An article published in the peer-reviewed periodical of the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) states that healthcare workers were among the “most likely” to express vaccine hesitancy at the beginning of the pandemic.
According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the report is based on a survey of 15,000 people across Canada.
“Healthcare workers were among those who were most likely to express vaccine hesitancy early in the pandemic,” wrote CMAJ.
The medical periodical also went on to address the termination of healthcare workers who refused to get the Covid-19 shot.
“Organizations seem to be walking a tightrope between encouraging vaccination and protecting vaccine refusers,” it said.
“The Ontario Nurses’ Association, for example, urges healthcare employers ‘not to rely solely on vaccination to prevent the spread of Covid-19’ and ‘supports education and addressing vaccine hesitancy, not penalizing and terminating nurses when we need them most.’”
The report was based on a study by Leger Marketing published in the British Medical Journal and it relied on data collected in 2020.
“We identified two important groups of individuals at greater risk of being vaccine hesitant: essential and healthcare workers,” said the survey.
“Evidence of greater hesitancy among essential and healthcare workers was both surprising and a cause for concern given they are the individuals most likely to be exposed, and expose others, to Covid-19. However our results do seem to be line with U.S. data.”
“Our finding of high vaccine hesitancy among healthcare workers is consistent with other studies both within and outside of Canada,” it continued.
Several unvaccinated healthcare worker groups who were suspended and put on leave due to mandates have taken public health officials and their employers to court. 16 unvaccinated healthcare workers banded together recently to file a lawsuit against the Manitoba government and public health officials claiming that their Charter rights were violated.
