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Yearly Archives: 2021

Intensifying Covid-19 Control Measures: 5 Measures for Faster Elimination and 5 Measures to Prevent Future outbreaks

Thursday, September 16th, 2021 | carra86p | 2 Comments

Prof Nick Wilson, Dr Julie Bennett, Dr Leah Grout, Dr Jin Russell, Dr Jennifer Summers, Prof Michael Baker

Despite some good progress, the persisting Covid-19 outbreak in Auckland still poses risks to health, social wellbeing and the economy. There is a need for accelerated efforts to ensure more rapid elimination of community transmission. In this blog we look at five critical measures to implement immediately, along with a range of other Covid-19 control measures that will help Auckland and the whole country sustain elimination in the medium term. 

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Improving ventilation in schools: a key protection against Covid-19 outbreaks and an enduring legacy for healthier learning

Friday, September 10th, 2021 | carra86p | 2 Comments

Dr Amanda Kvalsvig, Dr Julie Bennett, Dr Jin Russell, Dr Jennifer Summers, Dr Leah Grout, Prof Michael Baker, and Prof Nick Wilson*

As much of the country moves down Alert Levels, children are returning to in-person learning with little or no protection against the potential spread of Covid-19 infection in schools. It is therefore critical that ventilation is improved in schools; it is often as easy as opening windows, but ultimately new standards and improved resourcing are required. Ventilation is a valuable protection that works well in combination with other pandemic control measures such as vaccination and mask use, with additional benefits for improving children’s learning and concentration.

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A Smokefree Aotearoa – could taking the nicotine out of smoked tobacco products help us get there?

Monday, September 6th, 2021 | carra86p | 1 Comment

Nick Wilson, Janet Hoek, Nhung Nghiem, Jennifer Summers, Leah Grout, Richard Edwards*

This blog presents key findings from a modelling study where we estimated the impact that denicotinising smoked tobacco products could have on smoking prevalence in Aotearoa New Zealand. A policy requiring that all smoked tobacco products are virtually nicotine free is one of the key proposals included in the Smokefree 2025 Action Plan Discussion Document that was published in April this year.

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An Upgraded Alert Level 2 is Urgently Needed to Address the Delta Variant Threat

Friday, September 3rd, 2021 | carra86p | 9 Comments

Dr Leah Grout, Prof Nick Wilson, Dr Jennifer Summers, Dr Amanda Kvalsvig, Prof Michael Baker*

Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ’s) Covid-19 Alert Level system worked well in early 2020, but the Covid-19 landscape has changed, and the system must be updated to address the threat of the highly transmissible Delta variant and future variants. The country is using lockdowns (Auckland currently at Alert Level 4, with the rest of the country at Alert Level 3) to eliminate community transmission. As NZ plans moves down the Alert Levels in coming weeks, now is the time to upgrade Alert Level 2 to ensure it is fit for purpose. Key improvements are mask use in all indoor environments, and creating a Level 2+ that keeps the highest risk indoor environments closed while the risk of virus circulation is elevated.

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Public health response to report on potential risk of nitrate from drinking water

Friday, September 3rd, 2021 | carra86p | No Comments

Dr Tim Chambers and Professor Simon Hales

This week a report, co-funded by Fonterra and MBIE, investigated the relative contributions of nitrate in our diet from water and food. The report comes in response to emerging epidemiological evidence observing nitrate in drinking water as a risk factor for colorectal cancer. In separate public statements, the authors concluded “it is highly unlikely that nitrates in drinking water or the diet present an increased risk of cancer.” In this blog, we explain why the evidence in this report is not sufficient to draw these conclusions by highlighting some key limitations.

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