Covid-19 Omicron: Whanganui District Health Board begins children's vaccinations

Whanganui's Te Rito is the only vaccination centre administering the child's vaccine for the time being. Photo / Bevan Conley

The Whanganui District Health Board had a "steady and positive" first day of Covid-19 vaccinations for children.

From Monday, children aged 5-11 were eligible for their first vaccine shot.

More than 120,000 doses of the child Pfizer vaccine have been delivered to 500-plus vaccination sites around New Zealand as health providers prepare to start immunising children.

The Covid-19 vaccine used for tamariki has a lower dose and smaller volume than the adult vaccine and is administered using a smaller needle.

The lower dose was chosen based on a trial which showed the lower dose was safe and had few side effects in this age group.

To be fully immunised against Covid-19 a child needs to get two doses of the vaccine, usually given at least eight weeks apart.

At the moment, the only vaccination centre in the Whanganui DHB region with the child's version of the vaccine is Te Rito in Victoria Ave.

The vaccination process is starting there for staff and process orientation, and will be rolled out into other clinics soon.

The Book My Vaccine website shows that children can be vaccinated at Marton's Te Poho and Bulls Community Centre, but that is not the case just yet.

Bookings are recommended to save time, but walk-ins will also be accepted.

A Whanganui DHB spokesperson said there would be more clinics and locations added across the district in the next few weeks.

The uptake for the first day had been steady and positive, the spokesperson said, but they declined to give specifics of the number of vaccinations administered.

Parents and caregivers can book online at BookMyVaccine.co.nz or make a whānau booking by calling the Covid Vaccination Healthline on 0800 28 29 26.

For more information and resources, parent and caregivers can visit:

Karawhiua for whānau, hapū, iwi, and Māori communities (https://karawhiua.nz/)
Ministry for Pacific Peoples (https://www.mpp.govt.nz/)
Ministry of Health (https://www.health.govt.nz/)
Unite Against Covid (https://covid19.govt.nz/tamariki)
Talk to a trained advisor on the Covid Vaccination Healthline 0800 28 29 26 - between 8am–8pm, 7 days a week.

• There are 476,300 tamariki aged between 5-11 years in Aotearoa eligible for the child Pfizer vaccine. 
• The vaccine is free to get. Tamariki need two doses of the vaccine to be fully protected. The two doses are usually given at least 8 weeks apart. 
• A parent, caregiver or legal guardian will need to accompany the child to the vaccination as the responsible adult and to provide consent for the child to be vaccinated. 
• Immunisation helps protect tamariki from many serious diseases and stops disease spreading in your whānau and community. In Aotearoa, children get free vaccinations against 12 diseases, including whooping cough (pertussis), measles and polio.