Nearly 9000 people in Wairarapa have received the flu vaccine this year, according to Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora [HNZ] data tracking the rollout of the 2024 flu vaccine campaign across the country. “As we head into the winter season, influenza and other illnesses typically become more prevalent,” a HNZ spokesperson said. “Getting vaccinated is much safer than getting the disease.
” The data comes as Pathology Awareness Australia [PAA] – a not-for-profit representing the pathology industry – issues a warning to Kiwis that “flu season has arrived early this year, and now is the time to get vaccinated and to be aware of symptoms”. The respiratory illness dashboard maintained by ESR Science for Communities, a crown research institute that undertakes disease surveillance, shows that as of May 12, indicators of influenza-like illness [ILI] in the community remain low nationwide. However, the central region [which includes Wairarapa] did register the highest weekly call rates to Healthline reporting ILI out of the four ESR monitoring areas, and the highest rate for the region since January, at 18.
13 calls per 100,000 of the population. The HNZ spokesperson said children are much more likely to get sick from an infectious disease than from a vaccine and acknowledged that “we desperately need to increase our higher rates of immunisation to help stop children and adults from getting really sick and having to go to hospital this winter”. While they share similar .
