U-turn on mandatory Covid vaccinations for NHS and social care workers

[WineGetsMeThroughIt]

Apparently this will be announced tomorrow. Thank god there's some sense coming back into this world

www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/01/30/front-line-health-staff-no-longer-need-covid-vaccines/

Thank fuck for that. Shame about the possibly irreparable, completely avoidable damage done to the care sector because of government stupidity though.

Some sense at last.
Phew!

@ahcmonnow

Fantastic news! Gutted for those who were already coerced into getting it or bullied to leave for not.

I agree with all of this post. Wonderful news at last. But, I feel so sorry for those whose lives have been made so difficult lately, purely for wishing to decline a medical procedure. Dark times recently. Light returning? I'm cautiously optimistic

I'm sure those bullied into it as they feared for their jobs, or those who have already left are absolutely delighted that this weak government waited until a few days before the deadline for first jab to change their mind.

I am sorry if medical and care staff don't get vaccinated. I would not want to be treated by an anti vaxer what about being treated by someone with aids?

I think we need to wait and read the small print before celebrating. What they're actually saying is:

"Hospitals in England could continue to employ unvaccinated NHS healthcare workers beyond the April deadline IF not doing so risks leaving them dangerously understaffed, the sector regulator has indicated." From the Guardian.

So it might not be the same rule for everyone depending on staffing levels, role, etc.

@MichelleScarn (love the nod to threat level midnight in your name btw ).

I have visions of people on A&E trolleys with there legs hanging off gasping, “are you vaccinated? I will only be treated by a triple jabbed nurse” while they bleed to death.

Because that will never happen.

As a carer (who would have willingly had the jab anyway) I am absolutely furious that people only give a shit now it’s the NHS. I KNEW this would happen. I’ve seen colleagues fired and leave over this, we are now critically understaffed and some of us had a vaccine we didn’t want to make sure we can feed our kids.

But carers are seen as unskilled, uneducated and no one listened.

*their. Christ. I need sleep.

Thank god. This is fast becoming a police state.

But carers are seen as unskilled, uneducated and no one listened.

Yup. I remember threads on here last year where the resounding opinion was thar care workers didn’t want the vaccine because they were too thick to understand how they worked.

It’s infuriating that this wasn’t spoken about more when it was just those on minimum wage who are usually treated like shit by employers anyway.

caringcarer and I'm sure vaccinated staff would prefer all the patients they're treating not to be anti vaxxers too. But many will be, despite being elderly or CEV and the ones actually at risk!

Of course the vaccine should be added to the mandatory list for HCPs! I find it extremely hard to believe that vaccine refusal is a problem in the sector anyway, given the extremely high vaccination rate and the fact that HCPs will be more likely to take it.

@Halloweenrainbow

I think we need to wait and read the small print before celebrating. What they're actually saying is:

"Hospitals in England could continue to employ unvaccinated NHS healthcare workers beyond the April deadline IF not doing so risks leaving them dangerously understaffed, the sector regulator has indicated." From the Guardian.

So it might not be the same rule for everyone depending on staffing levels, role, etc.

That sounds widely enough written to be able to include any Trust wanting in, since none of them are in a position to be able to safely lose perhaps 5-10% of staff.

It's the best decision.

Yes, ideally everyone who could be vaccinated would choose to be but when the alternative is sacking tens of thousands of essential workers and further crippling the NHS, it's a u turn worth making.

@Alltheprettyseahorses

Of course the vaccine should be added to the mandatory list for HCPs! I find it extremely hard to believe that vaccine refusal is a problem in the sector anyway, given the extremely high vaccination rate and the fact that HCPs will be more likely to take it.

Are you an HCP, or yet another person happy to make decisions about other people's working regulations under the guise of 'the greater good'?

that is good,it is a shame that carers did not have the same voice, but presumably carers can go back to their caring work

@WanderingFruitWonderer

Fantastic news. I'm not an NHS worker; but have always been rooting for them, and passionately opposed to the mandates. Bodily autonomy trumps all in my view. If the mandates had gone ahead, it would have had worrying implications for all of us, going forward. I have empathy for vulnerable people worried about this too, as they're scared, and that fear has been exploited by the powers that be. But, I know NHS workers test regularly, wear PPE, and stay away if they have symptoms. I don't believe patients are being put at further risk by this soon-to-be announcement. The opposite in fact, as there'll be more HCPs available to actually treat patients. Understaffing would have been the biggest risk factor to patients

Can I just add that NHS workers in my trust at least don’t have to test regularly. We were given boxes of LFTs if we wanted to and told to report them Twice weekly but now we have to order online like everyone else or get them from pharmacies (at my trust). There’s no requirement or push for us to use them and report regularly at all.

Many don’t test regularly with them. I’ve had one PCR back in 2020 for work. That’s it. I test regularly as I see my very vulnerable dad and work on a ward so it’s important for me.

I’m very pro vaccine and had all three. It’s made a huge difference in deaths and illness in hospital. Only 3/4 couple of people on our large ward haven’t had the vaccine.

However when we’ve now variants that have changed covid so much that it can mean that the vaccine doesn’t stop transmission as effectively as the earlier variants and the booster only lasts weeks for that before dropping. Any of us vaccinated/boosted back in October can still catch it and while somewhat less likely can still spread it too. So is it worth losing staff for? When omicron raised its head this should of been paused for further info..

The House of Lords opposed the legislation because they felt there wasn’t enough evidence to justify it as the vaccine does not prevent infection/transmission with omicron (when passed for social care we had not reached omicron yet). I filled in the consultation for social care as did lots of others and the only group in favour were care home managers. Even the majority of residents did not support it.
I think people need to wake up to what is happening in government, constitutional reform that will make it easier for the government to bring about laws unopposed. Laws which remove personal freedom.

This is really good news, everyone should have a right to chose what goes into their body. I feel so sorry for all the care workers who have lost their jobs already though.

Bit late for the care sector.

@BungleandGeorge

The House of Lords opposed the legislation because they felt there wasn’t enough evidence to justify it as the vaccine does not prevent infection/transmission with omicron (when passed for social care we had not reached omicron yet). I filled in the consultation for social care as did lots of others and the only group in favour were care home managers. Even the majority of residents did not support it. I think people need to wake up to what is happening in government, constitutional reform that will make it easier for the government to bring about laws unopposed. Laws which remove personal freedom.

The cynic in me suspects that the care managers support had a lot to do with the rules around self isolation as a contact and a lot less about anyone's safety.

Excellent news.

I'm glad we'll avoid (sometime in the future) the farcical situation seen elsewhere whereby you lose your job if unvaccinated but you can go to work if you actually have covid. Mandates are ethically wrong and practically cause terrible staff shortages.

I hope all those experienced and valuable carers who lost their jobs a couple of months ago due to the compulsory vaccination policy can get their jobs back now.

I think it's awful. It was completely fine to force low paid, mainly female, care workers to be vaccinated, those of society already under paid and normally the most vulnerable by enforcing care home vaccinations from Dec 2021. But a U turn now it is affecting those in a higher social economic class.

I posted last year that I felt is was wrong to force carers to get vaccinated and wa shouted down