More than 1000 qualified nurses ready to return to the wards

Ongoing Covid vaccine mandates for Queensland healthcare staff are under review, with more than 1000 “stood down” nurses keen to boost the struggling workforce.

Covid vaccine mandates for Queensland healthcare workers are under review as more than 1000 “stood down” nurses and midwives are keen to get back in the wards to help ease the workforce crisis.

Health Minister Shannon Fentiman has revealed to The Courier-Mail that the review is being led by the Department of Health and will determine ongoing or future vaccine requirements for Queensland Health staff.

The announcement comes following months of government recruitment drives to attract medics to a health system struggling with understaffing.

Health Minister Shannon Fentiman. Picture: Liam Kidston

“We are currently reviewing the Covid vaccination requirements for Queensland Health employees, following the advice from The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) earlier this year,” Ms Fentiman said.

“A number of strategies are in place to actively manage healthcare workers who are not vaccinated against Covid, including time limited exemptions, return to work options and alternative duties,” she said.

Last month, chief health officer John Gerrard announced that “as the Covid pandemic evolves so does our response here in Queensland”. He said that Covid is now part of reality much like other respiratory illnesses.

Chief health officer Dr John Gerrard. Picture: NCA NewsWire / John Gass

The Nurses’ Professional Association of Queensland (NPAQ) which has 10,000 nurses as members, urges immediate action from the Health Minister to return to work highly qualified nurses, some with 20 years experience.

“The dismissal of such a significant number of healthcare professionals has exacerbated the existing staffing crisis, placing an immense burden on the remaining workforce. Junior nurses are finding themselves responsible for team leading on wards without the appropriate experience,” NPAQ state secretary Ella Leach said.

A Right to Information document reveals that over 2000 Queensland Health staff applied for a vaccination exemption in late 2021 and early 2022. Some of these were terminated straight away, while many pursued a public service appeal or human rights claims.

There are now well over 1000 healthcare workers that are still not working in healthcare due to vaccine mandates either because they have been or are about to be terminated.

“How many lives could be saved by the reinstatement of these thousand nurses? These nurses can go and work in other Australian States that have dropped all Covid vaccine requirements but they can’t work in their own state, NPAQ president Marg Gilbert said.

Western Australia and Tasmania no longer have the vaccine requirements.