COVID-19 and perceptions of national scheduled childhood vaccines among Māori and Pacific caregivers and healthcare professionals in Aotearoa New Zealand
In Aotearoa New Zealand, there has been a decrease in the uptake of routine (publicly funded and nationally recommended) childhood vaccinations since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among Māori and Pacific children. Suboptimal and inequitable immunisation coverage poses serious risks to whānau (family) health. We aimed to understand how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced what Māori and Pacific whānau and healthcare professionals thought about routine vaccines and their suggestions to make immunisation services better. This presentation summarises some of the findings from this study.