BCAC is thrilled that Aotearoa New Zealand has acted so decisively and early in a bid to contain and control COVID-19 (coronavirus). There are sensible rules in place which give our country an opportunity to lead the world in effective management of this deadly virus.
We are also delighted to see that most people are taking the lockdown seriously and staying only with the people in their bubble. We hope that those who don’t fully understand the rules will get up to speed and change what they are doing soon to help us all stay safe.
Aotearoa NZ has the advantage of sea borders and we have led the world in eliminating biosecurity risk pests such as painted apple moth and Queensland fruit fly. Now we’re using our best modellers, epidemiologists and medical scientists to determine our course of action.
Our smart, strong, transparent leadership and the absence of ego-driven decision-making gives us a real chance to protect our health system and our population in this crisis. This is vital for all of us and particularly our most vulnerable, including cancer patients and others with compromised immune systems and health conditions, and our treasured older people who hold so much wisdom and aroha.
This is a time for personal sacrifice for everyone’s benefit and we are incredibly proud to see the kindness and generosity of so many kiwis.
If you have any questions, please reach out to us by emailing bcac@breastcancer.org.nz and we will do our best to get answers for you. You can also contact us via Messenger on our Facebook page: Breast Cancer Aotearoa Coalition. We strongly recommend you stay on top of the news. You can get great up-to-date information on the Government website at covid19.govt.nz
You can also watch the news on demand if you miss the 6pm bulletin on One News on demand or TV3 on demand (search for Newshub). The PM and Ashley Bloomfield, the Director-General of Health, are providing daily updates, live-streamed through TV One, RadioNZ and others.
The advice for people with cancer is to stay home, don’t break your bubble, and ideally those you live with will be in isolation too. It’s vitally important that you and those around you do everything in their power to keep you safe. If you’re having trouble getting groceries, try going into your local community’s Facebook group as people are offering to help. Try to set it up so you pay them after they have brought your groceries to you. Also Countdown have introduced a priority service for people with compromised immune systems and people over 70.
Be strong, courageous, kind, patient and stay healthy!
Kia kaha, kia maia, kia atawhai, kia manawanui, me noho ora!
– 29 March 2020
