Make COVID-19 jabs a must for our workers, say aged-care bosses

Aged-care providers are urging the nation’s chief health officers to recommend making vaccinations mandatory for nursing home staff.

Aged and Community Services Australia chief executive Pat Sparrow.

Aged-care providers are urging the nation’s chief health officers to recommend making vaccinations mandatory for nursing home workers, just days before the rollout begins.

As the Morrison government moves to begin vaccinating more than 500,000 nursing home residents and their carers from Monday, with tens of thousands in the first week alone, vaccination of residential aged-care workers ­remains voluntary on the advice of the Australian Health Primary Protection Committee. This is ­despite nursing home workers being required to have the flu vaccine as a condition of their ­employment.

“We would prefer the (COVID-19) vaccination to be a workplace requirement, with ­appropriate exemptions for individuals,” Pat Sparrow, chief executive of peak provider group Aged and Community Services Australia, said. “Ultimately, public health decisions should remain with the public health authorities and we understand they will be monitoring the situation.”

Sean Rooney, chief executive of Leading Age Services Australia, another peak aged-care provider group, said protecting older Australians necessarily included protecting care workers.

“Part of doing all we can to protect older Australians in care is to consider mandated COVID-19 vaccinations for aged-care workers — assuming it is safe to do so and with appropriate exemptions,” Mr Rooney said.

“The option of mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations in aged care should remain a consideration based on medical expertise.

“Mandatory vaccinations are not new to aged care as we have had these in place for influenza vaccinations at times.”

National cabinet discussed the issue in late January and decided not to make vaccination mandatory for aged-care workers on the advice of the AHPPC. At the time Scott Morrison didn’t rule out changing that decision in the ­future if new information came to light.

United Workers Union director of aged care Carolyn Smith said the advice from the government remained that the vaccine would not be mandatory because there was no current evidence that it stopped transmission of COVID-19.

“We‘re informing our members of that … but we’re backing the vaccination program and making sure our members have the information they need to feel confident in taking the vaccine,” Ms Smith said.

“There’s a lot of background noise about the vaccine and a lot of valid questions our members have, such as whether the speed of the vaccine means it’s been properly tested. We need to give them confidence it has been properly ­tested.”

She said the union supported the decision to make the flu vaccine mandatory for aged-care workers because the science existed that it could prevent trans­mission.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the vaccination program for nursing homes would begin on Monday, and eventually see more than 183,000 residents and 339,000 staff vaccinated in 2600 facilities.

In the first week tens of thousands of residents and staff would receive their vaccination across 240 nursing homes, he said.

The full rollout to residential aged care is anticipated to take six weeks. Facilities will be grouped within a 30km radius to ensure ­efficient delivery of the vaccine.

“Vaccination for residents and staff will be made available through residential aged-care ­facilities where they live or work,” Mr Hunt said.

“It is vital residents and families understand what information is available to them as the vaccine strategy is rolled out. I would encourage residents and family members to ask if they need help understanding the vaccine program and how it will affect them.”