Report of the Department of Health / New Zealand.

  • New Zealand. Department of Health.
Date:
[1963]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Report of the Department of Health / New Zealand. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    6/120 (page 6)
    The second stage took in the adolescents who had left school and all the adults - an estimated total of 1,600,000 persons. Although no restriction was placed on age, vaccination was recom¬ mended with greater emphasis for those up to the age of 40 years. A two-dose programme was carried out during the months of September and November. A highly satisfactory response from the public was again experienced. During the year the populations of our Island Territories were also vaccinated with the oral vaccine. 18,879 out of an estimated total of 25,000 persons received the vaccine. A statistical summary of the vaccination campaign appears in Table 9. The total number of persons who have received the oral vaccine exceeds 2,000,000. The overall percentage of the immunised population is therefore approximately 80 per cent; and in the younger age groups the percentage is much higher - approximately 97 per cent. This is a highly satisfactory state of affairs, and the Department ack¬ nowledges the efforts of all organisations that assisted in carrying out the campaigns. Tetanus There were 28 cases notified during 1962. A striking case was one which occurred following a surgical operation. Investigations did not establish the source of the infection with certainty, but Cl. tetani were found in the cardboard of a box similar to that used as a container for a piece of apparatus used during the operation. No opportunity should be lost of stressing that tetanus is a prevent¬ able disease. Tetanus toxoid, either singly or in combination with diphtheria and whooping cough antigens, is supplied free of charge to doctors. It is open for any person to seek immunisation against tetanus from his own doctor, and the protection is especially recommended for those persons who are working with farm animals or in occupations where there are risks of penetrating injuries. Quarantine Arrangements Shipping With the development of modern sea travel it is now possible to travel over very large distances in less than the incubation period for quaran- tinable diseases. In 1962 the Department found that a significant amount of shipping was arriving in New Zealand from Asiatic and South American ports within the incubation period for smallpox, with outbreaks of the disease periodically being reported in both Asian and South American countries. The Department now requires that all per¬ sons arriving from these areas be in possession of current vaccination certificates. There were no cases of quarantinable diseases reported in New Zealand during 1962, but following further outbreaks in Europe and the United Kingdom procedures at seaports and international airports have been reviewed.