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Every single state and territory in Australia has instituted policies which require health students (doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, etc) to be fully vaccinated before commencing or completing their practical work. Without these vaccines (and the list of ‘required’ shots is extremely long with some of these poor souls receiving 8 vaccines at one time!), they will have to cease their education and or lose out on placings in hospital.
NOTE: As of February 2007 this applies to ALL health care workers and hospital staff. In NSW, this new regulation is called Policy Directive 2005_338 and it states that, “Compliance with this policy directive is mandatory”. It basically says that starting this year, in 2006, all health students who are affiliated with the hospital system or with NSW Health, will be required to be vaccinated against Diphtheria, Tetanus, Whooping Cough (Pertussis), Hep A and Hep B, Chicken Pox (Varicella), Measles, Mumps and Rubella and Influenza.
Starting next year, this requirement will be extended to include everyone – doctors, nurses, orderlies, office staff – even those who work for laundries that are contracted by the hospital!
This is supposedly for the protection of patients, though, if the various health departments across the country were truly concerned with patients’ health, they would require any staff member receiving a live virus vaccine (e.g. MMR (measles mumps and rubella), OPV (oral polio), Varicella (chicken pox) and Hep A to stay home for 90 days because they are carrying these viruses around and communicating them to those they are in contact with for up to that long a period of time.
There are two ways to get out of this requirement. One is to have a valid medical exemption either because you have had a serious reaction (e.g. anaphylactic shock) after a dose of a certain vaccine in which case you will only be exempted from that particular vaccine) or to have a blood test showing you have high levels of antibodies to any of the diseases listed above.
The AVN has been contacted by several people who have had these vaccines with serious ill effects including being diagnosed with cancer shortly afterwards. We have also been in contact with people who have lost their placement due to their refusal to be vaccinated.
This is a situation which we must not stand for! No matter your opinion on vaccination, every thinking person must agree that all medical procedures carry with them certain risks and it is unethical (and illegal under our current constitution) to require anyone to submit to medical procedure against their will.
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