ProCare, New Zealand’s largest network of primary healthcare professionals, has today joined the growing number of organisations across Aotearoa who are calling for all frontline healthcare workers to be vaccinated.

Bindi Norwell, Group CEO at ProCare says: “The call to see all frontline workers vaccinated is about protecting medical professionals and the patients they are seeing. Ultimately, it’s about doing everything we can to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and ensure Aotearoa can return to a sense of ‘normality’ as quickly as possible.

“Whilst infection controls, such as wearing PPE and streaming patients, are important; it’s just one of the many tools that can be used to protect patients – especially for those patients that fall into the vulnerable category,” she continues.

“In our view, when it comes to preventing the highly transmissible Delta variant, we need to be pursuing a “PPE and vaccination” strategy, not a “PPE or vaccination” strategy,” points out Norwell.
ProCare has had feedback from its patients that by knowing the doctors, nurses and practice managers at their general practice are vaccinated, that it will provide them with much higher levels of confidence that they’re in a safe environment.

“As we saw with last year’s lockdown, people are holding off visiting their general practice unless they feel they really have to, which isn’t good for ongoing levels of healthcare. So, if patients know that any member of staff they come into contact with at their general practice is vaccinated, it means that they will be much more comfortable seeing their doctor or practice nurse about wider health issues,” she concludes.

ProCare has created a ‘one stop shop’ for anyone who has questions or concerns around the COVID-19 vaccination. This can be found on ProCare's public website.

ENDS
For more information please contact:
Dee Crooks, Director of Brand and Communications dee.crooks@procare.co.nz or 022 0310 380.

About ProCare - ProCare is New Zealand’s largest network of family doctors (GPs), nurses and general practice teams providing community-based healthcare to more than 800,000 people across the greater Auckland region. As New Zealand’s largest Primary Health Organisation (PHO) we represent 167 practices serving the largest Pacific and South Asian populations enrolled in general practice in New Zealand and the largest Māori population in Tāmaki Makaurau. For more information go to www.procare.co.nz