News from Aotearoa/New Zealand and the Pacific Islands

Ravn said:
Just for a Kiwi audience:

TVNZ+ has an overall excellent 16min documentary on young adults with Long Covid, one of the participants also has ME. A short clip of this was also shown on the 6pm news today

You have to be logged in to watch. Under 'News' look for “Offered rest home care at 24: Lonely plight of young Kiwis with long Covid”

ETA: though apart from the one person with ME nobody else mentioned it and the doctors seemed to almost go out of their way to avoid it, sigh
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Thanks for that, will try and check it out when able… yeah, too much slips through the cracks.
 

Wood burning and gas cooking hugely costly to healthcare systems, New Zealand study finds​

Air pollution from wood burning and gas cooking is massively costly to our healthcare systems and the economy. These are the conclusions of a peer-reviewed study from New Zealand that calculated the cost of hospital treatment, days off ill and early deaths from the air pollution produced by fireplaces, stoves, gas cooking and un-flued room heaters.
Indoor air pollution from New Zealand’s 523,000 wood burners was estimated to account for 446 hospital admissions for heart and lung problems, and 101 early deaths annually, in a country with a population of just over 5 million people. Breathing fumes from gas cooking indoors created more than 1,000 hospital admissions, 208 early deaths and more than 3,000 new cases of childhood asthma each year.

Dr Gareth Gretton, from the New Zealand government’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, said: “We were aware of growing international evidence of the importance of indoor air quality, but we did not have a method for quantifying the cost of air pollution from gas and wood burning appliances.”

Open fires were found to be the most harmful way to heat a home. The health impacts of extra air pollution breathed in each house with a fire led to an annual cost of around NZ$53,400 (£23,000) to the New Zealand healthcare system and economy. This assumes a household of two adults and two children who are exposed to air pollution indoors from their open fire.
Even modern stoves created indoor air pollution. The researchers estimated a health and economy cost of NZ$1,800 annually from air pollution breathed in by each household that used one of these appliances. And indoor pollution from gas cooking exerted an annual cost of NZ$9,200 from each household.

Jayne Metcalfe, from the New Zealand consultancy Emission Impossible, said: “The hardest part was estimating how much different indoor combustion appliances affect air quality in people’s homes. We reviewed studies from New Zealand and overseas, but indoor air quality is complex. Even so, the results were clear: no matter which assumptions you use, the health costs from indoor air pollution are significant for all the combustion appliances we looked at.”
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Interesting, not sure this is seriously new information, though it certainly supports the currently popular step away from gas use ,(have to add that being financially stretched ,personally, its not helpful information !).

In a climate of growing extremes ,sometimes snowy, are we being told to spend more, amidst rising living costs, and burden our already (nz) failing power grid ?
Or -worse yet- purchase non-recyclable solar power panels ?
Sorry,… grumpy tired !
…these broad grandstanding statements…
Thankfully they note air quality is complex !(Without bringing cooking into the mix compare someone breathing air living right next to a main travel route/motorway with another in a well ventilated remote seaside home).
Studies of air quality in germany ,back in the 90s ,discussed those who walked along main traffic routes to work, what that can do to our lungs, even just sitting in traffic jams … just saying.

Something that always brings a snigger is imagining how our power companies would cope if everyone in NZ owned an electric car that required plugging in to fully recharge overnight…. would we have Chinas scheduled power cuts ? A heart Surgeon I know ,who works 6 months of the year in Shanghai, and 6 months here, said it could be challenging waiting for their generators to kick in if emergency work coincided with their regular power cuts.
 
www.phcc.org.nz

The great divide: How different Covid-19 control strategies shaped pandemic outcomes

New research shows that internationally, jurisdictions that adopted exclusion/elimination strategies achieved dramatically lower Covid-19 mortality during the critical 2020-21 period without clear economic disadvantages.
www.phcc.org.nz www.phcc.org.nz

The great divide: How different Covid-19 control strategies shaped pandemic outcomes

Summary ​

At the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, countries responded in a range of ways. Our new research reveals that those that put in place explicit exclusion/elimination strategies achieved dramatically lower Covid-19 mortality during the critical 2020-21 period.

These jurisdictions recorded negative excess mortality—fewer deaths than expected based on previous years—with -2.1 deaths per 100,000 population, compared with 166.5 per 100,000 in other jurisdictions. In particular, island jurisdictions with stringent border restrictions experienced substantially better outcomes than non-islands.

Crucially, we found no consistent evidence that stringent border restrictions harmed economic growth compared to jurisdictions with less stringent restrictions. This finding challenges widespread assumptions about inevitable trade-offs between health and the economy.
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On Radio NZ this morning about some qualitative research on people with Long covid by Dr Sarah Rhodes::

Long Covid patients report being gaslit about their illness, and feel increasingly let down by the health system. New research by Otago University, which for the first time investigated access to care by those with Long Covid, has found lack of support, unmet need, and inequity of care were common themes. It details a number of recommendations for Government including greater investment in primary care, better training for the health workforce, and the creation of a public awareness campaign. Long Covid is the persistence of symptoms beyond 12 weeks following acute Covid 19 infection. It is estimated to affect one in ten people and can be extremely debilitating.

The research involved interviews with 18 people - two of whom were so fatigued a verbal interview could not be completed - and they had to provide written answers. Kathryn speaks to lead researcher for the project Dr Sarah Rhodes.
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Tate WP, Peppercorn K, Bowden N, Charlton F. Managing chronic fatigue conditions with overlapping symptoms, and the health policies and social services supporting those affected.
Med Res Arch. 2025 Dec 1;13(11).
Dolphin

Thread 'Managing chronic fatigue conditions with overlapping symptoms, and the health policies and social services supporting those affected, 2025, Tate et al'

Tate WP, Peppercorn K, Bowden N, Charlton F. Managing chronic fatigue conditions with overlapping symptoms, and the health policies and social services supporting those affected.
Med Res Arch. 2025 Dec 1;13(11).
https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/7104
https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/7104/99193549742

Abstract​

Complex chronic conditions present a formidable challenge to clinicians to diagnose and manage for their patients, and the diseases are still relatively poorly understood.

The chronic fatigue conditions, Myalgic...
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For Kiwis

ANZMES is seeking feedback from members and non-members on past/current performance and future direction
ANZMES is changing. As we transition to a Charitable Trust and look toward the future, we want to ensure our goals align with the reality of what you expect.

We are asking for your help to rank our priorities. We would greatly appreciate if you could please take 5–10 minutes to fill out this survey. Your input is important in shaping the future of ANZMES.

Responses are due Monday 2nd February 2026.
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Link to survey

Members have also been sent a paper form as an alternative to the online survey. I haven’t asked but I’m sure ANZMES would be happy to send one to non-member Kiwis, too (info@anzmes.org.nz)

[Posting this in both the NZ and the ANZMES threads]
 
Ravn said:
For Kiwis

ANZMES is seeking feedback from members and non-members on past/current performance and future direction
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Just a few days left to complete the survey, due by Monday 2nd February 2026.

Most of the questions have tick box answers but there are some free text options, too

It’s not that often one of our patient organisations is having a good look at itself and its roles, at least not publicly. Seeking input from both members & non-members is also unusual but welcome. So, Kiwis, let’s give them something to think about. Constructive criticism, specific praise, fresh ideas...
 
Mel Abbot of The Switch shares her highlights from 2025 on her Facebook profile for her business "Empower Therapies"

I was voted 16th out of 200 speakers at the National GP Conference. All through the conference, doctors came up to share stories of patients they’d referred who had recovered — incredibly touching.
ANZMES issued a statement supporting the right of mind-body practitioners and clients to share recovery stories — a significant step forward! It's unfortunate that many ME and long-COVID support groups have (so far) not followed ANZMES recommendations, but here's hoping 2026 will be a year of some more great steps forward in this area.
I became a contributor to Brainz Magazine and have produced two articles so far, which has led to several international interviews on podcast channels.
Here is my profile page with my two articles so far - one about the five root causes of chronic illness and another about my own harrowing recovery from ME/CFS and the research into effective treatments for ME/CFS.
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Sadly she did not get best speaker thrice in a row at last year's National GP conference, (the optional CME one run by LP promoter Prof Arroll) not as well attended as the regular national one run by the College but still atrocious she gets to ply her trade there.

She seems very happy with ANZMES and overly hopeful she will get support from more scientifically minded pwME. (I think she has more confidence in their particular "recommendation" than I have). ;)

She has now got articles written in the so called "Brainz Magazine" and they claim she is

1) is a global expert contributor.
https://www.brainzmagazine.com/exec...iv5u5TzzcSh_m_KEdw_aem_flPBMGYR8bEI4mFpK00L2g

and 2) A finalist for NZ Inspirational Woman of the Year 2024. I am not sure about that as their website doesn't state she was a finalist-https://www.inspirationalwomenawards.org/inspirational-woman-finalists-2024

She has two articles full of pseudoscience (she quotes the Decode ME study and does a bit of hypothesising about epigenetics)
https://www.brainzmagazine.com/post...covery-story-and-how-science-shows-us-the-way

In one of her articles:
Doctors now refer patients to me. In fact, medical professionals are my second largest source of referrals after word of mouth. I’ve presented six times at national GP conferences and been voted Best Speaker twice out of more than 200 presenters. I also contribute to the Otago Medical School programme, teaching future doctors how to discuss mind-body factors in a way that empowers patients instead of invalidating the severity of their illness or implying that it is made up (more on that later).
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and at the bottom of the article
Mel Abbott is a mind-body health specialist and founder of The Switch Program. After an 11-year struggle with chronic illness herself, she made a full recovery and has since helped thousands of people worldwide overcome conditions such as ME/CFS, fibromyalgia, CRPS, anxiety, and more, achieving around 80% success rates. She has been voted best speaker at two national GP medical conferences and is a contributor to the Otago Medical School Year 3 handbook, where her insights help shape the next generation of doctors. Mel’s work blends science, compassion, and practical tools to calm the nervous system and unlock the body’s natural healing ability. Her passion is simple yet powerful, recovery is possible!
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Mel does not have a good grasp of science or medicine. In the article she states
My illness was very real and physical. My blood cortisol levels had been measured every three months for 11 years and were always triple the normal healthy level. My doctor would comment that I would feel very unwell with levels like that, but other than temporary management with Propanolol, there was nothing she could do.
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She does outline her ME/CFS/concussion recovery earlier on but no longer by the miracle of LP (this appears to be conveniently left out as many pwME in Aotearoa know The Switch is derived from the pseudoscience NLP, the NICE recommendation not to use LP and related therapies and after being educated about her phoney therapy from those pesky ME and LC support groups:)).

Serum cortisols are non-specific, cortisol levels change during the day. Three times the normal level puts her serum cortisol in the level seen in Cushing's Disease and is not diagnostic, one needs a 24 hour urinary cortisol collection and the low dose dexamethasone suppression test to investigate for Cushing's Disease. I ordered these later tests many times as a medical registrar and have a bit of experience treating Cushing's 30 years ago. I am surprised she has untreated Cushing's Disease and is still alive. Another miracle. Propranolol is a treatment for high cortisol from the rare adrenal hyperplasia but why does she not mention this? - spoils the grift I suppose.

This is a new personal narrative she appears to have come up with. Before, and what she tells her GP's at conferences is she had goitre and high thyroid function tests that she treated with LP and it magically went away and has fully recovered. The treatment for goitre is anti-thyroid medication, radioactive iodine ablation of the thyroid or surgery then life long thyroid hormone replacement. (having had this myself).

But her illness has now somehow also morphed into stress. She thinks this level of cortisol is "stress induced". Oh dear, I was also starting out as a psychiatric registrar way back then and if someone has excess stress/ anxiety etc we do not need a blood test to tell us this - the client tells us about this while we take a psychiatric history and observe various levels of anxiety on the mental status examination. Cushing's is not hard to recognise clinically and GP's have usually ruled this out before referral. Also blood cortisols were only ordered after the client shows physical characteristics of Cushing's not as a routine screening test for "stress or anxiety". Blood cortisols are useless as a marker for "stress" We didn't have integrative "functional" GP's in the 90's who did loads of blood tests looking for mild disruptions from the norm and prescribing their favourite supplement concoction.

This appears to be part of the current Cortisol Reset promoted by some psychologists and a lot of pseudoscience grifters on social media. Mel also mentioned brain retraining (getting on board with this grift). Browsing her FB company site she is now also doing the "Deep Switch" for untreated "trauma". Another alternative psychological therapy she has created and no doubt will trademark.
 
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Brainz Magazine operated by Winkvist Group Ab, is a global digital magazine focusing on exclusive interviews, articles and information on entrepreneurship, personal development, leadership and lifestyle. Our mission is to advocate for people's happiness and success by providing consumers with content that inspires, motivates and provides the answers they seek. Our vision is to provide the best and most inspiring content in the world.
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