Brian Malone
Story Created:
Dec 9, 2008 at 12:32 PM AKDT
Story Updated:
Dec 9, 2008 at 12:32 PM AKDT
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Workers at Providence Alaska Medical
Center in Anchorage are facing an ultimatum: get flu shots by
year's end or face dismissal.
Infectious disease experts say the measure makes good health
sense. It is intended to protect patients, already ill, from being
infected with potentially deadly influenza while hospitalized.
At Providence, the new requirement affects the more than the
3,100 employees at the main hospital in Anchorage and the
administration building a short walk away. As of Friday, 2,139 --
or about 70 percent had been vaccinated.
But many nurses don't want to be forced to get a shot that
carries health risks of its own and doesn't always work, according
to the nurses' union.
The nurses' union has filed a grievance protesting the policy.
