Compulsory vacinating for front line medical staff

I’m all for it too. Anyone looking after others, old, frail, vulnerable, sick or children should be fully vaccinated.

In principle, I don't agree with it, but it has to be done.
No other option is acceptable, if we want to try and ever get ahead of the virus.

I am well aware that people have the right to make their own choices but we haven't had to deal with anything as destructive as Covid before and we ALL need to accept responsibility for ourselves and others in keeping this virus under some sort of control. As an ex-employee of the NHS, this organisation was in crisis before Covid so to lose such a huge chunk of the workforce would spell disaster. I hope common sense prevails.

People were queuing round the block for smallpox vaccines back in the day...also Polio and TB. what is wrong with people these days?

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-55495972/
smallpox in scotland. look at the queues.

I suppose it's the only way to protect vulnerable people from covid. I hope not too many refuse the jab as NHS already is struggling.

Vaccination is to be compulsory only for those in face to face contact with patients, but I think staff relations would be improved if all the managers not face to face with patients were to set an example by getting vaccinated anyway. After all, their work is so vital that they must take every precaution not to be struck down.

lemsip

People were queuing round the block for smallpox vaccines back in the day...also Polio and TB. what is wrong with people these days?

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-55495972/
smallpox in scotland. look at the queues.

Didn't those vaccines protect you from ever catching those diseases? Or certainly for long periods of your life.

The covid vaccines, like their flu relatives, don't last very long. And covid is less dangerous to most people than the above diseases.

Disclaimer: I'm covid vaccinated. Just pointing out important facts that perhaps make a difference (as well as anti-vaxx cospiracy theories nowadays).

Macron has said that over 65s will have their health passes deactivated if they don't have the booster vaccination by mid December.

The majority of vaccinations are not 100%. Both of my children had whooping cough and one had measles, despite vaccination, but the illnesses were mild. Having friends and family left with life long respiratory problems following whooping cough when no vaccinations existed. I am very grateful for that.

As a child following the flag I had lots of vaccinations, some of them many times because they were only effective for a few years. Choloera was only effective for six months.

There may be one or two vaccinations that are once and forever, but I do not think the majority are.

vaccine stopped people being crippled in the case of polio....If covid crippled everyone would be clambering for the vaccine!

I would have no problem with the measure being brought in for new employees (as is the case with other vaccinations), I’m not sure how I feel about it being brought in for those already employed. It is a huge change to their conditions of employment.

I find myself genuinely conflicted about it. On the one hand, they will be working with the most frail and vulnerable. We need to protect those people. On the other, is this truly consent? Consent to medical procedures it’s supposed the be given freely, without coercion or influence. Can we honestly say that the threat of ‘have the vaccine, or lose your job’ isn’t an attempt at coercing them? I really don’t know, I go back and forth on it and really can’t settle on how I feel.

Whatever the rights or wrongs, I just hope it doesn’t lead to too many of our nhs staff leaving their jobs. Most settings are already woefully understaffed. An unvaccinated doctor is better than no doctor at all.

I am for everyone being vaccinated, I won't use a hair dresser or a physio who isn't vaccinated and I would like to know that anyone I meet in a medical or care setting is too. My mother had diptheria as a teenager which damaged her heart and affected the quality of her life. There wasn't a vaccination then but it is absolutely beyond me why anyone would refuse to be vaccinated against something that can be life changing. I am aware that vaccination does not prevent someone from catching Covid but it does make it much less infectious and surely anyone caring for vulnerable people would not want to risk passing covid to their patients/clients.

Care home workers who don't want to be vaccinated are becoming microproviders, which means they are moving into caring for people in their own homes as independent carers.
It is a concern that elderly and vulnerable clients may assume that their carers have been vaccinated. I don't know if this is true of care companies or whether just independent care providers.

I think everyone (unless for medical reasons) should have the vaccine.

The ridiculous thing is that those carers who are taking on private customers are providing the kind of care that's needed, often, just like that which home helps used to give.
Collecting prescriptions, a bit of housework, preparing meals, etc.

I simply cannot understand why people refuse the vaccine, particularly those working with the vulnerable. They are at risk but they are also deliberately putting their patients at risk, which is unforgiveable.

Do none of you wonder why these obviously educated medical professionals dont want the vaccine?

Biscuitminder the vast majority of doctors and senior medical staff are vaccinated. Non-vaccination rates rise as the level of medical training of staff declines and is highest among those working with patients, like porters, cleaners etc, who have no medical training.

Why do you think this is?

Biscuitmuncher

Do none of you wonder why these obviously educated medical professionals dont want the vaccine?

Do you not wonder why around 90% of obviously educated front line health workers are double-vaccinated?

My friend was in hospital recently and said that quite a few carers and nurses haven't had the vaccine, but that they all wear all the protective gear - aprons, gloves, masks, face shields too, so what's the problem? She had physiotherapy at home, and the physiotherapists wore all that gear as well.

Sorry M0nica - I see that you made the same point first.

MamaCaz we all repeat each others at times and as you posted barely two minutes after me, you had no time to see my post.

HowVeryDareYou Protective gear is not a sure protection against infection. DH was in hospital during the second wave of COVID. He was protected from COVID because he volunteered for the AZ testing program and, as we discovered later, had been vaccinated with the vaccine, not the placebo.

However despite all this protective gear for staff they still managed to give him another severe infection, which was antibiotic resistant, and came very close indeed to killing him. His original surgical problem required one operation and a fortnight in hospital. The infection required another 6 weeks in hospital and three more operations because of the antibiotic resistance and a year later he is over the infection but has been left with damaged respiratory system.

Anyone who thinks that providing everyone wears protective gear they are completely protected from infection is delusional.

Thank you Lemsip for that interesting link about smallpox in Scotland, so sad, especially about the young lady doctor from Hamilton, our neighbouring town. However, it showed how willing people were to be vaccinated.

My lovely sister in law died last October from Covid. Her daughter, our God daughter, a young wife and mother, was in a coma on a ventilator from October to December. Her Mum was dead and buried by the time she regained consciousness.

My dear friend, from Primary school days, has a son and daughter in law who are both frontline NHS staff... They are not vaccinated.

I think that many families have dilemmas. However, I do believe that all NHS/care staff should be vaccinated a as a condition of employment.

We are in uncharted waters... I have read a lot about the ' Spanish Flu' a century ago. We don't know how long this is going to last, or how much it is going to mutate. One of my greatest fears is that it will affect the children. I have recently heard of children in hospital with Covid, and I remember reading about the numbers of children in Australia and NZ being hospitalised with various RSVs during their winter..

Our local schools are struggling with staff and pupil absences, Scot Gov is saying that we may need to re examine the restrictions of last winter, so I really think that NHS, Care Home Staff and all teachers should be vaccinated.

My young medic dd and her pals couldn’t get the vaccines done fast enough! She doesn’t know any workmates who’ve refused it.

On the other hand, her unit spent hours one night with an anti-vax mother who was terrified her child had Covid. The child was perfectly well but the mother was hysterical. Yet she said she didn’t believe in vaccines. ?‍♀️