Article in Stuff - Meningococcal vaccine too expensive

04 March 2021

Meningococcal vaccine too expensive, principal says after 6-year-old's death

Appears in Stuff

Tamariki close to a “lovely boy” who died from meningococcal disease cannot get the vaccine because of cost, according to the 6-year-old’s principal.

Takarua Ngakuru​, 6, from the rural Northland town of Tautoro​, died on February 13 from what has now been confirmed as meningococcal disease, although the strain is unknown.

After his death, whānau considered vaccinating their children against meningococcal disease, but could not afford the cost of $180 per child, Tautoro School principal Tracey Simeon​ said.

At a cost of $180 per child, many Tautoro whānau cannot afford the meningococcal vaccine.

“The first thing that you want to do is protect your children – that’s your legacy that you’re looking after – but in our area it’s hard to protect your legacy if you’re dealing with dollars and cents,” she said.

“Have we got child poverty in New Zealand? Yes we do. Only the whānau that could afford [vaccines] get it.”

Tautoro is a decile 1a school – the lowest income in the country – and children receive free breakfasts and lunches, principal Tracey Simeon says.

Poverty in Tautoro also means families live in overcrowded and substandard housing, including sheds and caravans, another factor in poor health, Simeon said.

After Takarua’s death, the school was given a deep clean and information about meningococcal disease was shared with parents.

The school’s students are all closely related, and everyone at the school is still grieving for Takarua, whom Simeon described as a polite child who loved school.

“He had no issues. He was just a lovely boy that came in and learnt,” she said.

“We didn’t just lose a student, we lost whanaungatanga [kinship], a cousin, a nephew. Our children, who are the cousins, have felt the loss,” Simeon said.

“It is painful, the kids do cry. But eventually the pain will fade and we will talk about the great things of Takarua without the hurt.”

National health spokesman Dr Shane Reti said the most needy and most vulnerable are still not getting vaccines – red flags for the Covid-19 vaccine roll-out.

He would like meningococcal vaccines to be part of the immunisation schedule freely given to all children, and previously campaigned for Northland's immunisation programme to cover more children.

Takarua would have been eligible for a free vaccine against strains A, C, W and Y after the Northland District Health Board started an age-targeted immunisation programme in 2018 to stop an outbreak of meningococcal W.

It is not known if Takarua had the vaccine, but a review found just 56 per cent of eligible Māori children were vaccinated, and just 64 per cent of all eligible children overall received the free jab.

Challenges to the programme’s success included an initial limit of vaccines, difficulty reaching the rural populations and the timing clashing with school holidays.

Reti, who is also a GP and was Whangārei’s MP, said many lessons can now be applied to a Covid-19 vaccine roll-out, even though the target group will be slightly different.

“The challenge about Northland is the high-risk group; we still struggle to reach them,” he said.

“How can we enable our Māori health providers to do what they’re best at – reaching the hard-to-reach?” he asked.

“They get baseline funding like other providers but this is a one-in-100-year epidemic and they will need more funding.”

Reti said with Takarua’s meningococcal strain being untyped, it is not known if the vaccine would have helped, although it covers the most common strains.

Watch for symptoms of meningococcal disease

This is a timely reminder for families to be aware of the symptoms of meningococcal disease, and to act promptly if they are worried about an unwell child, Northland medical officer of health Dr Catherine Jackson said.

Unfortunately, meningococcal infections can be fatal, despite quick action and appropriate treatment, as sadly occurred for this family, she said.

There was one case in 2020, and this is the first case in 2021 in Northland.

Meningococcal disease is a bacterial infection which can cause meningitis (inflammation of the brain membranes) and septicaemia (blood poisoning).

It can look like the flu in its early stages but quickly gets much worse.

Symptoms can include a fever, headache, vomiting, sleepiness, confusion, unconsciousness, joint pains, aching muscles, stiff neck, dislike of bright lights, or a rash of purple or red spots or bruises.

If you or someone in your family is sick with one or more of these symptoms, the advice is to ring a doctor or Healthline (0800 611 116) at any time, say what the symptoms are and your worries about meningococcal disease and insist on immediate action.