(Photo above St. Charles in Prineville courtesy of Neenan Company)
The Oregon Nurses Association, the union that represents registered nurses in both Prineville and Bend, filed a charge last week with the National Labor Relations Board insisting that St. Charles Health System’s flu mask policy violates federal labor law.
In a move meant to boost flu vaccination rates among its caregivers and protect its patients, in November St. Charles Health System instituted a new policy that requires every caregiver to either receive a flu shot or wear a mask from December 1 to March 31—the peak of flu season.
St. Charles Health System issued a statement that its highest priority must be to protect its patients and caregivers, many of whom are exceptionally vulnerable to adverse outcomes from the flu. St. Charles said that research clearly shows that flu vaccinations vastly increase mass immunity and protect immune-suppressed patients.
“If you’re an American and you die of an infectious disease, it’s more likely to be from the flu than anything else,” said Dr. Rebecca Sherer, St. Charles’ medical director of infection prevention and control. “Getting an annual flu shot is the single best thing we can do to protect our patients.
“Our flu and masking policy—which applies to all employees, licensed independent physicians, contractors and students—is modeled after ones in place at many other health systems throughout the state and nation. We value our nurses and our partnership with the Oregon Nurses Association. We engaged the union well before this policy went into effect and explained the rationale. At this point the policy is in place and we stand firm behind it. It’s the right thing to do for our patients and caregivers.
“We have confidence the National Labor Relations Board will agree that this policy change is not subject to bargaining and will affirm our position and approach to protecting patients and caregivers.”
All health system caregivers—including employed caregivers, licensed independent providers, contractors and all students—are required to receive a flu shot or sign a declination. Caregivers who decline to get vaccinated, for medical reasons or otherwise, will be required to wear a mask at all times between December 1 and March 31 while working in a hospital, clinic and even office setting.
Those caregivers who do get vaccinated receive a sticker—a picture of a syringe—which they’re required to place above their photograph on their St. Charles identification badge.
Most other hospitals in Oregon have a mandatory flu mask policy, which has become the standard for the health care industry. The federal goal is that by 2020, 90 percent of healthcare workers in the country will receive the annual flu shot.
For the past several years, about 75 percent of St. Charles caregivers have been vaccinated, said Kari Coe, director of infection prevention and caregiver health.
“We need to get to 90 percent vaccination compliance,” she said. “It’s the national goal for all hospitals to meet by 2020 and we need to implement this policy this year in order to achieve that benchmark and maintain it. Many other hospitals across the country have also done this because that’s what it took.”
Influenza, or the flu, is a serious disease that leads to the death of more than 36,000 Americans every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
St. Charles Health System
St. Charles Health System, Inc., headquartered in Bend, owns and operates St. Charles Bend, Madras, Prineville and Redmond. It also owns family care clinics in Bend, Madras, Prineville, Redmond and Sisters. St. Charles is a private, not-for-profit Oregon corporation and is the largest employer in Central Oregon with more than 3,800 caregivers. In addition, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.
1 Comment
The nurses are correct to oppose this policy. Flu shots lead to many reports to VAERS, The Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System. Recent research shows minimal efficacy, and the effects of repeated exposure to the adjuvants can be serious for individuals with known risk factors. Nurses are quitting rather than risk the known harms. Often the harms are listed in the fine print in the full package inserts. I hope the nurses prevail on this.