Secret documents reveal hospitals can’t track which staff are jabbed

Explosive documents reveal Victorian hospitals can’t track which staff are jabbed, as fears grow some health workers are lying about their vaccination status.

Victorian hospitals are struggling to track unvaccinated staff amid fears they will spread the coronavirus to vulnerable patients and could cripple critical workforces.

Confidential hospital documents seen by the Herald Sun reveal bosses have raised major concerns regarding a lack of information about the vaccination status of their staff.

The situation has been slammed as a “monumental failure”, with managers unable to access official immunisation records because the state government has not yet made Covid vaccinations mandatory for healthcare workers.

With Victoria’s Delta outbreak rapidly escalating, and several health services exposed to cases, hospital bosses are believed to be frustrated they cannot do more.

The government is under pressure to fix the crisis and immediately move to mandate vaccinations in the critical ­sector.

Documents reveal the steps major Melbourne hospitals are taking to collect vaccination data themselves, with at least seven asking workers to declare their Covid vaccination status.

Victorian hospitals are struggling to track unvaccinated staff.

But they cannot compel workers to respond or confirm their responses with record checks.

Some hospitals have included questions on vaccination status as part of QR code check-ins, only to find about 30 per cent of staff are not responding.

While hospitals are confident the vast majority of frontline medical and nursing staff are vaccinated, insiders say they are very concerned about other workers and contractors.

Senior sources say their inability to check official records makes it difficult to safely staff high risk areas such as Covid-19 wards, emergency departments or those treating cancer and other vulnerable patients.

In one concerning example, an unvaccinated doctor at a major Melbourne hospital is reportedly lying to her bosses about having had the vaccine.

Her mother revealed the deceit in a Reignite Democracy Australia group chat, saying: “She’s now telling people she’s had it; she’s using this as a strategy to get people off her back.”

Hospitals can keep records for staff who receive vaccinations through on-site employee programs but are not notified of those who get their shots at GP clinics, mass vaccination hubs or through other health services.

In a June 29 bulletin seen by the Herald Sun, Western Health disclosed it sent an email or SMS to all staff not recorded as having received a Covid-19 vaccine.

“It has enabled us to update our records with staff who have been vaccinated elsewhere so we have an accurate source of truth,” the bulletin said.

“This will allow us to understand if there are any areas or staff groups that may need some targeted education to address any vaccine hesitancy that may still exist.”

Hospital bosses fear unvaccinated worker will spread coronavirus to vulnerable patients and could cripple critical workforces. Picture: Joel Carrett

Some hospitals have been warned they could face legal or industrial action for collecting confidential information outside official government records.

But if they don’t, and there is an outbreak at the hospital, they face issues in identifying unvaccinated staff to be redeployed or stood down.

Victorian Department of Health guidelines say there is “strong expectation” healthcare workers are vaccinated against Covid-19 and that “all staff caring for known Covid patients be fully vaccinated against Covid-19”.

Queensland and Western Australia have already issued public health orders mandating vaccinations for healthcare workers, while NSW last week announced it would also introduce compulsory healthcare worker vaccinations.

The Herald Sun believes the Victorian government is considering following suit, possibly within days.

“Victorian health services are tracking staff Covid-19 immunisation rates, with only staff who are known to be fully vaccinated able to work in higher risk areas, such as wards, providing care for people who have Covid-19,” a spokeswoman said.

Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation president Tony Sara backed mandatory Covid vaccinations for ­healthcare workers, saying “given the emergency we are in, it is the best thing we can do”.

The body representing non-profit Catholic hospitals, Catholic Health Australia, said patients were being put at risk while vaccinations were not mandatory for healthcare staff.

“Every day we don’t make it compulsory is another day patients are at risk of catching coronavirus from a staff member … having a blanket rule means we can provide much greater protection,” policy director James Kemp said.

“We are aware some staff are resistant to this idea, but I think the risk is far outweighed by our duty of care to patients.”

Opposition Health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier said having hospitals in the dark on whether staff were vaccinated was a “monumental failure by the Andrews government to properly manage the Covid crisis”.

“We’re told millions of Victorians must remain in lockdown so that our health system doesn’t get overwhelmed, but hospitals don’t even know who has been vaccinated,” she said.

“Patients and staff are being put at risk by the Andrews government’s mismanagement.”