Clinical nurse leader Robyn Taylor (back right) and fellow Tui Ora staff at Urenui. Photo/ Supplied
Clinical nurse leader Robyn Taylor (back right) and fellow Tui Ora staff at Urenui. Photo/ Supplied
Staff at pop-up Covid-19 vaccination clinics in Taranaki have been able to reassure hesitant people to get the jab.
On Tuesday, August 24, Māori health provider Tui Ora vaccinated 170 people in Urenui, 30 kilometres northeast of the city, on top of another 118 the day before at Mōkau another50km north.
Tui Ora's clinical nurse leader Robyn Taylor said five people have this week approached the service with doubts about the vaccine, and all were reassured enough to accept vaccination.
"We've encouraged that: come here and talk to us, we'll talk you through it, we're not going to make you have it but if there's any reluctance or you just have questions then come and see us."
Taylor said there has been excellent uptake by Māori over the past week – partly driven by the arrival of the much more contagious Delta strain of Covid.
"The uptake of vaccine has increased remarkably since Delta came to New Zealand."
Among whānau being vaccinated in Urenui, many teens had heard of vaccine doubts online.
Fourteen-year-old Ariki Hayman had seen concerns about the vaccine on social media.
Tania and Jeff Collingwood hope to travel to Australia when borders reopen. Photo/ Supplied
"I was just a little bit nervous but a lot of people in my family got it and they were saying it was fine, so I thought I'll get it."
His mother Sarah Wano-Hayman said she and her husband were vaccinated and welcomed the extension of age eligibility down to 12, so Ariki could join them.
"We had a discussion around that yesterday … He had some concerns based on things he'd seen particularly on social media – so we just wanted to make sure that he was advised and ultimately that was his decision to make."
Seventeen-year-old Kyson Broughton said he wasn't put off by vaccine misinformation.
"I'd seen it on social media but it didn't really bother me to be honest, I just came here to get it done."
His father Kerry Broughton had originally been reluctant to get the family vaccinated without his 7-year-old daughter, who is too young for the Covid jab.
But he said he'd had it explained that the rest of the family could help guard the young girl.
"I thought if I can protect her by doing this why not? It's about getting the rest of us done to protect her – and just to protect ourselves as well."
Kerry coaches a number of rugby league teams and he and the boys travel a lot for the game, so the protection is welcome.
As a scout for the NRL in Taranaki, he expects prospects travelling to trials in Australia will need to be vaccinated.
