Growing pressure on N.S. government to make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for health-care workers
With mandatory vaccines looking more and more likely for healthcare workers in Nova Scotia, union reps say government will have to provide alternatives for workers who can't -- or won't -- get the shot.
Still, some say the issue shouldn't be negotiable.
The latter group includes 76-year-old John Dennis.
He will be 77 next month and says he's the oldest living lung transplant patient in Nova Scotia, and one of the oldest in Canada.
Now living at Northwood, he's still coming to terms with the loss of his beloved wife, Penny in June of last year.
It was the height of the first wave, and lockdown orders in long-term care homes kept them apart.
"I never got to physically be with her again, until she was unconscious, two days before she died," Dennis told CTV News
"I don't want to see other people go through it. It's hard."
Word this week of a new case involving a staff-member at Northwood has a great many people on-edge, especially since it's unclear whether the worker was vaccinated.
Northwood says 88 per cent of staff members have had the shot, although it's technically not mandatory, and workers aren't required to report their vaccine status.
All of it is frustrating to the new health minister, who told CTV News Monday change is on the way.
"We are working with a team on a vaccination policy for health care staff in the province of Nova Scotia, and those details will be coming out soon," said Barbara Adams.
Advocates say a growing number of jurisdictions are moving in that direction.
"There are other provinces where they have, in fact, mandated healthcare workers be vaccinated," said Janice Keefe, Chair of the Mount St. Vincent Department of Family Studies & Gerontology.
"Of course, there's always extenuating circumstances, where some people are unable to be vaccinated because of their own health issues."
New Brunswick is among the provinces where vaccines are mandatory for health care workers.
Those who haven't had shots are required to mask and test frequently.
The new regulations take effect at midnight.
Nova Scotia union leaders have been encouraging members to get vaccines for months, but say there are a number of factors to consider.
"There absolutely has to be a balance, so when you look at occupational health and safety rules, in the act, it just states that an employer must keep, not only an employee safe, but keep clients safe as well," said NSGEU President Jason MacLean
"You see it in the private sector, where people are saying you must be vaccinated, but I still don't know how they're compelling the information because anybody can fill out any form and tell you that they have something they simply do not."
There is no grey area for John Dennis, who knows first hands the ravages of COVID-19 -- and says others, should, too.
"I know there are workers who aren't vaccinated. I don't understand how, after Northwood lost so many people to COVID, in 2020, how they can have workers who aren't vaccinated," he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
Amish youth experience a rite of passage called Rumspringa. It’s not what you might think
The idea of “Rumspringa” has a specific spot in the American imagination. A rite of passage for young people in some Amish communities, Rumspringa is seen by most outsiders as a wild time away from strict Amish rules, when teenagers can experiment with the modern vices of the world.
Djokovic needs medical attention after getting knocked on the head by a water bottle at Italian Open
Novak Djokovic needed medical attention after apparently getting knocked on the head by a water bottle after a win at the Italian Open on Friday.