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New
Covid-19 Cases in New Zealand
and
Implementation of
Epidemic-Response
and Support Measures.
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Soon after initial descriptions of an outbreak in Wuhan, China, were shared, reports in late January 2020 (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30260-9/fulltext. opens in new tab)
confirmed that Covid-19 was almost certain to become a serious
pandemic.
Despite New Zealand’s geographic isolation, we knew that
introduction of SARS-CoV-2 was imminent because of the large numbers of
tourists and students who arrive in the country each summer,
predominantly from Europe and mainland China. Our disease models
indicated that we could expect the pandemic to spread widely, overwhelm
our health care system, and disproportionately burden indigenous Maori
and Pacific peoples. New Zealand began implementing its pandemic
influenza plan in earnest in February, which included preparing
hospitals for an influx of patients. We also began instituting
border-control policies to delay the pandemic’s arrival.
New Zealand’s first Covid-19 case was diagnosed on February 26 (see Figure 1). That same week, the WHO–China Joint Mission’s report on Covid-19 (www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/who-china-joint-mission-on-covid-19-final-report.pdf. opens in new tab)
showed that SARS-CoV-2 was behaving more like severe acute respiratory
syndrome (SARS) than like influenza, which suggested that containment
was possible.
See also:
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