Minister slams typhoid response

Public health officials have been ‘‘taken to task’’ by the health minister for woeful communication following a fatal typhoid outbreak in Auckland.

Jonathan Coleman did not hold back when asked for his views on how they had handled the situation. ‘‘They could probably do with a bit of media training to be honest,’’ he said yesterday.

The number of cases of typhoid has risen to 16, with 12 people still in hospital and another two probable cases awaiting test results.

Adding to the minster’s anger was the fact that health officials failed to tell him about the outbreak and he found out from watching television V news on Friday, three days after a woman died from the disease.

‘‘I’m very, very unhappy about that aspect of it,’’ he said. ‘‘I’ve had a very direct conversation with officials about that.’’

Coleman said he had since received a number of apologies.

Officials waited for days after the woman died to tell the public and her family about the typhoid outbreak.

Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) clinical director Dr Julia Peters said on Tuesday that the health authority delayed announcing the death at the family’s wishes until after her funeral.

Repeated requests were made to ARPHS yesterday for a response to public criticisms. It finally released a short written statement after 3pm confirming an extra case of typhoid. The lack of communication follows a pattern that has made it difficult for media to establish the extent of the typhoid outbreak, and whether there is any ongoing risk.

The woman, from Auckland’s Mt Roskill, died in Auckland City Hospital last Tuesday and had attended a close-knit Samoan Assemblies of God church in the Mt Albert area.

The group met in the school hall at Wesley Primary School, which moved to reassure parents of students yesterday.

Wesley Primary School Principal Brenda Martin said: ‘‘I must emphasise the advice from ARPHS that there is almost no risk that this has spread any further and school will be open as usual tomorrow.

It took ARPHS three days to publicly announce the outbreak, and a further three days before it confirmed someone had died.

Members of the woman’s church were unaware she had an infectious disease, and hugged and kissed her as she was dying.

More than a dozen others have since been confirmed with typhoid.

A fellow church member said said two of the victim’s children were admitted to hospital around the time their mother died. ‘‘They’ve been treated and now they’ve been released, and they’re on medication,’’ she said.

Typhoid spread through the church as various other members were then infected.