

‘‘It’s been a real riddle in terms of whether there’s a supply issue or not,’’ she said.

The frustration from general practitioners who were waiting three to five days for new stock to arrive was understandable, she said.

Gestro echoed WellSouth chief executive Andrew Swanson-Dobbs’ statement in April that poor weather was to blame for a shortage of vaccines in the board’s catchment area.

She said there were logistical issues within the distribution chain that appeared to become more significant further south.

‘‘The system works, but it’s clunky,’’ Gestro said.

A number of planes carrying vaccinations to the region had been delayed during the past few weeks because of poor weather conditions, she said.

‘‘I don’t think it’s a crisis, but it’s problematic,’’ Gestro said.

Board chairman Chris Fleming said ‘‘unprecedented demand, supply issues related to quality requirements, changes to eligibility criteria, and vaccine brand changes’’ had further disrupted supply.

In many cases, Fleming said, GPs had missed out because pharmacies and private providers were overstocked.

Immunisation co-ordinators were redistributing this stock, he said.

Fleming noted that, on a positive note, the board had seen a 30 per cent increase in the number of patients asking for flu vaccinations this year.

‘‘There’s a significantly higher uptake that will pay dividends in the winter months,’’ he said, referring to the high number of patients emergency departments traditionally treat for flu symptoms in winter.