Fiona Callaghan

Pre-pandemic Influenza Vaccine Framework | Ministry of Health NZ The Pre-pandemic Influenza Vaccine Framework provides guidance for use of the pre-pandemic influenza vaccine. This vaccine supports New Zealand’s initial response to an avian influenza health emergenc...

"New Zealand stockpiles pre-pandemic influenza vaccine as part of the National Reserve Supply. The pre-pandemic vaccine stockpile is a public health tool that could support the initial response to an avian influenza health emergency or pandemic."
www.health.govt.nz/publications...

Report from second phase of Covid inquiry to be made public in March The inquiry, announced in November 2024, is an expansion of the scope of the Royal Commission of Inquiry established in 2022.

www.1news.co.nz/2026/02/26/r...

Corina Grey: Health inequalities aren't inevitable | E-Tangata “You can't separate the conditions in which people live from their health. They're completely interwoven, and I absolutely feel a deep sense of responsibility and commitment to addressing those wider ...

This is a fabulous interview e-tangata.co.nz/korero/corin...

Wonderfully funny and informative post on how to avoid potluck infamy 😀🤢

An ID Doctor’s Guide to Surviving Holiday Potlucks Food Poisoning Free Because nothing says “festive” like avoiding an impromptu Norovirus outbreak.

It’s officially potluck season withoffice parties galore. 🦃🥘 If, like me, you harbor an irrational fear of food poisoning, I’ve got you covered. Here’s your ID doctor–approved guide to surviving the season’s buffets w/out ending up in the ER.
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open.substack.com/pub/bktitanj...

Cool data dashboard "What is the Whaitua Mapping Tool?
An online mapping platform designed to visualise detailed information about local communities across Aotearoa." atiawatoaimpb.nz/faqs-whaitua...

Big pistachio :D

"Some people and their dogs have been training for it all year. And some of them, one suspects, have not"

🇨🇦 Canada has secured 500,000 doses of an updated H5N1 (avian influenza) vaccine.

Here's a Canadian perspective in @CMAJ on what this means, with colleagues from the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Link: www.cmaj.ca/content/197/...

Latest wastewater dashboard for NZ from the ESR team -- a bit of an uptick. poops.nz

Social media community guidelines | Ministry of Health NZ The Ministry engages with the community and provides important safety and public health information through accounts on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.

The Ministry of Health is now posting on Bluesky. Follow us to be alerted to our consultations, news and announcements. We welcome your respectful and relevant comments and reserve the right to take action against posts that violate our community guidelines:

U.S. NEWS Ohio police find raccoon holding meth pipe during traffic stop When an officer took the pipe away, the raccoon pulled out another.

READ. THE. SUBHEAD.

“I expect this sort of behavior out of a squirrel, but a raccoon?” Jacob Liekki, Cactus Purchaser

Raccoon With Meth Pipe Found In Driver’s Seat Of Car
theonion.com/raccoon...

Big congrats Jemma!

Weather live: State of emergency as heavy rain, gales hit South Island, Wellington 'The roads are the worst I've seen,' evacuated residents say amid a state of emergency in Selwyn, while flights are being cancelled in Wellington and homes lose power.

Meanwhile: Weather live: State of emergency as heavy rain, gales hit South Island, Wellington www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

Astronomers Detect a Signature of Life on a Distant Planet (Gift Article) Further studies are needed to determine whether K2-18b, which orbits a star 120 light-years away, is inhabited, or even habitable.

120 light years from Earth, there's a planet that may be covered in a living ocean. Here's my story on a tantalizing hint of life beyond the Solar System. Gift link: nyti.ms/3GbrEaZ 🧪

Public Health On Call: 880 - “The FDA As We’ve Known It Is Finished” About this episode: Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services abruptly fired around 10,000 employees, 3,500 of which were within the FDA alone—an organization of around 18,000 total emplo...

An inside perspective on the damage to the FDA that will have implications for global medical regulation and research johnshopkinssph.libsyn.com/880-the-fda-...

Great🧵 re flu in Oz. TLDR 👇

"a faecal immunochemical test-based programme was non-inferior to a colonoscopy-based programme for colorectal cancer-related mortality"
-so an easier test, among invitees, was as good as a more complex one. Excellent news for Australia's over 50s at-home, mail-in, faeces screening testing program.

WHO proposes to reduce jobs and cut budget by a fifth, memo shows U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration withdrew from the World Health Organization upon taking office in January

www.theglobeandmail.com/world/articl...

Peter Marks, FDA’s top vaccine regulator, forced out Top FDA official Peter Marks was forced to resign as the director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

#FDA top vaccines regulator Peter Marks is forced out by HHS Secretary Kennedy. Marks didn't mince words in his resignation letter: "It has become clear ... [Kennedy] wishes subservient confirmation of his misinformation and lies.” www.statnews.com/2025/03/28/f...

Some updates on HHS reorg:

- Secy aides want reorg goals fast, often within 10 days
- cuts expected at HRSA include Provider Relief Bureau, could leave >$1B uncollected
- CDC and ASPR have only until Sat to come up with merger plan

www.cbsnews.com/news/job-cut...

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Why is the discovery of Japanese encephalitis virus in mosquitoes collected from suburban Brisbane such a concern? It really upends our understanding of a group of mosquito-borne pathogens with life threatening consequences and how authorities around Australia should respond...

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