Simon Jones: Vaccine but not heard

The government’s consultation on mandating Covid-19 and flu vaccination for frontline health workers is sure to be one of the most divisive subjects the optometric sector has ever seen.

Comments on the subject make for very interesting reading and range from ‘those who refuse to be vaccinated should be removed from the register’ to ‘mandatory vaccines violate human rights and will result in lawsuits.’ While these views may represent different extremes of the debate, neither can be ignored.

At the start of 2020, when the vaccine rollout was in its infancy, the profession was included in early access in line with other healthcare workers. There would have undoubtedly been hesitancy among some members of the profession, but to most, being vaccinated was a sensible means to an end that allowed them to carry on caring for patients, albeit with a greater sense of confidence. Some even pretended to work in practices to get early access to the vaccine, such was the clamour for protection.