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
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Bus plunges off a bridge in South Africa, killing 45 people. An 8-year-old child is only survivor
A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa on Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Calgary bridges remain closed due to ongoing police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
Kinew, Poilievre meet at Manitoba legislature, discuss each other's priorities
Premier Wab Kinew and federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre met at the Manitoba legislature Thursday afternoon.
Rainfall warnings of up to 80 mm among weather alerts in effect for 6 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres and other alerts have been issued for six Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.