Priests left to wait on vaccination decision
The Pope has called Covid vaccinations “an act of love”, but the state’s religious leaders are yet to decide whether Covid-19 jabs should be made mandatory for all clergy. LATEST >>
Tasmania
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THE Catholic and Anglican churches in Tasmania are yet to decide whether to make Covid-19 vaccinations mandatory for all priests.
Anglican Church spokesman Dr Chris Jones said the church encouraged everyone, including priests, to be fully vaccinated.
He said the church’s Diocesan Council would meet on Tuesday and consider whether to mandate vaccinations.
“With borders re-opening we’re looking at all our plans and protocols,” Dr Jones said.
A Catholic church spokesman said the Archdiocese of Hobart supported the use of vaccines for personal protection against the Covid virus.
“It does not have a policy of mandatory vaccination for its employees,” the spokesman said.
“Archbishop (Julian) Porteous has received two doses of vaccination against Covid, and supports measures which are proportionate and practicable to minimise the risk of exposure and transmission of Covid in the workplace.
“The Archdiocesan crisis management team meet regularly to review the Covid situation.”
Call for Catholic priests to be exempt from Covid-19 vaccination
The spokesman said churches used the government’s QR code check-in platform, along with manual recording of visitors for those without mobile phones.
Hand sanitiser stations were available at entry points to buildings and PPE equipment has been purchased in preparation for any possible future lockdown, he said.
In Queensland, the Archbishop of Brisbane Mark Coleridge has told his 200 priests and deacons that they all must be fully vaccinated by December 15 or face suspension.
Archbishop Coleridge, who is also president of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, said: “Clergy not doubly vaccinated are failing in their duty of care for the faithful.”
He said he recognised vaccination was a matter of personal choice but this was outweighed by health directives and duty of care to parishioners.
Pope Francis also has thrown his powerful voice behind vaccination describing it as an “act of love”.
Earlier this year, Health Minister Jeremy Rockliff rejected pressure from Catholic priests who had a conscientious objection to getting the Covid-19 vaccine to still be allowed to provide ministry in aged care homes.
Mr Rockliff said there was no recognition of conscientious objection in existing directions and “there will be no exemptions”.
UTAS considers mandatory vaccinations
THE University of Tasmania is the latest organisation to flag the possibility of mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations, as the state prepares to fully reopen its border next month.
UTAS said it would consult with staff and students ahead of a final decision being made next week about whether it should mandate vaccinations across its campuses in 2022.
The university said a recently conducted risk assessment had found mandating Covid-19 vaccinations would significantly reduce the risks posed by the virus.
A survey has now been launched seeking feedback from staff and students, which will remain open until midnight on Sunday.
Vice-Chancellor Rufus Black said the safety and wellbeing of staff and students, and the broader community, would be at the centre of the final decision.
“Throughout the pandemic, the university has worked to keep people safe and to support the Tasmanian community to manage the risks and impacts of Covid-19,” Prof Black said.
“The modelling is clear — after 15 December, Covid-19 will be present in our community, and it will impact people at the university.
“With campuses, staff and students in all regions of Tasmania, we want to make sure we are doing everything we can to ensure our people are protected to the greatest extent possible.”
It comes after Tasmanian child care provider Adventure Patch announced last week it would require its more than 200 employees statewide to be vaccinated.
Chief executive Lynne Moran said Adventure Patch was surprised the state government had not already brought in a mandate across the sector, saying it was crucial to protect young Tasmanians who could not yet be vaccinated.
A mandate is current for Tasmanian health care workers, who faced losing their jobs if they did not provide evidence of vaccination by the end of last month.
In September, Mona owner David Walsh declared Covid-19 vaccinations would be mandatory for all his staff, in what was described as a “harsh but necessary” announcement.
“A few staff might think we are trampling on their rights, but the one right they think we are restricting doesn’t exist,” Mr Walsh said in an open letter to staff.
“Our staff don’t have the right to trample on the rights of their colleagues.”
‘Make jabs mandatory for Tassie childcare workers now’
A TASMANIAN child care provider has expressed surprise at the lack of a mandate to vaccinate the sector’s workers against Covid-19, and have now gone it alone to introduce their own rule to protect staff and children.
From December 3, all staff at Adventure Patch will be required to be vaccinated, or have evidence of a booking to get the jab.
The organisation’s chief executive Lynne Moran said the mandate would affect about 200 staff at long day care, family day care and outside school hours care centres statewide.
Mrs Moran said the majority of them were already vaccinated but the organisation was working with a “very small” number who had not yet been immunised.
In a Talking Point in Friday’s Mercury, Mrs Moran said Adventure Patch cared for about 2000 children across Tasmania each week and she urged the state government to make the vaccination of early childhood workers mandatory.
“Ninety nine per cent of children in our care are under 12 years of age and are, therefore, not yet eligible for vaccination and remain particularly vulnerable within the broader community,’’ she wrote.
“Our educators have had too many conversations with concerned parents, worried their children could contract Covid-19, so we have taken a stance when we believe our government should have.”
↓ READ THE FULL OPINION PIECE BELOW ↓
Mrs Moran said the board and senior management of Adventure Patch had made the “difficult, but important” decision to mandate Covid-19 vaccinations, except where it could not occur on medical grounds.
“Our children and team are at the centre of what we do, and we feel strongly that this decision is in their best interests,’’ she wrote.
Mrs Moran argued that given federal and state mandates existed to vaccinate aged care and disability workers, more should be done to protect those who could not yet be protected by the vaccine — children aged under 12.
It comes as Tasmania prepares to open its border on December 15, with travellers required to be fully vaccinated as a condition of entry to the state.
Premier Peter Gutwein is set to provide an update on Friday about preparations for the border reopening, with more details also expected to soon be revealed about what parts of the public sector workforce would be required to be vaccinated.
OPINION: Why we’re making Covid vaccination compulsory at Adventure Patch
By Lynne Moran
ADVENTURE Patch cares for approximately 2000 children across Tasmania every week, in centre-based daycare, family day care, vacation care and out of school hours care and is calling on the Tasmanian Government to make the vaccination of early childhood workers mandatory as a matter of urgency.
Ninety-nine per cent of children in our care are under 12 years of age and are, therefore, not yet eligible for vaccination and remain particularly vulnerable within the broader community.
Our educators have had too many conversations with concerned parents, worried their children could contract COVID-19, so we have taken a stance when we believe our Government should have.
In order to protect the children in our care and our team members, our board and senior management made the difficult, but important, decision to make COVID-19 vaccinations compulsory for all staff and family day care educators, except where vaccination is unable to occur on medical grounds.
Our children and team are at the centre of what we do, and we feel strongly that this decision is in their best interests. We also feel that the decision, albeit difficult, is also in the best interests of the community we have served for more than 40 years.
On 22 October 2021, the Premier of Tasmania announced that that the Tasmanian Government would reopen Tasmanian borders to all interstate jurisdictions on 15 December 2021. As part of his announcement, the Premier stated:
“ … by this date, I am confident that everyone above the age of 12 will have had the opportunity to be vaccinated and that we will have achieved a 90 per cent vaccination rate for 12 year olds and above.”
The Government health advice states that it is expected COVID-19 will spread in the Tasmanian community when borders open. The overwhelming health advice also states that vaccination against COVID-19 is the best defence against the spread and severity of the disease.
Our organisation was surprised that the Tasmanian Government did not consider it necessary to mandate vaccinations for early childhood workers in Tasmania, particularly when other states and territories have taken this important step.
There are federal and state mandates for the vaccination of aged care and disability workers in many settings, rightly designed to protect our most vulnerable. I strongly believe that we must also protect those who cannot be protected by the vaccine – our children under the age of 12 years.
Early in the pandemic, there was data that showed that our young people were less at risk of contracting COVID-19. Current statistics, however, show that young people are now vulnerable to the Delta variant of this terrible virus. At the end of October this year, 43 per cent of the active COVID-19 cases in Victoria were under the age of 19. It is this alarming statistic that has prompted us to write, and appeal, to the Tasmanian Government.
At the heart of our decision are the children in our care and those who work so hard to support them. When Tasmania’s borders open, our children will be the most vulnerable, and unvaccinated, in our community. Further, for the foreseeable future, they will not have the means available to become vaccinated. We seek to fulfil our philosophy and act as their voice, in our education and care capacity.
In arriving at this decision, we have reflected on the Adventure Patch values and philosophy, which includes encouraging children to have a social conscience and to create an inclusive environment where every individual can feel safe, valued, and happy.
Pleasingly, the overwhelming feedback from parents and staff has been very positive, with many emails and conversations in our centres supporting our decision. We are providing ongoing support to the very small number of team members who are yet to receive their vaccination.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been the most challenging period for our industry in my 30 plus years caring for children. I urge the Tasmanian Government to make the vaccination of early childhood workers mandatory as a matter of urgency, to continue to keep our children safe from this horrific virus.
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