More than 8,000 unvaccinated or partly vaccinated health workers were allowed to continue working during the Covid-19 pandemic due to the critical services they provided. Data obtained under the Official Information Act reveals that health providers made 516 applications for exemptions to avoid Significant Service Disruptions, out of which 102 were granted. These exemptions covered a total of 8,051 health workers between October 2021 and September 2022, with over 5,000 of them employed by district health boards.
Among the exempted health workers, almost half were care and support workers, but the group also included doctors, administration workers, allied health professionals, and nurses and midwives. While these exemptions were granted to ensure the continuity of essential services, the Nurses Organisation, which represents over 60,000 nurses and midwives, expressed concern over the lack of information regarding the reasons behind these exemptions.
Kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku from the Nurses Organisation emphasized the importance of vaccinating as many people as possible during a public health emergency. However, she acknowledged that a more nuanced approach could have been taken for some individuals if there had been more time to prepare. The introduction of vaccine mandates in October 2021 had limited impact on increasing vaccine uptake among healthcare workers, according to a study conducted by Auckland University of Technology. The research revealed that almost 90% of healthcare workers had already received two doses of the vaccine before the mandates were announced. Vaccination coverage continued to steadily increase until it reached over 95%.
While mandates did not significantly improve vaccine uptake, they did have negative consequences for unvaccinated workers. Professor Gail Pacheco, co-author of the study, highlighted that employment rates fell by 15% and earnings decreased by 19% for unvaccinated workers compared to vaccinated workers not subjected to the mandate. Pacheco also suggested that mandates might have eroded trust in the government and contributed to anti-vaccine sentiment, which could impact the uptake of not only Covid vaccines but also routine immunizations.
One of the reasons for this resistance to mandates is people's aversion to being told what to do. A German survey mentioned in the study found that only 3% of people would refuse a voluntary Covid-19 vaccination, while more than 16% would decline if it became mandatory. Additionally, 6,410 people received temporary medical exemptions between November 2021 and September 2022, with 89% of them having recently recovered from a Covid-19 infection.
It is important to note that none of the health workers interviewed for the study identified themselves as “anti-vaccine.” Many had received exemptions due to adverse reactions to the first dose or underlying medical conditions. However, these individuals faced hostility from others, including their colleagues. One nurse expressed her disappointment, stating that she had been labeled as anti-vaxxer and anti-science despite her circumstances and felt that there was no room for individual considerations.
Overall, the issue of exemptions for unvaccinated or partly vaccinated health workers during the Covid-19 pandemic highlights the challenges faced by healthcare organizations in maintaining critical services while balancing public health measures. The study's findings suggest that mandates alone may not be effective in increasing vaccine uptake and could have unintended consequences.
