Covid-19 Vaccines As a Condition of Employment: Impact on Uptake, Staffing, and Mortality in Elderly Care Homes

Girma, Sourafel; Paton, David

doi:10.1287/mnsc.2023.4832

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…This is compatible with other studies that found vaccine mandates had little effect on absolute changes (generally <1%) in vaccine uptake in Canada and the United States (Anato et al 2022;Howard-Williams et al 2022). Of note, vaccine mandates for employment in elderly care homes in England was associated with an absolute reduction of 12% in the proportion of unvaccinated workers, but had no effect on resident COVID-19 mortality rates (Girma and Paton 2023). In the college study referenced, there was no significant effect of college vaccine mandates on cases in the surrounding community in models that adjusted for mask mandates, that dropped counties with staff vaccine mandates, or that adjusted for the effect of staggered college re-opening dates (Acton et al 2022).…”

Section: Cost-benefit Analysissupporting

confidence: 88%

When Claims of ‘Revisionism’ and ‘Misinformation’ are Themselves Misinformed: Implications for Policy Decision-Making

Joffe,

Kazemi,

Eappen

et al. 2023

Preprint

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A recent publication defined lockdown “revisionism” as “the spread of misinformation on lockdowns and other public health measures.” We used this publication to analyze the claim that questioning lockdowns or other public health interventions and mandates amounts to lockdown “revisionism” and “misinformation”. We suggest that the term ‘revisionism’, like the term ‘misinformation’ contained in its definition, were merely labels used to denigrate evidence-based contrary conclusions so as to avoid having to critically appraise the best evidence itself. We aim to describe how, by glossing over topics without fully engaging with the best evidence available, the assertions made do not withstand critical scrutiny. We suggest that, to ensure lessons are learned for the future, we must be willing to engage in rigorous and open debate – calling reasonable critical scrutiny of evidence ‘misinformation’, ‘disinformation’, or ‘revisionism’ is not supportive of this goal. Finally, we suggest that a main lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic is not to have an increased focus on so-called ‘misinformation’ and ‘revisionism’, but rather to re-discover the emergency management process of making decisions that ensure multidisciplinary representation, transparency, cost-benefit analyses of courses open using the best evidence available, and that protects against censorship and groupthink.

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Section: Cost-benefit Analysissupporting

confidence: 88%

When Claims of ‘Revisionism’ and ‘Misinformation’ are Themselves Misinformed: Implications for Policy Decision-Making

Joffe,

Kazemi,

Eappen

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, the principles we outline here could easily be applied to other Covid-19 policies such as mask and vaccine mandates. For example, Girma and Paton (2023) find vaccine mandates for care home workers in England had no observable impact on mortality amongst elderly residents but led to a significant and potentially damaging reduction in staffing. Had such policies been subject to a more rigorous ethical analysis when being proposed, it is likely that at least some of the adverse consequences of the restrictive Covid-19 policy might have been avoided.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Law, Ethics and Lockdowns: Impacts on Life, Liberty and the Economy

Keown,

Paton

2024

SSRN Journal

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“…There is, however, research suggesting that this may be the case. For example, a study of NHS elderly care home staff in England indicated that vaccine mandates led to lower rates of unvaccinated HCWs, especially among lower income workers (Girma & Paton, 2023) - unsurprisingly given that refusal was punished with job loss. That being said, better samples or more sophisticated methodological approaches would still be limited in their ability to address important legal and ethical challenges, that we elaborate on shortly.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, if the goal is to provide safer and better quality of care, then the success of the policy of mandated vaccination is questionable. For example, the study mentioned earlier, of NHS elderly care home staff in England, indicated a reduction not only in rates of unvaccinated HCWs but also of between 3 and 4% in the healthcare labour force , equivalent to 14,000 to 19,000 fewer HCWs, that had a negative impact on the health and well-being of residents in these establishments, thus undermining the ostensible goal of the policy (Girma & Paton, 2023).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Covid-19 vaccination decisions and impacts of vaccine mandates: A cross sectional survey of healthcare workers in Ontario, Canada

Chaufan,

Hemsing,

Moncrieffe

2024

Preprint

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BackgroundSince vaccination policies were introduced in the healthcare sector in the province of Ontario, Canada, most establishments implemented vaccination or termination requirements, with most enforcing them to this day. Researchers have shown a strong interest in the perceived problem of vaccine hesitancy among healthcare workers, yet not in their lived experience of the policy or in their views on the policy’s impact on the quality of patient care in the province.GoalTo document the experience and views on mandated vaccination of healthcare workers in the province of Ontario, Canada.MethodsBetween February and March 2024, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of Ontario healthcare workers, recruited through professional contacts, social media, and word-of-mouth.FindingsMost respondents, most with 16 or more years of professional experience, were unvaccinated, and most had been terminated due to non-compliance with mandates. As well, and regardless of vaccination status, most respondents reported safety concerns with vaccination, yet did not request an exemption due to their experience of high rejection rates by employers. Nevertheless, most unvaccinated workers reported satisfaction with their vaccination choices, although they also reported significant, negative impacts of the policy on their finances, their mental health, their social and personal relationships, and to a lesser degree, their physical health. In contrast, most respondents within the minority of vaccinated respondents reported being dissatisfied with their vaccination decisions, as well as having experienced mild to serious post vaccine adverse events, with about one-quarter within this group reporting having been coerced into taking further doses, under threat of termination, despite these events. Further, a large minority of respondents reported having witnessed underreporting or dismissal by hospital management of adverse events post vaccination among patients, worse treatment of unvaccinated patients, and concerning changes in practice protocols. Close to half also reported their intention to leave the healthcare industry.DiscussionOur findings indicate that in Ontario, Canada, mandated vaccination in the health sector had an overall negative impact on the well-being of the healthcare labour force, on patient care, on the sustainability of the health system, and on ethical medical practice. Our study should be reproduced in other provinces, as well as in other countries that adopted comparable policies. Findings from this and similar studies should be seriously considered when planning for future health emergencies, to protect health systems in crisis due to severe labour shortages, as well as the right to informed consent of healthcare workers and members of the public.

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Covid-19 Vaccines As a Condition of Employment: Impact on Uptake, Staffing, and Mortality in Elderly Care Homes

Cited by 4 publications

References 41 publications

When Claims of ‘Revisionism’ and ‘Misinformation’ are Themselves Misinformed: Implications for Policy Decision-Making

When Claims of ‘Revisionism’ and ‘Misinformation’ are Themselves Misinformed: Implications for Policy Decision-Making

Law, Ethics and Lockdowns: Impacts on Life, Liberty and the Economy

Covid-19 vaccination decisions and impacts of vaccine mandates: A cross sectional survey of healthcare workers in Ontario, Canada

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