The B.C. government’s decision to back down on a vaccine mandate for all health care workers in private practice could trigger a push to bring some terminated public-sector workers back on the job.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced the change on Thursday. Instead of an across-the-board mandate, some health care workers in the private sector will be asked to follow an ‘informed consent’ process, where they disclose their vaccination status to clients.
While details are still being worked out, there may be additional measures applied to some professions, based on assessed risk.
“We've been working through the specifics with each individual college and based on the risks within each profession, there will be a component of public reporting, and then we will continue to take additional measures as needed, considering the important impact on patients, on communities, from each individual provider,” Dr. Henry said.
The BC Nurses’ Union issued a statement saying it will be looking into how the change could impact those nurses who were terminated since the vaccination requirement came into effect for public sector workers on Oct. 26, 2021.
The statement goes on to say, “The BC Nurses’ Union fully supports vaccination as an effective measure to protect against COVID-19 and other communicable diseases.
“We believe all health care workers should be held to the same standard when it comes to public health guidelines.”
Interior Health terminated nearly 900 employees as a result of the mandate.
Barb Elliot was an LPN of 18 years, working in both acute and long term care in the Okanagan, who chose to not be vaccinated and lost her job.
“The past five months have been extremely difficult financially. Not being able to access EI — that I paid into my whole working life and never collected — has been a hardship,” she said in an email to Castanet.
“Emotionally I have been in disbelief at the treatment I have experienced from employers, coworkers, family and friends. The division, discrimination and judgement I have experienced that has been perpetrated and encouraged by this government and PHO is despicable and shameful.”
The Ambulance Paramedics of B.C. has been working for some time to help members who were let go because of the vaccine mandate imposed last fall.
"It's disappointing to see some inconsistent messaging and different treatment of people who are all out there helping and doing what they could, and did do what they could for the last two years,” union president Troy Clifford told CTV News. “Why were some of these health professionals left for so long?”
A small number of paramedics have either quit, taken leave or have been terminated after refusing to comply with the vaccine mandate.
The pandemic has also taken a toll on mental health and exacerbated BC Emergency Health Services staffing shortages in some communities.
