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CINCINNATI – All hospitals in the Cincinnati area will require employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as hospital systems fight the increase in cases and hospitalizations, hospital executives said Thursday.
Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center, Tri-Health, Christ Hospital, Mercy Health, St. Elizabeth, and UC Medical Center are among those confirmed to require the vaccine for employees.
“This vaccination requirement highlights our commitment to our community to ensure that there is a minimal risk of contracting COVID-19 from our employees – and provides additional assurance that it is safe for children and families to seek the hospital, outpatient and preventative health care they need, “said Michael Fisher, CEO of Cincinnati Children.
Cincinnati Children’s, like most area hospitals, already requires vaccinations against seasonal flu, measles, mumps and rubella.
Hospital officials said they didn’t know how many hospital workers had yet to receive the vaccine, but the warrant would impact tens of thousands of local healthcare workers. They said there would be exemptions for the staff, such as religious reasons.
Kelly Hickman-Begley is a labor and delivery nurse and a member of the board of directors of the Registered Nurses Association at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center – the union of hospital nurses, which is part of the Ohio Nurses Association.
“This increase in the delta variant is worrying – we certainly don’t want to tax our health care system more than we already are – and I think one of the best tools to avoid this is to get people vaccinated,” he said. Hickman said. said Begley. “As a union, we think it’s really important that people get vaccinated… but it has to be done the right way.”
Since this morning’s announcement, UC Medical has agreed to negotiate with nurses on the requirement, including how to approve sick days for people affected by vaccine side effects.
“What kind of rules can we come up with so that these people aren’t punished for these exemptions,” Hickman-Begley said. “We no longer want to tax the system by losing nurses to a decision like this.”
Dr. Robert Prichard, CEO of the St. Elizabeth Health Network, admitted that employees would be divided on the issue.
“Half of our employees are probably applauding this morning and half are probably booing us,” Prichard said. “This is obviously a concern that the associates could leave us. I think it helps us that we do this together. We are sending a unified message to our community that we all find this very important to the safety of our patients, the safety of our associates and the health of our community.
Most employees will need to be fully immunized by October 1, although some hospitals have yet to set a deadline. Hospital leaders said the implementation will be similar to how they require other vaccines.
The announcement came as companies across the tri-state are considering making employee vaccinations mandatory.
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