As a registered nurse or midwife, when can I administer vaccinations?

If you are a registered nurse or midwife, under current New Zealand law you can administer vaccinations if: (a) the vaccine has been prescribed by a medical practitioner; (b) there is a standing order for vaccinations at the healthcare facility where you work; or (c) you are an authorised independent vaccinator and you are vaccinating as part of an approved national or local immunisation programme.

If I am an authorised independent vaccinator, can I prescribe any vaccine for my patients?

No. As an authorised independent vaccinator you cannot prescribevaccines but you can administer vaccinations that are part of an approved immunisation programme. These can either be national immunisation programmes approved by the Ministry of Health, such as the National Immunisation Schedule, or local immunisation programmes approved by the Medical Officer of Health.

How do I know if an immunisation programme is approved?

The National Immunisation Schedule is a nationally approved immunisation programme. If you are uncertain whether other immunisation programmes are approved, ask your programme manager or contact us for this information. If the immunisation programme is not approved, you or your programme manager will need to apply to the Medical Officer of Health for approval of a new local immunisation programme.

If I am an authorised independent vaccinator, can I get other nurses without authorisation to administer vaccinations on my behalf?

No. Your authorisation as an independent vaccinator cannot be transferred to other nurses without authorisation.

I am reapplying for my authorisation to be renewed and I need to complete a peer-reviewed self-assessment of my clinical skills. Can the doctor I work with act as my peer reviewer?

No. Only another authorised independent vaccinator can act as a peer reviewer for a peer-reviewed self-assessment.