“A tsunami”: Health experts want urgent expansion of free flu shots

As the health system grapples with a surge in winter illnesses, Pharmac has announced that  all children aged six months to five years old will become eligible for the free flu shot programme. The only catch is that they’ll need to wait until April 2027 for this to happen. 

Speaking to Rova, Auckland-based GP Dr Mamaeroa David says it is a good sign, but will come far too late for children currently at risk:

“I really admire my Pharmac colleagues, they worked really hard to get the best vaccines that they can. But that's for next year. I don't think we can just let this current outbreak continue without addressing the fact that we should be vaccinating this age group, and dropping the older age group into the 50s for Māori and Pasifika specifically. We should be doing that right now, within the week. We can't wait till next year.

You don't need to be a mathematician to see how horrific our current flu season is. And if you have a look at the age group that has been particularly affected, it's unvaccinated under-four-year-olds.”

“The only reason those children can get a free flu vaccine is if they have a pre-existing comorbidity, like asthma, or have been to hospital before. And frankly, to have to go to hospital first to get a vaccine makes no sense to me.” 

Dr David says it would help with treating children who present to hospital or clinics, as doctors can start ruling out the ‘flu’.

“There's so many diseases which present with high fevers and miserable children. If they had influenza immunisations, I would know that influenza A is unlikely to be the cause for that kid to be so miserable, and then I can address other possible causes.”

With the outbreak ongoing, she is urging the authorities to roll out the expanded programme now, with the proper staffing levels to administer the shots:

“I'm really, really concerned that we're going to completely miss the boat. We have not seen the peak yet, which is really scary.”

“ We're already at the highest rates of flu that I have seen in my 20 years in medicine, and I still can't say that in the next two weeks that it's going to get better. Somebody at the top needs to make the call, but it needs to happen very, very fast, and we need the funding to be able to do it.”

Dr David’s concerns are echoed by the University of Auckland’s Professor Cass Byrnes, who also works as a respiratory specialist at both Starship and Kidz First Children's Hospital.

“It's almost like a tsunami of children with influenza. We can't do other procedures or other investigations because there's just simply no beds. Children with respiratory problems are prioritised and other children can't get admitted, because there is just nowhere for them to be put. There's no beds available."

Professor Byrnes says they are having to defer cases, which heartbreaking and causing mental stress on health professionals. 

“At Starship, we are obviously trying to help children around the entire motu. I was hoping for a child from Blenheim and a child from Hawke's Bay to come up …, but there is just no way they can because there is just no capacity to be able to have them in Starship overnight."

“It's incredibly disruptive, and they've got their mind set on their kids finally coming to get sorted out, but then they're not, which is really upsetting. Most families understand, but it's still disturbing because they've got their mind set on having something resolved, and suddenly it's going to be deferred for at least weeks.”

Like Dr David, Professor Byrnes wants to see the expanded programme come into force now, in order to protect children from the outbreak and its potential long-term effects:

“Normally by about this time we would stop vaccinating. But we're still doing vaccinations, because this season seems to be late and extended. We would have loved to have had the vaccination funded for this year, and we wouldn't be in this problem."