WellKiwis Infant Study

Every child’s experience with flu helps scientists understand how immunity develops. The WellKiwis Infant Study will follow children from birth for up to seven years to learn how early exposure to flu infection or vaccination shapes their immune system over time. This knowledge will support researchers to develope better, longer-lasting flu vaccines that protect future generations.

The aim of this research study is to help us answer the following questions to fill in the global knowledge gaps:

• How does the immune system respond when children are exposed to flu?

• Why are some children better protected from severe flu illness than others?

• How does a child’s first experience with flu or vaccination influence their future immunity?

Wellkiwis Infant Study 2

Following the success of the first WellKiwis Infant Study (2019–2026), we are now recruiting babies for the next phase of this important research. WellKiwis Infant Study 2 will follow children for up to seven years from birth, continuing our work to understand how children’s first exposure to flu infection or vaccination shapes their immune responses over time. 

To be eligible to join the study, we are looking for:

• babies born from 1 October 2024 onwards and who are consented to the study within 6 months of birth.

• living in Wellington region (Wellington City, Porirua, Hutt Valley, Eastern and Western suburbs) and plan to stay there for the next few years.

NOTE: Kapiti Coast is not part of the WellKiwis study area.

We will obtain a baseline blood sample at the beginning of enrolment, this has to be provided to continue participation. The baseline blood is crucial, as it shows us the initial makeup of the immune system and enables us a comparison with the immune system after it has been exposed to the flu or the flu vaccine.

We have an amazing team of phlebotomists and nurses who have experience in taking blood from babies and can visit you at home to take this sample from your baby. To learn more about WellKiwis and how easy our participants find being in the study, take a look at the video below.