Fears mandatory jabs for care home workers could lead to staff shortages
Care home staff and volunteers will be need to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 from November 11 - Credit: ARCHANT
Care home staff and volunteers will need to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 from November 11 – but it is feared that by making the jabs mandatory it will lead to staff shortages.
Care home staff and volunteers will be need to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 from November 11 – but it is feared that by making the jabs mandatory it will lead to staff shortages.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid is urging all health service workers to get both jabs to protect vulnerable patients.
About 88 per cent of NHS trust staff have received two Covid doses, but in some trusts that falls to 78 per cent, figures show.
But some unions and care organisations have warned that making the jabs mandatory will lead to staff shortages.
In our social media question of the week, we asked if you agree that care home workers should be vaccinated – and it led to an insightful debate.
While some of you believed to be jabbed was a “duty of care” others believed it should still be a personal choice.
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Pat Alden-Smith: “Surely it is part of the duty of care?? A lot of care workers have been vaccinated against Covid-19.
"If you are a caring person who wants to care for others you want the best for them and that should be having the vaccine to help to stop further transmission.”
Karieanne Rahilly: “No. They [care home staff] spent the best part of 18 months working hard. They were forgotten by the government.
"Visitors to the residents don't have to have vaccines. Why should carer’s? It doesn't stop you passing it on or catching it. It's their human right.”
Harry Taylor: “What is the benefit of having care home staff vaccinated if the vaccine doesn’t stop you from catching it or passing it on?”
Michelle Houghton Kearney: “Definitely, the residents are vulnerable and should not be regularly exposed to people whose life choices put them at more risk.
"The workers can choose if they want to work in the care home or get a different job in an environment where their clients/employees aren't, by definition, extremely vulnerable.”
Janice Barnes: “Why just pick on care workers, there are vulnerable people everywhere (someone may have a weakness and not know).
"If it’s not mandatory for everyone then I really don’t see the point and if it isn’t mandatory for everyone then people should have the right to chose.”
