COVID-19 Update #78 - 15 Whiringa-ā -Rangi 2021
Rāhina, 15 Whiringa-ā-.Rangi 2021
COVID-19 Update Pānui no. #78.
If you have symptoms of the coronavirus, call the NZ Covid-19 Healthline on 0800 358 5453
E ngā pā harakeke o ngā iwi o hapu o ngā whānau o te ngā Kōhanga Reo, tēnā koutou e ngā pātū o te ora.
We begin the week on the cusp of a new reality, of life with Covid. We can now safely say that elimination for Aotearoa is no longer the way forward. After tomorrow, our whānau and kaimahi will have made a decision and I hope we are able to look at options to ensure that everyone is taken care of or given the time and space to wānanga the options.
Kōrero will soon focus on managing yourself in isolation, what does that look like for your whānau and communities. Those in rural areas will be more affected than others so reaching out to neighbours and whānau whānui is key to making sure we make it through this together.
To our Kōhanga Reo who face the prospect of losing kaimahi or closing, this may now be the reality we are facing and despite our best efforts, it could be a matter of time before we are able to find solutions. This will be a reality for all education institutions.
Many of you have asked for strategies to deal with Kaimahi and Whānau, me pono, the easiest is to be vaccinated although this may not be the answer you’re looking for. We can help look at alternatives, but there may not be any easy solutions.
On a different note, e mihi ki ngā Kōhanga Reo o Kahungunu mō te rangi mokopuna ara te mokotini i whakahaerehia ki te TKKM o Kahungunu ki Heretaunga. Kei runga noa atu koutou. This was also the platform to launch the second part of Te Pae Tuku Korero, known as Te Pae Tuku Aka. Its kaupapa is about ngārara and will be another rauemi for our whānau and our Kaiako in Kōhanga Reo.
Update
Waikato moves to Level 2 tomorrow from November 16 Midnight.
Booster Vaccine
Booster doses of the Pfizer vaccine will start being administered from 29 November.
Medsafe has already approved the use of Pfizer as a booster for people who are 18 years or older.
Following further advice from Cabinet for the vaccine technical advisory group, the vaccination programme will start administering booster doses from 29 November.
Vaccination is the best protection against COVID-19. Booster doses will be available free for anyone in New Zealand aged 18 or older who has completed their two-dose course more than six months ago.
People will be able to access boosters in New Zealand, whether they received their earlier doses here or overseas.
The Pfizer vaccine will be used for boosters, regardless of which vaccine was used for earlier doses. It is the same Pfizer vaccine used for the first 2 doses in the vaccination rollout.
Current Situation
Today, there are 173 new cases in the community:
- 163 in Tāmaki Makaurau
- 7 in Waikato
- 2 in Northland
- 1 in Lakes, Rotorua.
This brings our total community cases in the current outbreak to 5,751.
- 63 of today’s new community cases have been linked
- 110 remain unlinked
- 90 people in hospital
- 7 in ICU/HDU.
The average age of hospitalisations now sits at 50.
The Ministry of Health (MoH) have reported a new community case in the Wairarapa as well as in Taupō. These two case numbers will be added to tomorrow’s tally. The Taupō case is a household contact of a known case and currently isolating at home. Yesterday’s two cases in Rotorua have been included in today’s case numbers.
The MoH has urged anyone with symptoms in these regions to get tested as soon as possible.
We would also like to extend our thoughts and prayers to the whānau of the woman in her 90s who passed away in North Shore Hospital over the weekend.
Vaccination Rates of Eligible People by DHB (with active cases)
- Northland DHB: 82% first doses and 71% second doses
- Tāmaki DHB: 93% first doses and 86% second doses
- Waikato DHB: 89% first doses and 79% second doses
- Canterbury DHB: 93% first doses and 82% second doses
- Taranaki DHB: 87% first doses and 75% second doses
- Rotorua DHB:84% first doses and 73% second doses
- MidCentral DHB: 89% and 79% second doses
Māori Statistics to reach 90%
For the Māori roll-out, 424,366 (77%) of our whānau have received one dose, and 325,390 (61%) are fully vaccinated.
Ministry of Education Updates
Reminder: What to do after 15 November
On 16 November, unvaccinated kaimahi will not be able to work on site and alternative duties should be explored, where possible. If this is not practicable, consider providing leave while you work through any other alternative options that may be available in their circumstances.
As we have previously stated, Kōhanga Reo whānau management should consult with any kaimahi to establish why they are not vaccinated, with no predetermined outcome, and you should consider their response before taking action.
If the kaimahi is willing to be vaccinated, you should tautoko them to do so. This support could include providing immediate time away from their duties to receive a Pfizer vaccine. You could also provide alternative duties or discretionary special leave to them to enable the kaimahi to receive AstraZeneca vaccine when it becomes available from late November. This leave may be unpaid.
If the kaimahi continues to advise they will not be vaccinated, then you should follow the process provided by the MoE.
Travel across regional boundaries
The amendment from Friday 11 Nov 2021 notice for Early Childhood and Kōhanga Reo
On Friday, the Ministry published an item explaining that the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Alert Level Requirements) Order had been amended so
that staff and children could travel across Alert Level 3 boundaries to work in or attend their early learning service.
This is not the case. While travel across boundaries is permitted for working or attending schools, it is not permitted for working in or attending early learning.
Testing requirements will apply to kaimahi travelling back and forth across the Tāmaki Makaurau boundary. For example, you must have evidence of a negative test result from no more than seven days before travelling back and forth across the boundary on a regular basis.
For more information on this crossing of boundaries, please refer to the Unite Against COVID-19 website.
NB: You do not need a test if you are moving between Alert Level 3 and 2 areas within the Waikato region.
Pānui Reminders
All our pānui are uploaded to our Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust website. You can access our past pānui here.
Tikanga Haumaru
Alert Level 3, Step 2, for Tāmaki Makaurau/ Waikato
Kōhanga Reo can open and with bubble sizes of up to 20 mokopuna. Bubbles must be in separate rooms or spaces.
Changes can occur but only in certain circumstances, for example, when a mokopuna leaves to start kura.
They can then be replaced with a new tamaiti. You can also add new tamariki to bubbles that have not yet reached a maximum of 20 tamariki. Providing you can maintain the three square-metres per child indoor measurement and meet other public health measures.
A reminder of the existing layers of protection that remain a priority in Alert Level 3 Kōhanga:
- Staying away if sick and calling Healthline to determine whether you need a test
- Getting vaccinated for those who are eligible
- Good ventilation
- Physical distancing as much as it is practicable
- Good cough and sneeze etiquette, and
- Regular handwashing
Here are some resources for Kōhanga Reo at Alert Level 3, Step 2:
Tikanga Haumaru – Level 2 Basic Guidelines
- A maximum of 100 people for indoor and outdoor gatherings.
- Kōhanga Reo can open
- Face coverings are mandatory inside most public places
- You can travel to other rohe that are at Alert Level 2 or lower
- Travel in to, out of, or through Alert Level 4 rohe (Tāmaki) is restricted
- Maintain good hygiene practices
- Keep 2m distance in public and in retail stores. There must also be 2m distancing in most other places like workplaces, cafes, and restaurants
For any further assistance, ring 0800 KOHANGA or 0800 564 2642
Kia whaioranga kia haumaru.
Nāku noa,
Angus Hartley
Tumu Whakarae | Chief Executive
