TY - JOUR
T1 - Non-pharmaceutical strategies win coronavirus disease 2019 battle in New Zealand
AU - Nhamo, Godwell
AU - Kandawasvika, Gwendoline Q.
AU - Sibanda, Mncengeli
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© (2020) This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - This literature-based article found that on 08 June 2020, New Zealand claimed victory over coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mainly because of effective non-pharmaceutical strategies and interventions that included a hard lockdown. The response was informed by the country’s Influenza Pandemic Plan (although without criticism), which was updated in 2017, and the swift responses from political leadership and other key stakeholders. Strategies instituted included the proclamation of urgent precautionary measures leading to border closures, issuing of a 3-month-long COVID-19 notice under the Epidemic Preparedness Act 2006, the proclamation of the COVID-19 Elimination Strategy and the Initial COVID-19 Māori Response Action Plan, which incorporated COVID-19 Alert Levels that facilitated stepwise easing of the hard lockdown. The non-pharmaceutical strategies seem to have worked again, even as the second wave of COVID-19 infections returned in August 2020 through an Auckland cluster. Hence, the New Zealand case remains one that the world can draw lessons from, although not perfect.
AB - This literature-based article found that on 08 June 2020, New Zealand claimed victory over coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mainly because of effective non-pharmaceutical strategies and interventions that included a hard lockdown. The response was informed by the country’s Influenza Pandemic Plan (although without criticism), which was updated in 2017, and the swift responses from political leadership and other key stakeholders. Strategies instituted included the proclamation of urgent precautionary measures leading to border closures, issuing of a 3-month-long COVID-19 notice under the Epidemic Preparedness Act 2006, the proclamation of the COVID-19 Elimination Strategy and the Initial COVID-19 Māori Response Action Plan, which incorporated COVID-19 Alert Levels that facilitated stepwise easing of the hard lockdown. The non-pharmaceutical strategies seem to have worked again, even as the second wave of COVID-19 infections returned in August 2020 through an Auckland cluster. Hence, the New Zealand case remains one that the world can draw lessons from, although not perfect.
KW - COVID-19
KW - New Zealand
KW - flatten the curve
KW - influenza pandemic plan
KW - lockdown
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85145162380&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.4102/JAMBA.V12I1.1010
DO - 10.4102/JAMBA.V12I1.1010
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85145162380
SN - 2072-845X
VL - 12
SP - 1
EP - 6
JO - Jamba: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies
JF - Jamba: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies
IS - 1
ER -
