Vaccine hesitancy or vaccine misinformation? Why are the Māori vaccination numbers so low?
"Vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate," is the message from the government. 84,990 Māori so far are vaccinated.
However, when adjusted for the Māori population above 16 there are still almost 492,000 people to go.
Te Hau Ora o Ngāpuhi's chief executive, Te Ropu Poa, thinks she knows what to do, she says "It's more about being collective and having a collective response instead of being reactive." She also says that a trusting face is important, that it is imperative to have good relationships with general practitioners, "We have to be honest whānau trust their doctor."
Over 3600 jabs have been administered by the team at Te Hau Ora o Ngāpuhi. Poa says they have about 189 bookings a week.
A lovely kaumātua by the name of Fred spoke proudly saying vaccination was 'māmā noa iho' or easy as
The Delta variant of the virus is ravaging countries overseas and the government hasn't as yet ordered boosters in case the vaccination effectiveness dwindles or in the case of it not standing up to new variants.
Poa says "Globally, everyone is getting boosters so that makes sense to me. I think if you're using a common-sense approach we should get boosters too." She also told Te Ao Mārama that the iwi health provider is already receiving queries about boosters.
Māori make up 78% of Kaikohe's population. It also services remote communities The risks are high should anyone in this small Northland community contract the deadly virus.
We hit the streets and asked locals what they thought of the vaccine, while some believed it was a conspiracy others believed that the government wasn't giving clear messaging. A few even asked whether or not the vaccine had part of the virus in it.
Some said that social media was playing a role in sharing misinformation with people. While others said the sharing the stories of family members who are being affected by the virus overseas may be one of the ways to get the message out to people in a way that would be meaningful and relatable.
So is misinformation the issue?
Poa says, "The best thing to do is come and see us and have that conversation and ask those questions and hopefully, we can provide enough information"
She said she is encouraging whānau to do it for their whānau. One kaumātua said he's happy that he will be safe to grow old for his mokopuna.
Anti-vax campaigners have been protesting the government's vaccine rollout and their message has even made it to the steps of parliament.
Locals believe that misinformation along with a distrust for the system could be major contributors to the Māori vaccination numbers.