Covid 19 coronavirus: Plans for vaccine rollout in Whanganui, Rangitīkei, Ruapehu

Ministry of Defence personnel working on the border were among the first priority workers in New Zealand to receive the Pfizer BionTech vaccine. Photo / NZDF

Rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine will begin in the Whanganui, Rangitīkei and south Ruapehu districts in the next week or so.

The Whanganui District Health Board said in a statement that a planning and implementation group representing Whanganui Regional Health Network, Whanganui District Health Board, Hauora ā Iwi (the DHB's iwi partnership body), the National Hauora Coalition and Māori health service providers had been formed and was working on finalising arrangements.

"It will have responsibility for delivering the Pfizer vaccine to almost 55,000 people in the Whanganui district, Rangitikei and south Ruapehu," the DHB said.

"The rollout will start around the end of March when members of the vaccination team will be vaccinated along with family members of border and MIQ/MIF workforce living in our district."

There was currently a recruitment drive for additional staff, with a focus on trained staff who may have left the health system in the past few years.

The rollout would then follow the government's tiered structure, with frontline healthcare workers and critical workforces (such as police, fire and ambulance), aged residential care workers and residents, and at-risk people in the community, those with underlying conditions and those over 65 years first to be eligible to get the vaccine.

The vaccination of the bulk of the population was expected in the second half of 2021.

The Covid-19 vaccine is free and is being made available for everyone in New Zealand aged 16 years and over.

"It is safe and effective and while it is not compulsory for people to be vaccinated, it is strongly encouraged," the DHB said.

"It is acknowledged that rural and remote areas of the region will need a specific focus, and discussions are taking place on how to reach outlying areas.

"The governance group is working to ensure easy access for all, with an emphasis on the most vulnerable in our community, and on Māori and Pacific populations which are most at risk from the virus.

"The Covid-19 vaccination programme is the largest and most intensive vaccination programme undertaken in the Whanganui region, and there will be a strong focus on protecting Māori whānau, with iwi providers playing an important role."