Hospital Requiring Employees to take H1N1 Vaccine

Nurses General Nursing

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Just wanted to get some thoughts on a hospital requiring all employees who have contact with patients to take the H1N1 Vaccine. Thoughts about this being REQUIRED. If an employee refuses, they have to wear a mask for the entire flu season from the moment they walk on hospital grounds until they leave?

Thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Dea

Specializes in CCRN.

Not required, but as an ICU nurse I will be offered first and will take the vaccination. My fear is that I will be immune but my husband and daughter will not.

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Specializes in Acute post op ortho.
I have doubts about whether any school can MANDATE vaccination. What if a student is allergic to a component, or has religious reasons for refusing? We have lots of working nurses who have good reasons for not being vaccinated, they went to school SOMEWHERE, didn't they?

Anyone know?

http://www.nvic.org/Vaccine-Laws/state-vaccine-requirements.aspx

Legally, there is a huge difference. Vaccines on the CDC's recommended list are encompassed in the VICP

http://www.hrsa.gov/Vaccinecompensation/

What most people don't know is why we have the VICP in the first place.

Dr. David Tayloe Sr. (yes, the father of the man who is now the president of the AAP) lost 3.5 million dollar lawsuit, (after giving a second does of DPT to a child who had an adverse event from the first dose) one of the biggest awards ever, the year before the vaccine court was created.

http://www.karneylaw.com/CM/VerdictsSettlements/top_5_verdicts_settlements.asp

So, should this vaccine ever fall into the class of biologics protected by the VICP, the manufacturer will be shielded from all liability.

All funds distributed by the VICP are collected via surtax, paid by you & me.

Ain't that a *****?

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Hope this is not a stupid question but does anyone think they are using healthcare workers as test subjects? Next year they take a poll of all the people who took the H1N1 and see how they are now. Could we be the human trials. researchers are known for loving to test nurses and other heathcare workers because we pay attention to s/s, we are very aware of s/s and we are good at keeping tract of health information. Just a thought:confused:

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Specializes in Acute post op ortho.
Get a lawyer! I really wish I was on my computer right now, lol. I have a site that breaks down the exemptions in each state. Actually I recently posted the site in another thread regarding the swine flu....you can try looking for it in that thread. Bottom line....there's medical, religious or philosophical reasons and each state offers at least one or all of those reasons. They can't make you do it.

http://www.nvic.org/Vaccine-Laws/state-vaccine-requirements.aspx

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Specializes in ED.
What are you talking about? The H1N1 injectable is inactivated, only the inhaled versions are live.

Have you been following the development? The first H1N1 vaccine is the nasal spray, which is live viruses. Because they want health care workers to be vaccinated first, this will likely be the type of vaccine that will be required.

http://www.reuters.com/article/GCA-SwineFlu/idUSTRE58H4EP20090918

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Specializes in Psych , Peds ,Nicu.
'm with those who are not for requireing the flu h1n1 flu vaccine. Its alive vaccine unlike the regular flu vaccine and thus the rate of those who will have flu from it is bound to be higher. And might this not be worse than us healthy folks not having it. I even hesitate to suggest that those with pulmonary diseases get it. All this is aside from my feelings that the this is yet another way of the government interferring with health care.And what about those folks who have flu like s/s but not the flu and taking tamiflu?

The decision being discussed in this thread is the EMPLOYERS decision whether the H1N1 vaccine should be mandated for their employee's , The GOVERNMENT plays NO part in that decision , so why throw in that red herring .:confused:

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I heartily agree with you, and would certainly do so if I could.

My point was that with mandatory vaccinations, those of us who are unable to take the vaccine won't be able to work for however long the powers that be decide the flu season will last. Unpaid. I don't mean side effects & I don't mean the goofy wingnut arguments against vaccines. I mean full blown, doccumented Anaphalaxys. (in response to several prior condescending, paternalistic posts from nurses who obviously don't understand what anaphalaxys entails.)

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