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If you have a news story call the news desk on +44 (0)20 8872 3144 or email [email protected]
Managers used ‘emotional blackmail’ to persuade trust staff to have flu jab
SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
Exclusive by Christian Duffin A senior RCN activist has accused some NHS managers of pressuring nurses into having the flu vaccine so that their trusts could access a share of a £250 million fund to improve A&E care. RCN nursing practice and policy committee chair Ian Norris said some managers had ‘emotionally blackmailed’ staff during the latest flu season. He put this down to incentives announced by health secretary Jeremy Hunt in September – namely that a £250 million pot for tackling winter pressures in England would be shared
between trusts who vaccinated at least 75 per cent of staff. Mr Norris presented a paper at an RCN council meeting in London last week describing ‘undue pressure’ on trust staff to be vaccinated.
‘WE ENCOURAGE STAFF BY USING THE CARROT APPROACH, NOT THE STICK’ He told Nursing Standard: ‘We heard rumours that some managers were saying to nurses that if they did not have the vaccine then trusts would not meet their targets and there might be cuts to services. It was a kind of emotional blackmail.’ He could not say what sanctions staff would face if they refused to be vaccinated. The RCN supports the principle of encouraging staff to get the vaccine, he added. Nursing Standard learned that Royal Surrey County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust had wanted to make flu vaccination mandatory, but backed down following complaints by unions. The
trust said it wanted to minimise infection spread and its move was not linked to the A&E funding target. Royal Surrey director of organisational transformation Alf Turner said: ‘By ensuring that all staff are vaccinated against the flu we can create a herd immunity. This would offer the greatest protection to staff and patients from an illness that can be very dangerous to the most vulnerable. This is already standard practice in many of America’s best hospitals.’ Unison head of nursing Gail Adams said: ‘We always encourage staff to have the flu jab, but only by using the carrot approach, not the stick. Some trusts have been innovative to increase their uptake, such as driving to different sites in their area to give the jab or by giving staff an extra day’s leave for having it. Those are the best tactics – not forcing people to have the vaccine under duress.’ NHS Employers figures show that by the end of January 53 per cent of all front line staff – about 500,000 people – were vaccinated, 57,504 more than last year. A NHS Employers spokesperson said the flu jab should be ‘a personal choice for NHS staff’. The Department of Health declined to comment.
Kathryn stands as National Health Action Party MEP candidate A London nurse is hoping to swap hospital wards for the corridors of power as she bids to become a member of the European Parliament. Kathryn Anderson is standing as a candidate in next month’s European elections for the National Health Action Party. Actor and comedian Rufus Hound is also standing for the party, which was
NURSING STANDARD
formed by healthcare workers in 2012 in protest against cuts to the NHS. Ms Anderson has been a nurse for 35 years in the UK and Australia. She returned to England last year and works as a lead nurse in pain management at a large north London hospital. ‘I had wonderful memories of working in the NHS,’ she said. ‘But one of the big changes I have found is that staff do not
have the time to come on rounds and learn at the bedside – all the things that used to make such a difference to the care of the patient.’ ■ The RCN is holding a European election hustings event in London on May 6. It has also set out its key priorities for supporting nursing and patient care in the European Parliament. Go to europeanelections.rcn.org.uk april 30 :: vol 28 no 35 :: 2014 7
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If you have a news story call the news desk on +44 (0)20 8872 3144 or email [email protected]
Managers used ‘emotional blackmail’ to persuade trust staff to have flu jab
SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
Exclusive by Christian Duffin A senior RCN activist has accused some NHS managers of pressuring nurses into having the flu vaccine so that their trusts could access a share of a £250 million fund to improve A&E care. RCN nursing practice and policy committee chair Ian Norris said some managers had ‘emotionally blackmailed’ staff during the latest flu season. He put this down to incentives announced by health secretary Jeremy Hunt in September – namely that a £250 million pot for tackling winter pressures in England would be shared
between trusts who vaccinated at least 75 per cent of staff. Mr Norris presented a paper at an RCN council meeting in London last week describing ‘undue pressure’ on trust staff to be vaccinated.
‘WE ENCOURAGE STAFF BY USING THE CARROT APPROACH, NOT THE STICK’ He told Nursing Standard: ‘We heard rumours that some managers were saying to nurses that if they did not have the vaccine then trusts would not meet their targets and there might be cuts to services. It was a kind of emotional blackmail.’ He could not say what sanctions staff would face if they refused to be vaccinated. The RCN supports the principle of encouraging staff to get the vaccine, he added. Nursing Standard learned that Royal Surrey County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust had wanted to make flu vaccination mandatory, but backed down following complaints by unions. The
trust said it wanted to minimise infection spread and its move was not linked to the A&E funding target. Royal Surrey director of organisational transformation Alf Turner said: ‘By ensuring that all staff are vaccinated against the flu we can create a herd immunity. This would offer the greatest protection to staff and patients from an illness that can be very dangerous to the most vulnerable. This is already standard practice in many of America’s best hospitals.’ Unison head of nursing Gail Adams said: ‘We always encourage staff to have the flu jab, but only by using the carrot approach, not the stick. Some trusts have been innovative to increase their uptake, such as driving to different sites in their area to give the jab or by giving staff an extra day’s leave for having it. Those are the best tactics – not forcing people to have the vaccine under duress.’ NHS Employers figures show that by the end of January 53 per cent of all front line staff – about 500,000 people – were vaccinated, 57,504 more than last year. A NHS Employers spokesperson said the flu jab should be ‘a personal choice for NHS staff’. The Department of Health declined to comment.
Kathryn stands as National Health Action Party MEP candidate A London nurse is hoping to swap hospital wards for the corridors of power as she bids to become a member of the European Parliament. Kathryn Anderson is standing as a candidate in next month’s European elections for the National Health Action Party. Actor and comedian Rufus Hound is also standing for the party, which was
NURSING STANDARD
formed by healthcare workers in 2012 in protest against cuts to the NHS. Ms Anderson has been a nurse for 35 years in the UK and Australia. She returned to England last year and works as a lead nurse in pain management at a large north London hospital. ‘I had wonderful memories of working in the NHS,’ she said. ‘But one of the big changes I have found is that staff do not
have the time to come on rounds and learn at the bedside – all the things that used to make such a difference to the care of the patient.’ ■ The RCN is holding a European election hustings event in London on May 6. It has also set out its key priorities for supporting nursing and patient care in the European Parliament. Go to europeanelections.rcn.org.uk april 30 :: vol 28 no 35 :: 2014 7
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 24, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
