20 April 2026
Erika Whittome
[FYI request #32822 email]
Tēnā koe Erika
Further response to your request for official information, ref: HNZ00103433
On 11 November 2025, you asked Health New Zealand (Health NZ) for the following
under the Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA):
…Would you please share the documents containing Covid-19 stream definitions
for all the other DHBs in New Zealand from around October 2021?
I understand you were not happy with our decision of 5 December 2026 to withhold some
of the information released to you as Appendix two, and made a complaint to the
Ombudsman. Health NZ has reconsidered the release of the documents and is now able
to release further information.
Response
The relevant documents are attached to this letter and are released to you in full.
As noted in our previous response to your request:
• Document 1 was provided to the former District Health Boards (DHBs) as part of the
COVID-19 Workforce Response. This document set guidance on protecting vulnerable staff
working in the health system during the COVID-19 pandemic, which DHBs amended to
their working environment.
• When these documents were produced, the COVID-19 settings across the health system
were a fluid and rapidly evolving environment, with regional and district specific responses
to the pandemic required at different times. These documents were part of a wider context
of management, assessment and mitigation of healthcare worker vulnerabilities.
How to get in touch
If you have any questions, you can contact us at
[email address].
If you are not happy with this response, you have the right to make a complaint to the
Ombudsman. Information about how to do this is available a
t www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
by phoning 0800 802 602.
We have also advised the Ombudsman’s office of our further response to you.
Ngā mihi
Sara Freitag
Manager, Government Services
TeWhatuOra.govt.nz
Health NZ, PO Box 793,
Wel ington 6140, New Zealand
