Forcing health care workers to take the flu shot is a violation of human rights.
That’s the message from Reid Johnson, president of the Health Sciences Association Union, which has filed a grievance with its employers over a policy which mandates workers get vaccinated.
“We encourage our member to get a flu vaccination every year but people for various reasons have the choice not to have the flu vaccine. It might be medical, it might be a personal values thing.”
The union says wearing a mask as an alternative to getting a flu shot would interfere with communication between health care workers and patients.
But BC’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Perry Kendall says when people sign up to look after others, patients become the number one concern, even ahead of individual rights.
Kendall says in any case, it’s not a human rights issue as the union claims.
“We’ve had ethical reviews and legal reviews. We’ve thought through this policy very carefully. We don’t believe it’s an abrogation of the human rights of health care workers.”
Kendall says the policy is comparable to mandated hand washing or wearing masks during surgeries, it’s just common sense.
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