Why do nhs admin staff need the vaccine before teachers?

[BrutusMcDogface]

Just that.

I really want to understand why someone who works in an office, away from any patients (and doesn’t even have to go through any corridors that patients will have gone through) get through vaccine, when teachers/school staff don’t?

Of course I don’t begrudge nhs staff their vaccine; absolutely on the contrary. But why aren’t teachers/school staff somewhere on the priority list? Particularly those who are working with children with SEND; all vulnerable, many of whom need personal care.

Please help me to understand.

Get *the vaccine, not through.

Just for the ease and speed of rolling it out, all Nhs is easier than going through every role with a fine tooth comb.

Fwiw I think the emergence services should get priority too as well as teachers, as police have to deal with positive prisoners / victims

Yes, you’re right of course! Aren’t they somewhere on the list?

People can be vital to keeping the NHS running without necessarily being patient facing. Staff sickness causes difficulties keeping the service running so vaccinating staff is important for this. Not saying they are more important than any other profession, but while you are vaccinating staff you might as well do all staff. However most trusts will probably prioritise patient facing staff.

Where my sister works, the clerks and admin were vaccinated ahead of patient facing staff because the consultants demanded it. It’s been rectified now as mass vaccination clinics have opened but entirely unreasonable to vaccinate clerical staff with minimal patient contact ahead of the nursing staff, and on the say so of the hospital consultants. And it wasn’t just left over vaccines at the end of the day being used, the clerical staff were invited for vaccine.

Not in our health board. Non frontline staff aren't in the priority group, they have to wait just like non health care workers.

I manage an admin team in a diagnostic setting in a hospital. My team are in and out of clinical areas, coming into contact with consultants, nurses, HCA's, porters. Covid patients are brought down to our department and they do use the same corridors as everyone else. Working in this environment, where we are incredibly limited on space, making social distancing very difficult, of course they should be a priority. If my team all catch covid and are off sick, that's 3 different modalities which there will be no admin service for and no appointments will be booked. We deal with both inpatients and outpatients, those people needing scanning to see if they have cancer need my team to be at work.
That's why.

@DebbieFiderer yup I think that’s such a good point for people to remember. Admin staff might not be patient facing but they are crucial for the nhs to keep running. If they are losing massive numbers to isolation and/or sickness... the whole structure is impacted.

Also a lot of admin staff dont work in the way you are describing. Eg my partner works in an office on a ward, has to go in and out of multiple wards/corridors a day etc. Hes not had the vaccine yet but has had multiple times of self isolating as people in his team have had covid and we both had it earlier in the year, so not all admin jobs are without risks.

Also I work for the NHS as an allied health professional but can currently work from home so am not being prioritised for the vaccine (which is right) in pre covid times I was seeing patients..so some trusts are being very clear about who is priority.

Thank you... lockdown madness is setting in! I just felt a little bitter seeing all the people I know who are admin posting on fb that they’ve had their vaccine when I’ve got to go and be in close contact with a class full of people tomorrow.

Totally agree, my NHS admin hubby has had it, but I've not. I'm a clinically vulnerable teacher in a special school !!

Also NHS clerical staff includes receptionists, and they deal with many many patients each face to face, they need to be vaccinated. Or else the service won't run.

In the hospital I work in it's admin and support staff who have direct face to face contact with patients. So that's cleaners (who are on the wards all the time, and are at high risk), catering staff, receptionists, and other administrators who are dealing directly with patients.

Those administrators who don't have any patient contact aren't able to book (but are probably more likely to get a leftover dose at the end of the day than the general public, in fairness). But they are very much in a minority.

I will add that if my team's administrator was not available we would have to do all our own admin, which would reduce the number of patients we see by about 30%. As @Criticalfoxhat says, they really are indispensible.

Someone I know who is an NHS allied health professional who has been working from home since March has had their first dose. Meanwhile I work for a private company providing personal care to a clinically extremely vulnerable people in a care home and haven't heard anything about mine yet! Some of the people I work with rip off face masks and cannot understand social distancing:(

I agree, OP.

I think there should be a backup list of such staff who can get to a centre at the end of the day/drop of a hat. I'd also support such a move for the emergency services. I have DC in the police who is regularly and deliberately spat and coughed at

Teaching staff should be moved up the priority list IMO OP.

I know of speech and occupational therapists who have had it. Working in community, not hospital, and with children. Whilst it's absolutely not their fault, they were called in, I am a bit peeved about it as my elderly mum is still locked in her home not going anywhere.

@Criticalfoxhat

I manage an admin team in a diagnostic setting in a hospital. My team are in and out of clinical areas, coming into contact with consultants, nurses, HCA's, porters. Covid patients are brought down to our department and they do use the same corridors as everyone else. Working in this environment, where we are incredibly limited on space, making social distancing very difficult, of course they should be a priority. If my team all catch covid and are off sick, that's 3 different modalities which there will be no admin service for and no appointments will be booked. We deal with both inpatients and outpatients, those people needing scanning to see if they have cancer need my team to be at work. That's why.

Exactly this

This is a bit othering of admin people. Administrators often do essential work in and things can grind to a halt if they are all of sick. I cant imagine the average hospital admin person manages to avoid toilets, staff areas, touching files, speaking to clinical staff or even walking past patients that easily or i think theyd be home working.

Thats not to say facing a class full isnt a worry and that you shouldnt be getting a vaccine too and you have my sympathy but perhaps its not some poor ward clerks fault!

It's because we treat vulnerable people, so it's not a case of us needing it for ourselves but to protect our patients

Goodness me, I didn’t say it was the ward clerks’ fault!

Because they come in to contact with people and environments that is/are exposed to covid.

Common sense.

NHS wouldn't run without the army of admin behind it and are just as vital as an icu nurse/doctor.

School feels like a ticking time bomb at the moment.

My cousin had his last week. He's an NHS manager. Hasn't had patient contact for years and has wfh since March.

He reckons he can be 'called to the front line at any time'