The latest COVID-19 scare from Tan Tock Seng Hospital has proven one thing; Singapore’s COVID-19 prevention measures are still lacking, with people who are not vaccinated still working in frontline areas.
I’m not going to pick apart every issue but one thing about the Tan Tock Seng Hospital cluster confounds me.
Why are non-vaccinated health workers still permitted to work in hospitals and polyclinics, especially now with the more infectious variants roaming around?
Look at that. FOUR healthcare workers not vaccinated.
Yes, I know there are reasons why an individual can’t take the vaccine but shouldn’t there be regulations that make it a MUST for ALL health workers to be vaccinated? I mean, these are the people who are on the frontline, in hospitals or polyclinics, who WILL inevitably come into contact with COVID-19.
Not being vaccinated not only endangers them, it endangers everybody else who aren’t vaccinated too.
It’s a tough pill to swallow, but shouldn’t hospitals and other healthcare facilities be replacing all those who are unable to take the vaccines with workers who can? The good of the many outweigh that of the few.
Honestly, I’m incredibly impressed that these unvaccinated people are still willing to work in hospitals knowing their vulnerability. It takes guts to do it and it’s something to be admired. That doesn’t take away from how illogical it is though.
I’m sorry for the people who will inevitably lose their jobs if this is done, but the risks in allowing them to continue working in their current capacity is too damn high. Just take a look at the TTSH cluster.
To prevent something like the TTSH incident occurring in the future, perhaps this regulation should be seriously considered for those who work in high risk areas like hospitals or polyclinics in any capacity.
Is it discrimination? Perhaps, though I think public safety should supersede that.
With all the sacrifices we’re making, this is a glaring hole that should be patched. I’m not saying this should be a permanent thing. Once COVID-19 is pretty much gone, nix the regulation.
It’s just that with the pandemic still raging, having unvaccinated health workers is risk that we shouldn’t even be taking.
It’s the logical thing to do.