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Times
5 days ago
- General
- Times
The NHS has a vaccine problem: staff don't want the jab
Doctors, nurses and other frontline NHS staff are shunning the flu vaccine in ever-greater numbers, with almost nine in ten staff at one of England's largest hospital trusts unvaccinated last winter. Barts Health Trust, which has more than 18,750 staff working in six hospitals in east London, had the worst results in England, managing only 12.9 per cent, or 2,416, frontline staff getting vaccinated. This includes nurses and doctors working at the Royal London in Whitechapel, a major trauma centre treating some of the most seriously injured and sick patients in the capital. The dire take-up is symptomatic of a problem on NHS wards across England. New data shows the number of NHS staff getting the seasonal flu vaccine over winter has crashed to 37.5 per cent — its lowest level in almost 15 years. This year's drop of 5.3 percentage points is the fourth consecutive year that vaccination rates have fallen since the pandemic. The flu vaccine is essential to prevent widespread sickness in hospitals. A bad flu season can lead to tens of thousands of deaths, particularly in elderly patients and those already ill with other conditions. More than 22,500 excess deaths were linked to flu in the winter of 2017-18. An outbreak can also lead to staff shortages, cancelled operations and put patients at risk of being infected by staff who are meant to be caring for them. The rapid fall is another sign of the wider phenomenon of 'vaccine fatigue' that is being blamed for a rapid decline in vaccinations, including those designed to protect children from deadly diseases such as measles. The UK Health Security Agency said there was also complacency about the threat of some diseases and the agency was working to make sure parents were educated about the risks of not vaccinating their children. Last week, it emerged efforts to eradicate cervical cancer in England by 2040 were at risk of being derailed because of a crash of 17 percentage points in children getting vaccinated against human papillomavirus, or HPV. 'The number of NHS staff getting vaccinated is very low, it is worrying,' said Heidi Larson, a professor of anthropology and founding director of the Vaccine Confidence Project at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. It tracks public sentiment towards vaccines and has been running since 2010. • Pharmacies running out of flu vaccine as NHS restricts free jabs Larson said vaccine fatigue and wider falls in vaccination rates were being seen globally but particularly in Europe and western nations. 'It's a mix of things going on,' she said. Since the pandemic, people had reacted against a sense of being controlled and forced to have jabs. 'A lot of people were kind of bullied, almost, in a positive sense, to get the first Covid dose in the UK. It was very successful but there was this sense of control and people have said in our studies they resented taking that vaccine. Some people, maybe subconsciously, are angry about having been pushed into taking them. They feel enough is enough towards vaccines. What I see is a sort of societal PTSD and within that some people are now saying they won't get vaccinated as a reaction.' The pandemic had also made more people aware of vaccines and the science behind them and prompted more people to go online where, Larson said, they were confronted by 'toxic information'. Urgent action was needed to reverse the decline but she warned the NHS and government against a 'top-down command and control campaign', which could make matters worse. Instead, more nuanced conversations using peer influencers and community leaders were needed. According to the UK Health Security Agency's official statistics, released last month, 37.8 per cent of frontline health workers across hospitals and GP practices had a flu vaccination between September and February. This is the lowest since 2010-11 when 35 per cent of staff were vaccinated. • Treat the sickest and forget targets, Wes Streeting tells NHS GP surgeries managed more vaccinations — with 52 per cent of staff getting the jab — but this was down 10 per cent on the year before. Among staff groups, doctors were the most vaccinated but still achieved only 42 per cent. Only 38 per cent of nurses had the vaccine and the lowest level was among support staff, with 34 per cent. During the winter, almost 75 per cent of over-65s had a flu vaccine. The number of people with longer-term health conditions being vaccinated fell to 40 per cent. Similar falls were seen in primary school children and toddlers but coverage among secondary school children hit almost 45 per cent — the highest yet. More than 7,750 deaths were linked to flu in 2024-25, double the number the year before. London, as a region, had the lowest vaccination rate at 31 per cent but this was more than double the performance of Barts Health Trust. One senior consultant at Barts Health Trust, who had the jab, said they were shocked at the results and blamed apathy by some staff. They said: 'I had mine from a vaccine champion who visited different clinical areas to vaccinate staff.' Managers needed to do better, they said, adding: 'They should be spending summer finding out why staff didn't get it, rather than just doing the same again next winter.' Caroline Alexander, chief nurse at Barts, said: 'We understand that vaccine fatigue and hesitancy is a real concern for staff. While this challenge is not new and was heightened during the pandemic, we have been actively working to address it through a targeted communications campaign in collaboration with NHS England aimed at dispelling myths and building trust around vaccines.' She said the trust had offered mobile clinics and drop-in sessions in hospitals and sent trained vaccinators to wards and departments. Before next winter the trust would be highlighting the dangers of not having the flu vaccine. The best-performing trust was South East Coast Ambulance Trust, which managed a vaccination rate of 74 per cent. A spokesman there said it had a proactive campaign with vaccinators visiting workplaces with incentives such as 'free coffee for a jab'. It also used real-time data to track who had been jabbed to help target staff and teams with low uptake levels. Other problems include hesitancy by black and minority ethnic staff and communities towards vaccines. The NHS has also scrapped payments made to hospitals for encouraging more staff to have jabs. • Combined flu and Covid vaccine could be ready by this winter Those eligible for a free jab include all over-65s and any adult with specific risk factors such as diabetes. Pregnant women are also eligible along with schoolchildren and residents in care homes. The jabs are changed each year to reflect which viruses are dominant. This year the vaccine protected against four types of influenza. A vaccine cannot give you flu and is generally considered safe and effective. People can suffer mild reactions and side-effects but serious complications are extremely rare. The NHS has included messages on staff pay slips to try to increase vaccinations as well as working with medical colleges to design better messaging for staff groups. Sir Stephen Powis, the NHS England medical director, said: 'NHS trusts have a mandatory obligation under the NHS standard contract to make a flu vaccine offer to 100 per cent of their frontline staff every year.'
CTV News
23-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
B.C. hospital closing pediatric unit for 6 weeks
A major hospital in B.C.'s Interior is shutting down its general pediatrics unit for 'at least six weeks' die to a doctor shortage.
The Guardian
21-05-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
US nursing home employees: do you have information about UnitedHealth's nursing home practices?
The Guardian has reported on allegations from current and former UnitedHealth employees that their company endangered patient safety in an attempt to cut hospitalization expenses and crossed legal lines to enroll residents in UnitedHealth's Medicare Advantage institutional special needs plans (ISNPs). UnitedHealth/Optum has denied these allegations. We would like to hear from nursing home employees and operators about their experience working with UnitedHealth's Medicare Advantage ISNP program. We would also like to hear from you if you are a current or former UnitedHealthcare or Optum employee who works or worked on the company's Medicare Advantage ISNP program. Please include as much detail as possible Please include as much detail as possible Please note, the maximum file size is 5.7 MB. Your contact details are helpful so we can contact you for more information. They will only be seen by the Guardian. Your contact details are helpful so we can contact you for more information. They will only be seen by the Guardian. If you include other people's names please ask them first. Contact us on WhatsApp or Signal at +447766780300. For more information, please see our guidance on contacting us via WhatsApp, For true anonymity please use our SecureDrop service instead. If you're having trouble using the form, click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here.
CTV News
21-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Urgences-santé votes in favour of strike
Urgence Sante workers transport a patient to Verdun Hospital on the first day of their strike Monday, June 14, 2021 in Montreal. The strike involves mostly administrative tasks, such as billing, and that medical services offered to the public will not be affected. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press)
Mail & Guardian
20-05-2025
- Health
- Mail & Guardian
Fatal oversight: Systemic negligence and leadership failure took a young doctor's life
Junior doctors across provinces report fear of victimisation which breeds a culture of silence. (File photo) The On anonymous online platforms, fellow healthcare workers have broken their silence, echoing stories of exploitation, burnout and fear. Dr Alulutho Mazwi was only 25 years old. His death must not be dismissed as a singular failure of compassion or miscommunication. It must be recognised as a systemic collapse where the absence of leadership competence, ethical decision-making and safety planning results in preventable deaths. This situation also reflects failure of psychological safety and workplace health standards. Managing staff requires leadership credentials, emotional intelligence and human resource training. Yet in healthcare, leadership is often conferred through clinical rank, not capability. Holding an MBChB or specialist degree does not make one a competent manager. Yet those titles are all too often treated as de facto licences to supervise and discipline junior staff without any oversight into how those responsibilities are carried out. Assigning power without competency and oversight is negligence. Section 24 of the Constitution states: 'Everyone has the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being.' When interns are left to continue working despite being ill, this potentially puts the doctor and patients at risk, which is in direct violation of Occupational Health and Safety Act; the OHS and Labour Relations Act requires employers to ensure a work environment free from physical or psychological harm. Leaving interns unsupported, overworked, working while ill and fearful of speaking up because of reprisals creates conditions that are not only unsafe, but legally and ethically indefensible. Dr Mazwi's death raises the question: who was the senior who allegedly forced him to work while ill? If they lacked the skill to assess risk or show professional empathy, who appointed them? What criteria were used? And where was the head of department, and the hospital chief executive? If they were aware, why did they not intervene? If they were unaware, why are they in those positions? The answer lies in a health system that rewards tenure and titles, not leadership competency, ultimately giving rise to institutional structures without substance. The health department maintains a vast array of administrative units including monitoring and evaluation offices, HR departments, wellness strategies and intern management protocols. On paper, this architecture suggests a system of support and oversight, but in practice, it is failing at every level. If internal systems functioned as intended, red flags about burnout, toxic culture and unsafe practices would have been identified and acted upon. Instead, junior doctors across provinces report fear of victimisation, grievance processes and a culture of silence. Interns often fear speaking out because of opaque grievance procedures and risk of retaliation. This silence violates the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act and Protection from Harassment Act, both of which aim to ensure just, transparent and safe public administration. In psychological terms, this is a work environment that scores abysmally on psychological safety where staff do not feel safe to speak up, raise concerns or protect their own health without fear of punishment. As a country we are fast falling into a pandemic of inquiries and investigations as tick box exercises with no significant outcome, no punitive measures and, most importantly, no systemic reformation. In provinces like Gauteng, a decision was made to cut overtime for doctors, citing budgetary constraints. This is being done with little to no consultation, despite already chronic understaffing in public hospitals. Cutting overtime without increasing posts or restructuring workloads is not reform, it is risk redistribution. The burden simply shifts onto fewer hands, most often junior doctors who are least empowered to speak out. These cost-saving measures not only undermine service delivery but also violate the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, which requires fair working hours, sufficient rest periods and safe working conditions. Cutting overtime without increasing staff restructuring duties violates these principles and places employees under duress, exposing them to harm. From a legal perspective, expecting staff to work excessive hours in unsafe environments constitutes constructive dismissal risk, and from a human perspective, it is institutionalised exploitation. Despite more than 1800 unemployed qualified doctors in early 2025, hospitals continue to operate dangerously understaffed. Junior doctors are reportedly left in charge of departments after hours, because registrars and consultants allegedly leave early. These unmonitored practices violate principles of workplace safety and professional supervision. If these claims are true, then the health department has lost control of its mandate to manage the very professionals whose salaries cost billions. The department must explain: Who manages staff work times and the distribution of workloads? Who do they report to? How effective is their management? Are they earning the public salaries they're paid? These are not rhetorical questions. They demand public answers. We are cutting the lifelines of our healthcare system while preserving the scaffolding of managerial incompetence. This will undermine the South African dream for universal health coverage and equitable access to opportunities for doctors and patients alike. It is incidents like Dr Mazwi's death that highlight the misalignment of the National Health Insurance (NHI), the How can we promise universal care when we cannot protect the staff who deliver it? How can we claim to support the poor while gutting the very services that serve them? The NHI cannot succeed in a system where junior staff are abused, senior leaders are untrained and financial decisions contradict ethical care. We must confront uncomfortable truths as we unpack the fatal reality of this junior doctor and among them are the hard-hitting questions that need to be answered if we are committed to seeking justice for his life and the well-being of all the many others who have been brutalised by this system. This death is not an exception. It is a consequence of structural negligence and a culture of impunity. Dr Mazwi died working for a system that did not work for him. His death is a national failure, and we cannot afford to look away. We are not just failing patients. We are failing the people who have sworn to care for them. Failure to act decisively, in light of the evidence and outcry, would mean accepting more deaths like this one as the cost of doing business. We owe this young doctor and every healthcare worker battling this system more than memorials. We owe them justice, reform and protection. Urgent call to action Dr Mazwi's death and the collective grief shared since must lead to transformative action. We demand immediate intervention from health authorities, regulators, and political leaders. Specifically: An independent, expedited investigation at Prince Msheiyeni Memorial Hospital with consequences for all found responsible; A public outline of HR and leadership reform measures by the department of health, acknowledging the widespread suffering of interns and Junior doctors; A policy reform mandating that no one may be appointed to leadership or supervisory roles without formal training in human resource management, people leadership, and psychological safety; The department of health and Health Professions Council of South Africa must create a safe, accessible and responsive reporting mechanism for doctors in distress, separate from existing slow-moving internal systems; Budget alignment must prioritise safe staffing ratios and staff well-being; and Audit the readiness of the NHI system, especially in terms of staff safety, leadership capacity, and system accountability- before further rollout occurs. Naheedah Collins is an industrial psychologist and Haseena Majid is a Global Atlantic fellow for health equity and social justice at the Atlantic Institute, Oxford, UK.
