Mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 for health and social care workers caring for older people

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has particularly adversely affected older people with frailty and functional dependency. Essential regular contact with care staff has been evidenced as an important source of infection for this group. Vaccinating care staff can reduce the incidence, duration and severity of infection, preventing onward transmission to older people and minimising the harm associated with discontinuity caused by staff absence. Voluntary vaccination programmes for staff are more likely to be effective when associated with information and education, community engagement and financial incentives, but programmes using all of these approaches have failed to establish consistently high vaccination rates among care staff during the pandemic. Mandatory vaccination, proposed as a solution in some countries, can increase vaccination rates. It is only ethical if a vaccine is effective and cost-effective, the risk associated with vaccinating care workers is proportionate to the risk reduction achieved through vaccination, and where all efforts to encourage voluntary vaccination have been exhausted. Even when these conditions have been met, careful attention is required to ensure that the penalties associated with conscientious objection are proportionate and to ensure that implementation is equitable in a way that does not disadvantage particular groups of staff.