Hawke's Bay set to ramp up Covid-19 vaccine rollout

Nurse Kirsten Strawbridge gives clinical resource nurse Mel Bruce the Covid-19 vaccine at Hawke's Bay Hospital. Photo / Warren Buckland

Walk-in Covid-19 vaccination clinics for healthcare workers are due to begin this week in Hawke's Bay.

The Hawke's Bay District Health Board said vaccinations of long-term aged care residents are also due to begin this week as part of the sequencing of the national vaccine rollout plan.

Following this, the HBDHB will offer walk-in clinics for the healthcare workforce who are yet receive a vaccine.

A total of 3970 people in Hawke's Bay, as of Monday, had received their first dose of the Covid vaccine, with 920 having had the second - 1065 doses ahead of schedule and 131 per cent of the expected target.

A HBDHB spokeswoman said its priority has been to vaccinate priority groups, which it has "nearly completed", as well as to train the workforce required for the wider vaccine rollout.

"Hawke's Bay DHB is currently vaccinating tier two, which is high risk frontline workers and people living in a high risk place," she said.

"By mid-May, HBDHB will begin rolling out to group three, which is people who are at risk of getting sick from Covid-19."

These clinics will be widely promoted and will also have a walk-in component.

At Wednesday's Covid-19 update, Associate Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said there will be enough vaccines for everyone in New Zealand - but Kiwis will need to be patient in some cases.

In total, about 232,000 vaccine doses have been administered nationwide.

There have been 172,564 people who have had first doses, and about 60,024 who have had both doses.

In the past seven days, there were 47,981 vaccine doses administered.