TACOMA, Wash. -- The union representing nurses at two local hospitals is suing MultiCare over mandatory flu shots for all employees. There is the risk of losing their jobs if they don't comply.
Nurses at Tacoma General Hospital and Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup are both operated by MultiCare. One nurse has already been suspended and the union fears some nurses could get fired.
Will be interesting to see how this turns out. What do you think? I DID get my flu shot this year, like always. Where I work, if you don't, you must wear a mask throughout your shift.
our hospital requires a mask from November to April when an unvaccinated employee is within 6 feet of another person (staff or patients). There was only one other staff member with a documented allergy to eggs that ever declined the vaccine. Most get it. The patients on the other hand....
Religious reasons? What would the religious reason for refusing a vaccine be?
"several smaller religious sects, most notably Christian Scientists and the Amish, oppose vaccination on religious grounds
...
Religious communities — particularly Christian Science, Amish, and Mennonite communities — have been the source of many preventable disease outbreaks in recent years."
I'm definitely in favor of protect-the-vulnerable-pts policies, but to allow NO alternative is crazy. Seriously, say a single parent is trying to provide for the children in a tough market. Say said person is allergic to eggs. Should s/he be coerced into taking a shot knowing full well the risks, because they are desperate to work?
Not at all. Said person should ask for (and receive) the egg-free version. It exists, and is administered for those who claim an egg allergy. Ok, one problem averted.
Allergic to the preservatives used, antibiotics, thimerosol? No problem there either: person who claims this is an obstacle can get a preservative-free vaccination instead. So....another problem eliminated.
Where I work, those who claim to have had adverse reactions to the 'regular' vaccination have been offered the alternatives, with many of them taking them. Not a one has succumbed, for what it's worth, to the pitfalls they had associated with other versions of the vaccine. Nope....all who received whatever version of the vax they wanted are still standing.
Getting harder and harder to claim "the shot is going to kill me" nowadays, honestly.
Twinmom06, ASN, APN
1,171 Posts
our hospital requires a mask from November to April when an unvaccinated employee is within 6 feet of another person (staff or patients). There was only one other staff member with a documented allergy to eggs that ever declined the vaccine. Most get it. The patients on the other hand....