Businesses, health authorities have contingency plans for 3rd wave
epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker urged people to be cautious over summer and called on the Government to communicate better about Covid-19, especially when it came to the tools for people to protect themselves from becoming infected.
“Right now the [Ministry of Health] figures are telling us that we are in the third wave of the pandemic, there is no question about it. It’s just that this wave is not as steep or as abrupt as the two previous Omicron ones.”
Baker said there was also an increasing number of people being reinfected, not all positive cases were reported and not everybody was having their third and fourth doses of the vaccine.
“It’s really important people keep up-to-date with their vaccinations, and self-report their positive Covid tests so we have a clearer picture of our infection rates.”
Baker urged people to vigilant about wearing masks when visiting poorly ventilated places, as well as around aged care facilities and other vulnerable people, and said he would like to see the return of the mask-wearing mandate on public transport.
“I want to see the Government and the health authorities make a very clear statement about what is expected in terms of our risk protection instructions.”
Bay Dreams music festival organiser Mitch Lowe said in the event of another significant outbreak over the summer, they have health and safety plans in place.
“We have learned so much about Covid in the past two years and we are ready to press go in the event of any significant outbreak. We feel pretty agile now we have figured out what we need to do to respond to another outbreak to ensure we met our health and safety obligations.”
Lowe said if Covid cases surged and there were changes to social restrictions, they could contact every event attendee within an hour.
Rotorua Chamber head Bryce Heard said he thought residents had done pretty well in terms of doing the right things, including wearing masks and social distancing.
“We all need to take the necessary precautions and get on with our lives, and don’t panic about what might happen.”
Restaurant Association of NZ chief executive Marisa Bidois said the biggest issue was access to skilled labour.
“More Covid cases among our workforce create more staff shortages, which is a concern as we head into our busiest season.
“The summer season is incredibly important time of year for our businesses. With the last two years of subdued trading, it’s more important than ever that hospitality is able to operate at full capacity to recoup some of the losses.”
Gary Lees, emergency response director at Lakes Te Manawa Taki, said Te Whatu Ora was monitoring Covid-19 case numbers in the Lakes District and had reinstated a weekly incident management team meeting to “ensure all parts of our response are co-ordinated”.
“We are prepared to manage a surge in cases and our staff are familiar with the systems that have been in place over the last couple of years.”
These include Covid testing capacity; making changes in the hospitals to manage a raise in Covid-related hospitalisations; making changes to the visitor policy to keep patients, staff and visitors safe; and working regionally to support each other.
“We have good supplies of tests, PPE and vaccines in stock.
“Our community can support these plans and keep people out of hospital by ensuring they are upto-date with all the Covid vaccinations they are eligible for.”
Lees said summer was a time of year when there were more largescale events and family gatherings and potential risks of infection.
“We each need to have a plan.”