Covid reponse group keeps locals updated

JULIA WADE

31 Jan, 2022

With the country facing the inevitable Omicron outbreak, east Kaipara residents have been turning to its very own reliable source for all things Covid-related as a local supportive guide.

Launching just before Christmas on December 15, 2021, the Mangawhai Covid Response (MCR) website has been well used by the community, with hundreds of visits recorded and thousands tapping in to the Facebook page.

Spearheaded by Mangawhai’s social advocacy organisation, Te Whai Community Trust, and created from a collaboration with Civil Defence, St John, Northland DHB, SOS Kaipara, iwi health service provider Te Ha Oranga, Fire & Emergency NZ, CauseWay Church, St Mary's Church and other community groups, Te Whai projects manager Kiri Eriwata says the site received over 700 visits since it began with the Facebook reach sitting around 2800 for the same time period.

“This is steady considering that there has been no Covid in Mangawhai thus far and little need for visitors and locals to know which services were closed for deep cleans or where to go if needing food,” she says.

According to the NDHB website on January 26, since the October 2021 outbreak began, Northland has recorded 123 positive cases and the region’s vaccination rates are currently sitting at 86 percent, translating to just over 161,320 of eligible people being double-vaxed, compared to the national average of 92.90 percent, and remains the lowest in the country.

MCR was designed as a helpful guide to offer locals and visitors information about nearby Covid testing locations and opening hours of essential services as well as what to expect if an individual tests positive with the virus and how to prepare for an isolation period.

Although managed by a skeleton crew over the summer holiday period, the tools and support system were still set up in the likelihood of Covid entering the community Eriwata says, and now the team is now back at work ‘after a fabulous and well-needed break’, already taking on several important tasks.

“We’re working with the Ministry of Social Development to help provide food for anyone with Covid and who do not have the means to access food themselves, and the MCR team will also be gathering in the next week to assess and prepare the needs for Omicron in the community,” she says. “We’ll be happy to update the people of Mangawhai again next month with our progress.”

n Visit mangawhaicovidresponse.co.nz for more information and keep an eye out for the MCR signs up around town with the logo and fliers in shops.

MCR banner/ad, just run as a small freebie on the page