Mandatory Covid vaccine for care workers may be the 'straw that breaks the camel's back'

Care England is urging the government to “listen to the sector” to stop the "disruption" to the delivery of care services and warns the November 11 deadline for mandatory vaccination is not enough time for providers working against a “multitude of workforce pressures”.

From 11 November, the government has made it mandatory that everyone working in a care home will have to be vaccinated. With time running out, Care England has made its views known about making vaccination a condition of deployment in the health and wider social care sector, highlighting its concerns around the potential timeframe for the imposed policy.

It also warned mandating the Covid-19 and/or flu vaccination, in addition to enormous workforce pressures, could only intensify the difficulties currently experienced by providers and may well be 'the straw that breaks the camel’s back for many providers'.

Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, said: “If vaccination for Covid-19 and/or flu is legislated as a condition of deployment for the wider social care sector, due consideration must be lent to the timeframe for its imposition, and it must be accompanied by commensurate resources and funding.

“Adult social care providers are in the midst of a perfect storm. Providers are currently operating against a backdrop of a multitude of workforce pressures and need government assistance as outlined in our ongoing correspondence with the Secretary of State.”

Professor Green added: “We are yet to see the government’s Impact Assessment for vaccination as a condition of deployment for the care home sector.

"We urge the government to listen to the sector in order that any unintended consequences, namely the potential disruption to the delivery of health and care services, can be avoided."

Executive chairwoman Nadra Ahmed from the National Care Association echoed the sentiments of Care England, saying: “The next logical step for ministers is to pause the implementation date for mandatory vaccinations ASAP.

“Procrastinating on this has brought us to the point where contracts are being handed back and care beds cannot be utilised to ease the pressure on the NHS as winter pressures hit."

Fear of infertility and side effects stopping people having the vaccine

According to research from carehome.co.uk, nearly three-quarters of care home staff believe staffing pressures in their care homes will deteriorate further as a direct result of the government’s requirement for staff to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

carehome.co.uk's survey of over 7,000 care home staff revealed the differences in UK’s regions of care home workers who haven’t received any Covid vaccine, with London topping the list at 21 per cent. The North East reported the lowest rate of staff who are yet to be vaccinated, at 10 per cent, with 82 per cent double vaccinated and the remaining 8 per cent single jabbed. The survey also found 62 per cent believe colleagues will have to leave their care home because they are against receiving the vaccine.

The survey also found the reasons for care workers not wanting to have the vaccine, with just over a fifth worried it could affect fertility, 28 per cent having no confidence in the vaccination, 32 per cent seeing vaccination as a health risk and 40 per cent worried about the vaccine causing side effects.