For some health care workers in the province the choice between being vaccinated against the flu and wearing a surgical mask at work is no choice at all.

Debbie Hodges is a psychiatric nurse at Powell River General Hospital. She risks severe allergic reaction if she comes into contact with the flu vaccine and may not be able to do her job if she is required to wear a mask while on shift.

She is one of many health care workers who took their concerns to the union, Health Sciences Association of British Columbia (HSABC), last year when the ministry of healths policy was announced last fall. It states that health care workers who do not want to take the flu vaccine must wear a surgical mask while performing duties that bring them into contact with patients during flu season, which could run from late November to March. The policy outlines progressive levels of discipline for employees who do not comply with the policy, including dismissal.

HSABC filed a grievance against the provincial policy. However, last week Robert Diebold, a BC Labour Relations Board-appointed arbitrator, ruled that the policy is a reasonable and valid exercise of the employers management rights.

Health care workers do not have to immunize; they have a choice to immunize or mask during the influenza season, wrote Diebold in his decision handed down Wednesday, October 23.

Hodges said she is not against vaccinationsjust the ones shes allergic to.

She is, however, aware that there are people who are concerned that the evidence around the flu shot is very shaky, she said.

She added shes disappointed with the ruling because it puts her into a difficult position. I work in acute psychiatry and a lot of our job is communicating and wearing a mask prohibits that, she said. Its not allowing me to be able to de-escalate situations so it could put me or other people at risk. Its just not an ideal situation.

Hodges said circumstances in her job vary and in some cases wearing a mask, while perhaps reducing her effectiveness, may work, while in others it may not. If she needs to visit the medical floor of the hospital to assess an elderly patients level of dementia she said she would wear a mask and explain to the patient why she needed to wear the mask. However, she questions how she would be able to do her job wearing a mask if a psychotic person is brought into the hospital in handcuffs.

Ive got to go down there to build rapporthow can I do that wearing a face mask? she asked. I just dont think this is good for me or my patients if I have to wear a mask. I dont think I can do my job effectively wearing a mask.

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Flu shot requirement upheld for health care workers