Further advice is being sought from the Ministry of Health by the Southern District Health Board on what is the best recommendation to give regarding meningococcal vaccinations for young people.
A Radio New Zealand news item on Thursday discussed whether young people about to go flatting or enter university hostels might wish to consider paying for vaccination against some types of meningococcal disease.
Responding to Otago Daily Times questions on the issue, Southern DHB medical officer of health Dr Derek Bell said it was a "difficult one".
Public health staff were working on how best to communicate a message in keeping with the ministry's recommendation on vaccination for young people, which was not new, and the actual risk profile of the disease in Otago.
The immunisation handbook recommends vaccination for those in their first year of residence in hostel accommodation with a meningococcal conjugate vaccine or meningococcal A, C, Y and W135 polysaccharide vaccine, but these vaccinations are not funded by the Government.
The cost to the GP is $75 plus GST for the meningococcal C conjugate and $30 plus GST for the other one.
Dr Bell said there had been a relatively low incidence of the disease over the past five years in the Southern area - 16 type C cases out of a total of 33 cases of meningococcal disease and one death of an 18-year-old schoolgirl in Invercargill last year.
This made it difficult to give clear advice about a non-funded vaccine, he said.
"There are also significant implications for equity of access and, given the cost, the actual risk becomes important to those considering it. On top of that, people interpret risk in different ways.
"We are seeking further advice from the ministry about how to prevent different recommendations in different parts of the country and between similar institutions, such as universities and boarding schools."
People would always need to seek prompt medical attention for any condition that could be meningitis or septicaemia because vaccinations would still not cover all causes.
"The emphasis needs to remain on that approach as being the most important," he said.
