Covid-19 coronavirus Delta outbreak: AUT requires nursing students to be fully vaccinated to graduate

Nursing students are required to be fully vaccinated before they can graduate. Photo / File

AUT nursing students are being advised they need to be fully vaccinated for at least two weeks in order to continue their placement and be able to graduate.

The university's department head sent out an email, seen by the Herald, to all nursing students last week informing them vaccinations were a requirement to completing the course.

"Even if you are offered a placement, you will still need to wait until you are double vaccinated before you are allowed back into the hospital," the email said.

One student, who did not want to be named, said the lack of warning was frustrating and a major disruption.

"I'm also worried about the knock-on effect. The delay will likely mean a shortage of new nurses available in November," she said.

She said most students were two weeks into their placement when Delta struck and the country was forced into lockdown.

"Although we were told we would be able to continue our placement as essential workers under alert level four, this didn't happen and instead it had been paused," she said.

The student said she had received her first vaccination, but it would be another five weeks, at least, before she could be allowed to start her placement again.

An AUT spokeswoman said, in a statement, the university's clinical partners had recently made the vaccinations a requirement.

"We have shared the information with our students. It is important to note that we have been encouraging students to get vaccinated ever since they were made available and DHBs have been offering the opportunity when students are on placement all year," she said.

The spokeswoman said waiting for two weeks after the second vaccination was in line with the government health advice.

"We are committed to ensuring all students have the chance to complete, so for final year nursing and midwifery students out in placement now, courses are extended until the university closes to ensure students can get their placements completed before the end of year."

She said there had been changes from the 2020 lockdowns, in the context of the Delta variant, in students being seen as essential workers.

"This is a Ministry of Health decision, and they would be best placed to comment."

The Herald was awaiting comment from Covid response minister Chris Hipkins.

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