Information and Articles

A quick update on Influenza

How does it spread?

The influenza virus spreads from person-to-person. The main form of transmission is through the coughs or sneezes of an infected person. Infected droplets are released into the air and breathed in by others. However, these droplets do not remain in the air long and generally only affect people within two metres.

It is also possible to get influenza by touching contaminated surfaces, and then touching your nose, mouth or eyes.

How infectious is it?

Because this virus is new, people have no immunity to it so it will spread more quickly and widely than the seasonal flu. The pandemic situation could mean lots of people become sick at the same time and this could have a big impact on our day-to-day lives, and place considerable pressure on the health services.

Experts aren’t yet sure how long people who have the new Influenza A (H1N1) virus are infectious and able to pass the virus to others. It appears they could be infectious from a day before they experience symptoms until about seven days after they first experience them.

Children, especially younger children, may be infectious for longer periods. However early use of antiviral medicines, such as Tamiflu, can reduce this infectious period.

Be prepared

If you’ve got flu symptoms, stay at home until essentially well, that is not sneezing and coughing as this is how the virus spreads. This is usually around three to four days after symptoms start, but may be up to a week.

Stop the spread of flu germs by:

If your condition worsens, seek medical advice by phoning Healthline 0800 611 116 or your healthcare provider (Mapua Health Centre – 540 2211).

Get medical advice if you have a serious condition including respiratory disease, heart disease, liver disease, blood disorders and neurological conditions or have a suppressed immune system (including the effects of certain medications such as steroids or known to have HIV).

Recent news

ADHD diagnostic assessments – upcoming changes for adults

We would like to share important information about upcoming changes to the way adult ADHD is diagnosed and treated in New Zealand. This information is relevant if you are:

currently being assessed for ADHD
on a waiting list for an assessment
considering an ADHD assessment in the future

For general background information about ADHD in adults, please visit HealthInfo.org.nz.

What is changing?

From February 2026, some General Practitioners (GPs) will be able to:

diagnose ADHD in adults, and
initiate ADHD medication

Until this change takes effect, ADHD diagnosis and medication initiation for adults can only be done by specialist Psychiatrists (often following an assessment by a clinical psychologist and referral from a GP).

These changes do not apply to children and young people aged 5–17 years. The current process for this age group remains unchanged.

At this stage, there is limited detail available about how the new system will operate or how the transition period will be managed. The information below reflects what is known so far and may change.

From now until February 2026

If you are close to completing an assessment with a clinical psychologist, we recommend prioritising completion and arranging a GP appointment as soon as possible.
If you are waiting to start, or have just started, an ADHD assessment with a clinical psychologist, we recommend considering deferring your assessment until more information is available. Even with a completed psychologist assessment, you may still need to wait until February 2026 and pay additional costs to see an appropriately trained GP.
From early December, we will no longer be able to arrange publicly funded psychiatrist approval for ADHD medication.

From February 2026 – what we expect (based on current information)

A limited number of GPs will be approved to diagnose adult ADHD and start medication. These GPs will need to complete significant additional ADHD-specific training, usually outside normal working hours.
Demand is expected to be high, and waitlists are likely, as these GPs will continue managing their usual patient workload alongside ADHD assessments.
The assessment process will remain thorough, typically involving:
- 1–2 hours of structured assessment over multiple appointments
- detailed history-taking
- input from parents and/or family members where appropriate
No government funding has been announced for this service. ADHD assessments in General Practice are expected to be fully privately funded, with estimated costs of $1,000–$2,000, regardless of Community Services Card (CSC) status.
More complex cases (for example, where there are other mental health conditions or substance use concerns) may still require referral to a private psychologist or psychiatrist for diagnosis and treatment planning.
At this stage, it is unclear whether our practice will be able to offer this service directly, what the fees may be, or what waiting times might look like. Patients may need to be referred to another GP clinic that offers ADHD assessments.
Publicly funded psychiatrist medication approval will no longer be available.

At any time

Psychiatrists with expertise in ADHD can always diagnose ADHD and start treatment. However, this is not publicly funded and must be done privately.
Accessing a psychiatrist for ADHD assessment can be challenging, with long waitlists and high fees.
Patients are welcome to search for and contact private psychiatrists directly to enquire about availability and waitlists. Unfortunately, we do not have visibility of psychiatrist availability beyond publicly available information.