Antenatal HIV screening is offered to all women with the other five routine antenatal blood tests.  As with all blood tests and procedures appropriate informed consent is required before testing can be undertaken.  Diagnosis and appropriate treatment of HIV in pregnancy reduces the risk of transmission from 25 - 31.5% to less than 1%.  Treatment will also improve the health of the woman diagnosed and offers the potential to identify and prevent community transmission.

read more about Antenatal HIV Screening here

Quality improvements for antenatal screening for Down syndrome and other conditions being introduced in 2010 include:

- first trimester combined screening, which combines maternal serum screening in the first trimester with a nuchal translucency scan result

- second trimester maternal serum screening

read more about Antenatal Screening for Down Syndrome and other conditions - Quality Improvements here

BreastScreen Aotearoa is a national programme that provides free screening mammograms and follow-up for asymptomatic women aged 45 to 69 years.

The aim of the programme is to reduce women’s morbidity and mortality from breast cancer by identifying cancers at an early stage, allowing treatment to be commenced sooner than might otherwise have been possible.

read more about BreastScreen Aotearoa here

The National Cervical Screening Programme is available to all women in New Zealand aged 20 until they turn 70 who have ever been sexually active. Being part of the National Cervical Screening Programme and having cervical smear tests every three years can prevent cervical cancer. A cervical smear test shows if there are abnormal changes in the cells on the surface of the cervix. The National Cervical Screening Programme is reliant on specific services being provided by a range of service providers throughout the screening pathway.  These include primary health care services, laboratories, colposcopy services, regional services and independent service providers.

read more about National Cervical Screening Programme here

The Newborn Metabolic Screening Programme screens for rare but potentially serious disorders such as phenylketonuria (PKU), cystic fibrosis, and congenital hypothyroidism. A blood sample is taken from the baby’s heel at 48 hours of age (the ‘heel prick’ or ‘Guthrie’ test).  If a disorder is found, early treatment can prevent permanent damage or death.

read more about Newborn Metabolic Screening Programme here

Newborn hearing screening is designed to check whether your baby hears well.  If your baby does have a hearing loss, finding it early is good for their language, learning and social development. When it is fully implemented all 21 DHBs will be offering newborn hearing screening free of charge.  

read more about Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Programme here