Vaccine: Mandate or Choice? For decades there has been the issue of mandating influenza vaccines for health care workers across the United States. This issue has raised the morality of forcing employees to get an injection every flu season. By not getting a flu vaccine, every health care worker needs to realize that they are not only putting themselves at risk for the flu, but every patient that they are in contact with. According to Arthur Caplan, influenza immunization rates among health care workers have averaged ∼50% over the past decade in the United States (106). Given the failure of voluntary vaccination approaches and the affiliated dangers of low vaccination rates present to vulnerable patients, should all health care workers be required to be vaccinated against influenza as a term of employment? Health care workers have the responsibility to protect their patients in every way possible. From wearing gloves, to washing hands, there are strict protocol that is in place to prevent the spread of bacteria and other illnesses such as the common cold or influenza. Many patients who depend on the care of health practitioners are vulnerable both …show more content…
The health care worker usually chose that particular field of work willingly because they love helping people, therefore they were educated about this code of ethics. Second, all health care workers are obligated to honor the core medical ethics requirement to “do no harm.” Given the data that vaccinations can help to prevent disease transmission to patients, the most important moral requirement in all of health care demands that those in these roles treat vaccination as mandatory for their position. Additionally, those who run health care institutions and programs ought to take in account these principles and insist on influenza vaccination as a condition of employment