An op-ed in today s New York Times argues, Medical personnel need to get vaccinated for two reasons beyond protecting themselves and their families. If they become ill, they will be unable to work at a time when their institutions most need them. And those who have direct contact with patients especially need immunization lest they spread illness and death among already vulnerable sick people.
We re happy that the New York Times is recommending mandatory vaccination for healthcare workers, but they weren t very strong on that point when H1N1 vaccines first became available, says Dr. Whelan. It s just so obvious that healthcare workers who are coming in constant contact with patients should be the first in line to be immunized.
Dr. Ross agrees: 37% vaccination rate against the H1N1 flu among healthcare workers is absolutely unacceptable. It s irresponsible, and ACSH first started calling this problem out back in August, so it s surprising that it is just now getting noticed. But I guess it s better late than never.
