Govt: Children's healthcare needs slipping through the cracks of its system - review under way

A Government review is underway due to children's healthcare needs slipping through the cracks. Photo / 123rf

The Government has acknowledged some Kiwi kids' healthcare needs are slipping through the cracks due to its "outdated" programme.

A Ministry of Health review of the Well Child Tamariki Ora programme - which was meant to screen all babies and children for a number of common health problems - was under way.

The announcement comes after the Herald, earlier this year, reported authorities urgently trying to track down babies missing from the nation's health system with fears about the wellbeing of potentially hundreds of at-risk Kiwi children.

Associate Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verall said while the programme was developed with good intent, it was outdated.

"New Zealand's population has changed significantly, and this programme has not kept pace with the needs of whānau; including the impact of poverty, drug use, mental health challenges, housing and family situations.

"It needs better integration with other health, maternity, social and early learning services."

Access and engagement was inequitable, and the programme needed more flexibility to respond to the needs of individual families, she said.

"The Government recognises we need to do more, and a one-size-fits-all approach does not work. We have to design, deliver and resource this programme differently, to achieve equity."

In May, health officials didn't know the extent to which babies are missing from the health database but an Auckland District Health Board report revealed 102 babies previously lost were found in the three months to December 2020.

There are fears that unaccounted children could be missing vital health appointments and vaccination deadlines, putting them at serious risk.

Health Minister Andrew Little described the situation as "really bad", saying "we've got to stop it and the best way to do it is upgrade our IT systems ... if they are not connected with the health system then they fall through the cracks."

Meanwhile, today's announcement details a number of pilots including one where each whānau has a kaitiaki (key worker), who may be a nurse or kaiāwhina, backed by a multidisciplinary team.

They can help with support for mental health, healthcare, accessing social services or education, or learning about parenting and child development. Two of the pilots were under way in Rotorua and South Auckland.

The Government allocated $10 million as part of Budget 2019 Mental Wellbeing Package for three pilots to provide enhanced support for young parents and their whānau.