H202116597 Document 2 part 2.pdf

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•  Mat proposed to bring forecasts for the number of Māori, Pasifika and people with
disabilities vaccinated until 30 June to Steering Group next week
Action 1: Provide update at next Steering Group meeting regarding the clinical
oversight and safety processes in place within each DHB.

Action 2: Provide forecast on demographic breakdown of vaccines administered up to
30 June.
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Operational update – progress last week (Jo Gibbs)
Paper considered: COVID-19 A3 Vaccinations Dashboard 2 May 2021 - Final
Ashley asked for specific updates on Northland opening vaccination for 50+ age group, and
about progress for DHB plans for July onwards:
Jo provided an update on recent events within the Programme
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•  The A3 provided is prepared each week for Ministers meetings and wil  be added as a
standard paper for Steering Group moving forward
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•  In her communication with Northland about vaccinating over 50s she was clear that
this was about addressing risk of wastage and in response to rural and remote
communities and was not discussed as being a permanent move
•  Regarding DHB plans, tomorrow a pack will be sent to all SRO and CEs to help them
prepare their plans. First drafts are expected to be sent back by late-May in order to
have finalised plans by the end of May and ready for publication in mid-June.
Group Discussion
•  Chris Fleming stressed the need to communicate with DHBs about flexibility with the
Sequencing Framework
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•  Ashley noted Cabinet made a decision on Sequencing Framework and that individual
DHBs cannot take decisions that are contrary to that, and suggested a further
discussion on the subject after the meeting.
Action 3: Offline discussion regarding DHB conformity with Sequencing Framework
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Programme progress against milestones
Paper considered: CVIP Plan on a Page v0.2 3 May
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Andrew advised that the paper provided is a guide for the walk-through with Governance
Group on Friday, and explained this part of agenda is structured by workstream so GMs can
give more detail on how they are progressing and key decisions needed from Steering Group
a)  Service Design (Mat Parr)
Paper considered: Assumptions
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Mat explained that the aim of this paper is to have a discussion around assumptions of
proportion of vaccines administered by delivery setting. Agreement on these estimates then
wil  help determine what needs to be put in place to deliver on the model.

Group Discussion
•  Stephen noted that this model appears to have higher reliance on primary care than
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previous plans, which would have implication for the design and technology space.
•  Ashley asked for clarity on whether the ratio of vaccines administered by GPs versus
those administered by pharmacies was consistent with what is seen in the flu
vaccination campaign
•  Ashley noted that we’l  need to bring most GPs and accredited pharmacies into the
programme by the end of the year in order to position the programme for future
requirements, including mop up and newly eligible people

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•  John Whaanga noted that this model assumes 40% of delivery via primary care, and
asked whether this was matched by our level of engagement to date.
•  Mat said that this was increasingly becoming the case as considerable effort is now
being pivoted towards primary care
•  There was discussion around the need to ensure service delivery models enable
adequate access for rural communities
•  Michael noted that new delivery models needed to be carefully thought through to
ensure they didn’t put additional pressure on the technology team
•  Ashley pointed out that delivery models could be introduced in a staggered fashion to
reduce pressure if necessary
•  There was a discussion around whether use of systems could be mandated for GPs or
pharmacies in order to simplify the process
•  There was agreement that in the initial phases of the rollout it could be necessary for
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providers to utilise systems already in place, while more flexibility could be introduced
as time progresses
•  Astrid noted that there was work ongoing to stand-up a team as soon as possible who
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will respond to queries relating to systems put in place to manage the vaccine rollout
•  Ashley agreed that this is a priority area and offered any support needed

Action 4: Confirm the proportion of vaccines administered in Pharmacies vs GPs
during regular flu vaccination programme
  b)  Operations (Astrid Koornneef)
Paper considered: Late paper People under 16 years vaccinated report 4 May 2021
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Astrid gave a brief overview on situation of the vaccination of children under 16.
•  The memo provided is an interim update, with a full report (which wil  be presented to
Steering Group) stil  being worked on
•  DHBs have been contacted to provide clarity on next steps for the cases identified, an
enhancement has been added to CIR to flag when someone less than 16 presents for
a vaccine, and programme fail safe reporting is
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monitored in future.
•  A team from Ministry have gone to Wairarapa today to assist with root cause analysis
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Group Discussion
•  Jo noted the clinical advice has been provided not to give a second dose until children
involved reach 16 years old
•  Chris James noted that Medsafe is expecting additional data from Medsafe by the end
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of May to analyse whether to expand the age eligibility for vaccine

c)  Comms and Engagement (John Walsh)
Paper considered: Comms update 3 May
John Walsh provided update on Comms campaign
•  Phase 2 o
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to engage with people in Group 2 and starting planning for group 3, with planning
sessions with DHBs expected over the next few weeks
•  This week the Comms team wil  get the first set of weekly data on people’s intentions
to get vaccinated which wil  provide a good insight into effect of comms campaign
moving forward.
•  There are weekly Comms meetings to monitor what type of material is being circulated
around vaccine hesitancy and see how to respond accordingly

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d)  Workforce (Sonia McFetridge, Andi Shirtcliffe, Donna Kielar, Jane Hubbard)
Paper considered: Vaccination Assistants SG update - 3 May 21
Paper considered: Workforce Vaccinator Assistant Plan 30 April 21 v4
Donna gave brief overview of initial paper and noted that pilot of Vaccinator Assistant training
is planned for 13/14 May with a Māori health provider, Pacific health provider and Lakes DHB.
Group Discussion
•  There was a discussion on how to ensure the investment in this training could
contribute to a legacy of not only additional trained vaccinators, but also by creating
pathways to wider opportunities within the health sector.
•  Ashley suggested regular communication with DHBs on this point would be crucial
•  In response to a question from Colin, workforce team said it would report back on the
estimates for the number of vaccinator assistants expected to complete the training
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•  It was noted that the training programme was built so it could be easily scaled and that
it would feature online, face-to-face, and supervised training.
•  Jo noted one risk inherent in the plan was the need for nursing workforce to supe
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the Vaccinator Assistants, although there is work in progress in this area.

Group Discussion moved to the second paper regarding the role of Vaccinator Assistants
within the vaccination sites.
•  Following group discussion, the decision was taken to proceed with regulatory
changes that wil  enable Vaccinator Assistants to draw up vaccines, while the decision
on whether or not to implement this policy would be subject to further analysis and
discussion.
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•  Jo said that the tight timeframes would be highlighted in Vaccine Ministers report this
week to ensure the Ministers are aware of constraints and can support

Action 5: Provide estimate for the number of Vaccinator Assistants expected to
complete training programme
Action 6: Timeframes for regulatory changes around Vaccinator Assistant workforce to
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be flagged in Vaccine Ministers report
  e)  Logistics (Ian Costello)
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Paper considered: Distribution Netstock-Colosys decision
Paper considered: D&IM model review
•  After discussion, approval was given to pause the development of two Distribution and
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Inventory Management systems (Netstock and Colosys) in order to prioritise
development of other systems
•  Ian provided an overview of the recommendations in the second paper including
centring inventory management on two hubs, process for setting up the second hub in
Christchurch, rolling over the NZ Post contract and standing up additional -20°C
storage in case of Medsafe approval of Janssen vaccine
•  Approval was given for al  recommendations in the report, with the exception of the
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recommendation regarding a competitive procurement process in September. For this
recommendation it was agreed that Ian and Colin would have a follow-up discussion
around possible alternatives.
•  Ian also noted that a paper would be presented to Steering Group within next 1-2
weeks on progress for local storage, as the co-design of these systems was being
finalised

Action 7: Offline discussion around competitive procurement process

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  f)  Post Event (Tim Hanlon)
Paper considered: Steering Group update on Active Monitoring - 04 May 2021
Tim gave an overview of the paper provided around options for active monitoring
•  Active monitoring is the gold standard for pharmacovigilance surveil ance and could
give increased confidence around vaccine safety
•  If decision is taken to go ahead with active monitoring, the consensus of discussions
with Ian Town as well as colleagues from Medsafe, CARM and IMAC is that using the
Smart Vax tool used in Australia would be the pragmatic approach

Group Discussion
•  There was a broad discussion around back the trade-offs within Programme that
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would be necessary to implement this as well as the change management with wider
sector that might be needed
•  Ian Town noted that rolling out Smart Vax as part of COVID-19 activity could have
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legacy impact as well as equity advantages given the lower rates with which adverse
events are reported by some groups
•  Michael suggested that the additional workload on the technology side would not be
particularly large
•  Decision was taken to agree in principle to move ahead with active monitoring via
SmartVax system, with decision delegated to National Director in regards to timing of
implementation and ensuring adequate resourcing

g)  Equity (Jason Moses)
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Jason provided an update on Equity workstream:
•  The key thing his team is focusing on is accountability for equity and how that is built
into overall Programme
•  Work is ongoing with DHBs to ensure they are taking responsibility for people with
disabilities within their plans, particularly high needs groups requiring specialist help
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•  Other major areas of work include engagements and comms to address hesitancy,
and ensuring Māori and Pacific providers are well supported by DHBs.
•  He wil  also be bringing to Steering Group a paper on how equity can be prioritised
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within Group 4 rollout

Group Discussion
•  There was agreement among the Group that DHB SROs would be the appropriate
level of communication
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•  It was noted that in addition to setting clear expectations to DHBs around equity
performance, being able to monitor this and provide real-time feedback was essential
  h)  Polynesian Rollout (Megan McCoy)
Paper considered: SG Timeframes for dose donation to Polynesia V2
Megan offered an
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•  the key thing required from Steering Group was endorsement for the plan to donate up
to 36,000 doses to the Cook Islands to cover their eligible population
•  This would then be put to Vaccine Ministers for final approval
•  There is stil  some work to do around negotiations with pharma companies and some
detailed work on the operational rollout
•  The aim is for campaign to start later this month; this was noted in the announcement
regarding quarantine free travel with Cook Islands

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Group Discussion
•  Proposal to donate was endorsed by Steering Group
•  It was noted that Ministers would be made aware that this decision would involve ring-
fencing supply during the period of constrained supply
•  The exact number of donations would be clarified according to the under-16
population of Cook Islands
•  Chris James raised the importance that support for pharmacovigilance work in
Polynesian countries and noting the potential impact on New Zealand’s system.

Action 9: Offline conversation around pharmacovigilance strategy for Polynesian
rollout
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Programme risk update
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Paper considered: CVIP Programme Risk Update - Steering Group 3 May 2021
David explained that risk document had been simplified and shortened, with an emphasis on
the top five risks as identified with Programme Leadership Group.
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•  The aim is to move discussion away from risk towards the actions being taken
•  The intention is to tie that into a readiness check to assess how Programme can
determine risk is at acceptable level as we go up to dif erent levels

a)  Workforce (Fiona Michel)
No further comments were made beyond content of document and noting discussion in
previous agenda item.

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b)  Embedding equity (Jason Moses)
No further comments were made beyond content of document and noting discussion in
previous agenda item.
  c)  Achieving necessary scale (Mat Parr)
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Stephen suggested more analysis should be done on this area given high complexity of the
Programme and relatively short time left for moving to scale.
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  d)  External accountabilities and control expectations (Mat Parr)
Paper considered: Planning and accountability framework _03052021
Mat noted that the paper prov
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the draft Accountability Framework as well as Planning and Workforce templates.
It was noted that these documents are critical in identifying key roles, responsibilities, and
control points as the Programme moves into a more distributed and scaled system.
Stephen offered support for the paper and stressed the importance of it due to it capturing
almost the entire Programme scope

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e)  Certainty of supply (Astrid Koornneef)

Astrid said focus in this area was on making sure each DHB has plans in place in case of
large outbreak and need to significantly accelerate rollout (assuming supply was available)
•  In discussions with DHB SROs it has been stressed to ensure plans are linked to
lessons learned in responding to previous outbreaks
•  There wil  be further conversations to ensure the plans are finalised and so that DHBs
know support is available if needed to help with planning

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Allison noted that the risk cannot be removed but continues to be addressed by tightly
managing the relationship with Pfizer, including advocating for clear communications as soon
as Pfizer have any updates, and by pushing for backup vaccine options in case of delivery
issues.
Jo added that PLG are monitoring issues around supply on a weekly basis.
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OAG draft report update and communications response (David Nalder, John Walsh)
David provided an update on Programme’s response to the draft OAG Report
•  The response is prepared and wil  be sent today
•  Response agreed with the majority of OAG’s points, although for a small number we
have stated that we disagree and provided additional information to counter
•  He wil  now be working with Comms team to prepare for Ministry’s response when
report is published
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6.   Standing item on science and technical advice through CV-TAG (Dr Ian Town)

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Nothing raised this week
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Real time assurance update (Colin MacDonald and Stephen Crombie)
•  Colin noted a concern regarding the increasing workload on the Data workstream, but
noted there was improved connection between the overall work programme and the
technology side
•  Stephen noted there was work ongoing to bring together the milestone view of the
Programme and the production view, and that there may be something ready for
presentation at next Steering Group meeting . He also stressed the impor
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walk through planned Governance Group for this Friday.
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Any other business
•  Dale asked for an update on who within the Programme was leading the longer-term
planning for any future booster requirements or other ongoing needs
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•  It was noted that both CV-TAG and Medsafe are monitoring this area
•  Ashley reiterated that as time goes on it is anticipated that primary care and
pharmacies will administer a higher proportion of vaccines
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•  Jo mentioned there wil  be a paper brought to the Group shortly about the purchase of
consumables as this has a 3-6 month lead-in time

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Agenda item 6 to be brought forward to start of meeting.
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Standing item on science and technical advice through CV-TAG (Dr Ian Town)

Dr Ian Town provided an update on the work of CV-TAG:
•  Update provided on Adverse Event Reporting (CIR System). Events are being triaged
for seriousness and events of special interest. A system for improving the speed and
efficiency of reporting is in development.
•  There was strong support from the CV-TAG for the active SMS based reporting
system to be implemented immediately.
•  CV-TAG has been discussing ‘ring vaccination’ strategy, although their preference is
for this to be referred to as ‘targeted vaccination’.
•  This strategy has a place as part of our suite of public health interventions but is not
appropriate as a replacement.
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•  There was some discussion at CV-TAG on the potential value of a protocol (i.e. how it
would be implemented and exactly who would be targeted) to provide more specifics
to DHBs, noting that specific details could be quite challenging to develop.
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•  Further advice on the matter wil  be prepared for Policy team.
•  Ashley noted that documents prepared on this subject should be presented to COVID-
19 Response Directorate at same time as provided to Policy.
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Update from Chair – Independent Safety Monitoring Board (Dr John Tait)
Paper considered: CV-ISMB update to CVIP Steering Group_final
Dr John Tait provided update on the work of the ISMB.
•  There have been three general meetings of the ISMB thus far, plus one ad
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meeting to discuss thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS)
•  ISMB did not consider a similar risk of TTS to have been identified in New Zealand,
but Medsafe agreed to put out a Monitoring Communication on the issue
•  Rates of reported anaphylaxis in New Zealand are considerably higher than expected,
and ISMB would like to see potential anaphylaxis reports assessed against the
Brighton Collaboration Criteria which are used internationally
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•  Recommendation is made in the paper for an anaphylaxis tabular checklist to be
made available at vaccination sites to allow capture of more detailed information
•  Other themes currently being considered by ISMB include myocarditis, appendicitis
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and herpes zoster.
Group discussion:
•  Ashley Bloomfield thanked Dr Tait for his attendance and update, reiterating the
importance of the work of the Board.
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•  Ian Town provided support for the proposal, while it was noted that a new workforce
might need additional support to complete these assessments.
•  Steering Group endorsed the recommendation from ISMB, with Post-Events team to
determine how this change is implemented.
Action 1: Determine how to implement the recommended change around anaphylaxis
tabular checklists being available at vaccination sites.
•  There w
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cases of any serious adverse events or deaths in the days following vaccination.
•  It was noted that even if there was no clear link to vaccination this could be used to
reduce confidence in vaccine rollout.
•  An initial drop of data on background rates of certain adverse events is expected by
the end of May, which wil  help respond to any events that do occur.
•  Ashley noted the importance of having a streamlined process for responding to any
notifications of serious adverse events.
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Action 2: Ensure there is a process and focal point in place for analysing background
rates of specific conditions and liaising with Comms team in the event of severe
adverse reactions.
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Operational update – progress last week (Jo Gibbs)
Paper considered: Management of vaccination events in line with supply 10 May V0.2
Paper considered:  COVID-19 Immunisation Programme Update 9 May
Jo Gibbs noted that Programme is tracking at 107% up to 9 May and conversations have
been started with DHBs to cap their performance.  She asked Mat Parr to speak to this.
Mat provided an overview of the paper provided to Steering Group, noting the three key
messages to be delivered to DHBs were around limits to exceeding targets, committed push
to get ahead of equity plans and using this period to be set up for scale.
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Group discussion:
•  The importance of getting as much convergence as possible on where DHBs within
the sequencing framework.
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•  Jo noted the discussion at previous week’s Governance Group around the fact that we
are not currently holding back second doses for people. Thus if there is a delayed
supply in July some people may need to wait longer for their second dose.
•  The assumptions around current usage were discussed including wastage levels,
dose per vials, COVAX supply, mass event pilot and Polynesian corridor.
•  Implications on workforce and vaccine demand due to school holidays in July was
discussed.
•  Sue Gordon noted the importance of being able to get assurance from DHB SROs
around adherence to sequencing framework that honours requests made.
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•  Rachel Haggerty said there had been a good discussion with SROs earlier in the day
and they all understand the importance of a steady rollout with equity at forefront.
Support to ensure these same messages were reiterated to DHB Chairs/CEs was
requested.
Action 3: Reiterate with DHB Chairs/CEs the messages already delivered to DHB SROs
around the need to for steady rollout until end of June adhering to planned targets and
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with equity at forefront.
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Programme progress against miles
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Paper considered: CVIP POAP 10 May 2021
It was noted that detailed update on plan was well received by Governance Group last week,
with specific comments on the need to ensure an integrated plan right across the Programme
and importance of delivering on readiness work.
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a)  Service Design (Mat Parr)
Vince Barry gave an update on planning for large scale events with Auckland Unlimited,
noting the dif erent phases from developing playbook through to assistance on the day and
follow-up analysis:
•  Aiming for a first event in South Auckland in June/July that would target around 5,000
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people. This event would be a booked event to iron out any wrinkles.
•  They are already looking at pencil ing in other locations, and there is a planned call
with DHB SROs on Thursday to update and receive feedback.   An MoU with DHBs is
under development.
Group discussion:
•  There was discussion around whether it would be worthwhile to delay the first event
until after large supply drop, however, the advantages of testing all the systems before
moving into Group 4 appear to outweigh the risks.
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•  Noted that GPs seem to be increasingly comfortable with rollout plan, although the
importance of continuing to manage expectations around when additional services
would be added was stressed.
•  Noted that, by definition, a single large event was likely to require a follow-up event to
administer second-dose vaccines.
•  Attention was drawn to the three red deliverables within service design, with Michael
Dreyer noting that his team is currently working through detailed plans on exactly what
needed to be built.

b)  Equity (Jason Moses)
Jason Moses said that main focus for his team was on service design, evidence-based
funding, working with DHBs re planning and influencing their accountability arrangements.
Jo noted that a positive conversation had taken place with the IIAG to continue in their role
but with a heavier focus on equity point of view. There wil  be an update to ToR to reflect this,
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and IIAG accountability lines will also now be directly to the Steering Group.

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c)  Operations (Astrid Koornneef)
Paper considered: Steering Group Quality Assurance Framework 10052021
Astrid gave an overview of Operations workstream activity:
•  All DHBs are working on July-October planning with first drafts expected back 24 May.
•  A major current focus is on implementation and rollout of National Booking System,
with two sites now live in Auckland and feedback awaited for analysis.
•  There are very tight deadlines to have all DHBs onboarded by end of May and sites
live by end of June.
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•  Work around how invitations wil  work for group 4 and how to manage that at local and
national level is advancing well.  A PLG decision is expected this week so that next
phase of that work can commence.

Dr Juliet Rumball-Smith spoke to the paper provided on Quality Assurance and highlighted
three priorities for her team for next month:
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•  Providing information to DHBs on developing minimum expectations documents that
follow through to readiness assessments and Accountability Framework.
•  Getting an understanding of what quality tools/processes/people are in place at DHB
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level, and help fil  those gaps by making toolkits available.
•  Establishing the CVIP Clinical Quality & Safety Forum at a national level.
Group discussion:
•  Ashley asked for an update in two weeks regarding the clinical oversight and safety
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processes in place within each DHB.
•  Sue mentioned that it would be important for quality and safety work to have a
feedback loop into CV-TAG to address systemic issues.

Action 4: Provide update to Steering Group in 2 weeks’ time (1 June meeting)
regarding the clinical oversight and safety processes in place within each DHB.

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d)  Comms and Engagement (John Walsh)
Paper considered: Comms update 3 May
John Walsh noted three primary focuses for Comms at the moment: preparing public
response to OAG Report, working on getting the narrative around the ‘limited supply’ story,
and planning for Group 3 comms and engagement with DHBs.

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e)  Workforce (Fiona Michel)
Fiona offered updates on Workforce stream:
•  Trained vaccinator numbers are improving well and goal is now to have 6,000 trained
vaccinators in order to achieve anticipated need of 1,500 to 1,600 FTE vaccinators.
•  There is considerable work needed to increase Māori/Pasifika workforce.
•  Health report with changes for Vaccinator Assistants has gone to Minister yesterday,
with pilot planned on 13 May with a Māori health provider in Auckland.
•  There wil  be an assessment of pilot product and then feedback given to Ashley and
Caroline McElnay.
•  Currently there is nothing to indicate that DHBs are struggling with administrative
support, although there are options to assist later in rollout if needed.
•  Ashley congratulated Fiona and the team for the significant progress made.
Action 5: Provide Ashley/Caroline with updated Vaccinator Assistant training product
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following assessment of initial pilot
f)  Logistics (Ian Costello)
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Ian noted there was good progress on actions agreed at previous Steering Group and said
that more information around Pfizer delivery schedule for July should be available within next
two weeks.
g)  Post Event (Tim Hanlon)
Tim provided two updates from Post-Event workstream
•  The AEFI repository auto-triage scheduled to go live on 13 May has been delayed to
24 May, which wil  stil  be in good time for ramp up.
•  There has been a lack of engagement from SmartVax regarding active monitoring
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system discussed last week, so discussions started with an alternative supplier.
  h)  Polynesian Rollout (Ashley Bloomfield for Megan McCoy)
Ashley said there may be an announcement the next day (12 May) about supply of vaccines
to three realm countries. Programmes are expected to happen in Cook Islands from next
week, Niue from June and Tokelau from July.
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Jo noted there was dry run of vaccine happening this week in Cook Islands and there is an
IMAC team there inspecting the fridges to be used.
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Programme risk update (David Nalder and risk owners)
Paper considered: CVIP Programme Status and Risk Summary - Steering Group 10 May
David gave update on work relating to risk that has been undertaken this week
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•  An exercise has been done with PLG members to rank risk across end-to-end
process, with intent to have updated view of PLG sentiment on risk every week to be
able to monitor trends
•  There are four risks that have been flagged and additional six that are key to get right
•  This work has flowed into work on Programme Readiness and Accountability
Framework
•  Overall David does see more clarity around major risks being monitored two months
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ago, although there are a small number that remain consistent focus areas, notably
comms and equity
Group Discussion
•  Stephen flagged integration of design and the testing of this as a key area to get right
•  There was a request from Ashley to emphasise equity as an underpinning risk
•  There was a discussion around how to capture the shifts in risk profile over time.
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•  Ashley congratulated David for the actions take to provide a clear view of risk
mitigation and management.
Action 6: Equity to be highlighted as an underpinning risk within Programme risk
document
a)  Misinformation (John Walsh)
Nothing additional raised beyond discussions in Agenda Item 4.
  b)  Post event (Dr Tim Hanlon)
Nothing additional raised beyond discussions in Agenda Item 4.
  c)  Clinical safety (Dr Juliet Rumbal -Smith)
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Paper considered: Steering Group Quality Assurance Framework 10052021
Nothing additional raised beyond discussions in Agenda Item 4.

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d)  Embedding equity (Jason Moses)
Nothing additional raised beyond discussions in Agenda Item 4.
  e)  Integration of design to achieve scale (Andrew Bailey)
Andrew noted that next Tuesday 18 May there wil  be a desktop exercise of an end-to-end
walk through of dif erent design aspects.
•  Working now on figuring out exactly how to test system for scale and then see how to
build off the results (as was done in February) of the previous desktop ex
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Group discussion:
•  It was noted that work was ongoing to develop targets for vaccination rates of Māori,
Pasifika and disabled people by DHB
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Real time assurance update (Colin MacDonald and S
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•  Colin highlighted the importance of the planned desktop exercise, and that this type of
exercise should be repeated to look at things like data integration and contingency
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planning.
8.
Any other business
•  Sue Gordon mentioned the importance of starting to see design around legacy
impacts of Programm
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papers

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•  Working with external assurers to ensure that capability in the workstreams supports
the ‘end to end’ process for rollout in primary care settings. They circulated Paper 3b
setting out some adjustments to the POAP to reflect these discussions.
•  Payment systems wil  come online end of June, initially in a ‘workaround’.  Working
with DHBs re surrounding standards and processes.

Workplace vaccination:
•  Workplace vaccination has started with some prisons and Corrections workforce, and
frontline police. FENZ will roll out from 24 May for 2,500 staff. May contract directly
with some large NZ workplaces.
•  DHBs supported the mixed model for rollout (this is the model recommended for SG
agreement).
•  A sector working group wil  be established to identify a minimum viable product for
delivery of workplace vaccinations.
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Group discussion
•  SG noted it was important, from a ‘health and safety at work’ perspective, to
distinguish between the service provider and the location (i.e. workplace) of serv
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delivery.
Decision: SG considered Paper 4 and agreed to the recommendation that: “Workplace
vaccinations will be a combination of nationally contracted and locally commissioned
using an ‘open book’ process.”

•  Equity (Jason Moses)
Jason Moses emphasised the importance of equity at the programme level.
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•  Current strong focus on service design, and working with comms leads to ensure that
engagement Māori, Pasifika and disability communities is part of DHB planning.
•  Applications for funding for COVID-19 comms for Māori closed on 17 May.  Funding
was over-subscribed - received 57 applications for $3.7 mil ion. Wil  allocate $1.5
million.  Following discussions with Minister Henare, MoH will review to see if there
are well-considered applications worthy of receiving funding over this budget.
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•  Funding for Pasifika engagement (champions, co-ordinators and navigators) is stil  to
be allocated.
Group discussion
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•  Dr Dale Bramley noted some concerns relating to the numbers of Māori who stated
they were unlikely to get the vaccine.  He asked about evidence-based engagement to
influence this.
•  John Walsh agreed that research shows that Māori are less likely than other groups to
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be vaccinated.  However, this research is ongoing and the trend is showing a quite
significant change in attitudes, meaning this gap is starting to get smaller.
•  Range of opportunities to influence – workforce, vaccination location, informed and
motivated communities (supported by MoH funding above), national communications
campaigns.
•  Dr Bloomfield noted the importance of all DHBs knowing their communities and having
a plan to reach them.
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Action 4: MoH to consider making available funding to organisations more widely than
initially intended budget.
Action 5:  Prepare paper on initiatives to inform and encourage participation by Māori
in the vaccination programme, for consideration by SG on 1 June 2021.
  •  Operations (Astrid Koornneef, Dr Juliet Rumball-Smith, Michael Dreyer)
•  Dr Bloomfield asked for an interim update MoH work to ensure all DHBs have a safety
and quality framework in place (action 4 from meeting held 11 May refers).  Juliet
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advised that she had met regional clinical leads and quality managers and is
expecting their written input shortly. She is on track to report back on 25 May.
•  Preparations for next phase of rollout include:
o  Invitation strategy - trialling taking place in Auckland, Kaikoura and
Canterbury.
o  Booking system – Pilot on track.
o  Call centre – working with new provider and setting up regional support teams.
o  Moving to a supply chain model that gives us great visibility of where stock
sits.
o  Payment system is now coming back on track.
•  Noted the interdependencies between data and reporting from both booking and
inventory systems to effectively manage nationwide supply and demand.  MoH is
preparing common processes to support DHBs with all process changes.
•  DHB accountability framework has been with DHBs for a fortnight for comment.  Some
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lack of engagement evident, however, framework stil  planned for signoff as
scheduled.
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Action 6:  Provide decision paper to 25 May SG meeting seeking formal agreement to a
phased ‘go live’ rollout of the national booking system.
•  Comms and Engagement (John Walsh)
Papers 5a – 5d considered: Comms and Engagement update 17 May and IPSOS research
John Walsh updated on Comms and engagement activity:
•  Key focus is Group 3 launch – will be in South Auckland on 25 May.  Rollout is staged
according to each DHB’s situation.  A senior account manager from MoH is working
INFORMATION
closely with all DHBs individually to support them. (Also discussed at item 2.)
•  Sue Gordon noted that as rollout progresses, MoH reporting wil  transition to Minister
Little from Minister Hipkins.
•  Workforce (Fiona Michel)
Fiona updated on the Workforce stream:
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•  5,358 trained vaccinators at 18 May.  About 2,000 active/have been active.
•  Workforce plans received from most DHBs – using these to identify maximum
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throughput.
•  Cabinet paper prepared re changes to regulations for the new COVID-19 Vaccinator
role.  Significant support from some communities but discomfort from others.  Piloting
training programmes for this role.  Those in the new role wil  require supervision.
•  Workforce surge tool being refreshed to make it easier for DHBs to search.  Wil  be
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relaunched also in English, Māori, Tongan and Samoan.
•  The challenge is to grow the vaccinator workforce for COVID-19 without ‘poaching’
from current provision.  MoH is actively engaged with some recruitment agencies to
reinforce the disbenefits of artificially inflating remuneration.
•  Sue Gordon noted government was one of the largest private providers and this gave
CVIP some levers.
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•  Logistics (Ian Costello)
Ian outlined preparations for Group 3 rollout including:
•  Additional freezers in port 21 May.
•  Second hub in Christchurch is on track – inspection in next fortnight.
•  NZ Post is gearing up for scale delivery.

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Colin MacDonald cautioned re the importance of continuing to plan for rollout based on
current approvals re storage of the Pfizer vaccine, pending application and decisions relating
to the recently announcements from Europe.

•  Post Event (Tim Hanlon)
Working with Global Health and Medsafe to ensure adequacy of our pharmacovigilance
processes re New Zealand’s support to the Pacific.  Assessors to focus on the adverse
events.
Chris James noted some concerns held by MedSafe as the regulator that the pharma-
covigilance process was not yet agreed with partner agencies.  Michael Dreyer indicated his
team would work with Legal to progress this offline.

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•  Polynesian Rollout (Megan McCoy)
Megan updated on progress with Polynesian rollout:
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•  Joint press release last week from Ministers Mahuta and Sio – this has provided
nations with assurance as it puts New Zealand confirmation of vaccine donation in the
public domain.
•  Cook Islands ‘wet run’ has now started.
•  Wil  seek formal confirmation from Cabinet for the donation of 2,760 to Niue.
•  Megan noted that pharmacogivilance matters re vaccine donation to Tokelau are stil
under discussion – (e.g travel time of vaccine).

Action 7:  Send copy of the document signed the previous Friday by the Acting
Director-General to Dr Bloomfield.
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Decision: SG agreed to provide a donation of 2,760 vaccines to Niue.

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Programme risk update (David Nalder and risk owners)
Paper considered: CVIP Programme Status and Risk Summary - Steering Group 18 May
David updated on risk management activity:
•  Half of the risks have gone down in prominence, and about a third have a slight
increase.
•  Five risks updated – sequencing, initial bookings, supply and demand, proof of
vaccination (see agenda item 8), determining success.
Group discussion
•  Noted there is a PLG workshop planned later in the week to discuss equity issues.
•  Stephen Crombie noted the good work being done to mitigate risks. He also
suggested care is taken to differentiate clearly between the ‘top of mind’ risks
identified by PLG members vs wider programme risks.

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a)  Post event (Dr Tim Hanlon)
Nothing additional raised beyond discussions in Agenda Item 4.
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  b)  Clinical safety (Dr Juliet Rumbal -Smith)
Nothing additional raised beyond discussions in Agenda Item 4.
  c)  Embedding equity (Jason Moses)
Nothing additional raised beyond discussions in Agenda Item 4.
  d)  Misinformation (John Walsh)
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Dr Bloomfield asked about actions to address misinformation.

Action 8:  Prepare a paper for consideration by Steering Group on 25 May on possible
actions and discussion points to help mitigate misinformation relating to COVID-19
vaccination.
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Real time assurance update (Colin MacDonald and Stephen Crombie)
•  No issues to report.  Wil  be par
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8.
Any other business
•  Vaccination certificates (Maria Cotter)
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Maria advised of growing momentum in NZ and internationally for proof of vaccination.  This
interest applies across multiple sectors.
•  Policy work under way to underpin this – key foci  include equity, ensuring privacy and
security of information.
•  COVID card not sufficient evidence for some countries.
•  Some pressure on MoH to lead the work for wider government interest.
Group discussion
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•  SG noted that ‘proof of vaccination’ work is not focussed solely on MoH but has ‘cross
government’ implications.
•  Dr Bloomfield noted that the immediate priority for MoH is to meet the needs of NZers
wishing to travel overseas.
•  Michael Dreyer noted that “proof of vaccination” is factored into IT development but
not yet activated.
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Decision: Agreed that it is not the role of MoH to lead on wider ‘proof of vaccination’
work.
Action 9: Provide further advice to SG for 8 June meeting.
Action 10: Ensure that the Minister’s office is kept informed of progress.

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