declining vaccines

[rockappella]

Hi,

Has anyone submited a declination form for the yearly flu vaccines and tdap as a nursing student and succeeded in Texas?

[klone, MSN, RN]

I'm pretty sure that since hospitals (clinical placements) can put whatever requirements/restrictions they want, nursing school is not going to accept it, since if you don't get required vaccines, you will not be allowed to participate in clinicals.

[Twinmom06, ASN, APN]

while not in TX I will tell you that more often than not its the hospitals that require the vaccinations in order for you to do clinical. No shots, no clinical, no passing the course. I know some people are anti flu vax but why no tdap? If you're doing OB clinical and you don't get a tdap, you can infect a helpless infant with Pertussis and wind up killing them.

[klone, MSN, RN]

It also appears that students enrolled in healthcare programs in Texas have special requirements with regards to immunizations.

http://info.sos.state.tx.us/pls/pub/readtac$ext.TacPage?sl=R&app=9&p_dir=&p_rloc=&p_tloc=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_tac=&ti=25&pt=1&ch=97&rl=64

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

Texas has adopted the CDC recommendations for vaccinations, which include the flu vaccine and TDaP. If a hospital is accredited by JCthe expectation is that students, contract, agencies, per diem----anyone caring for a patient will be treated like a regularly hired staff member. So you may need the vaccines to be allowed in the hospital. In our facility, following CDC guidelines, if you decline the flu vaccine you can wear a mask from October thru end of March. Be aware that once you are licensed you will be needing these titers and vaccines anyway, so might as well take the plunge. If you become a carrier you can make many people sick and some might die. It is not worth the risk for you or others.

[ArtClassRN, ADN, RN]

Hope not.

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

I don't know about Texas but I can say with some degree of confidence that a student without a current TDaP would not have been allowed to participate in clinicals at my school. When I was doing my Pedi Clinical, there was a pertussis outbreak in the hospital I was at (none of those in my clinical group were exposed) and we were all required to get boosters.

[student for life]

I'm not in Texas but for my program we are only allowed to decline Hep B. If we refuse any other vaccine we are removed from the program.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

OP....do you have more info on why you're asking?

[Hex, LPN]

Yeah, why would you want to decline them unless you're allergic?

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

Yeah, why would you want to decline them unless you're allergic?

If there was a documented allergy or serious adverse effect you would have a medical exemption not a refusal.

Be aware that refusal, especially of the TDaP/DTaP vaccine can result in removal from the nursing program. There was no option to decline this vaccine, you were given an extension (as some students had to pay out of pocket) until 4 weeks prior to pediatrics or maternity clinical rotation. You could make an informed decision to decline the HepB. Declining the flu vaccine could result in dismissal from certain clinical sites if the site deemed the influenza vaccine mandatory. If you were lucky there was a slot at a different clinical site (that did not mandate influenza) for the current or next semester

Post secondary education/ nursing school is not mandated like elementary or secondary/ high school. Therefore the options are generally comply with the health requirements (unless verifiable medical exemption ) or withdraw from the program.

[NurseGirl525, ASN, RN]

I'm trying to understand why you would refuse. You are entering the nursing field. You should at this point be educated enough about vaccines to know that we need them. If you do not want them, then you need to go into another line of work. To me it's hypocritical to work in the medical field and not get vaccinated.