Government mandatory COVID vaccination plan should never have seen the light of day says the RCM

By RCM on 02 March 2022 NHS Midwives RCM Maternity Services Government Covid-19 Midwife Shortage

Mandatory vaccination for NHS staff is a policy that should never have seen the light of day, says the Royal College of Midwives (RCM). This comes as the Government announced that the legal requirement for health and social care staff to be vaccinated against COVID is to be removed following a public consultation.

The RCM has always encouraged its midwife and maternity support worker members to have the COVID vaccine and will continue to do so but opposed mandatory vaccination for NHS staff.

Jon Skewes, Executive Director of External Relations at the RCM, said: “This U-turn shows it was wrongheaded thinking from the off and should never have been introduced in the first place. It will have further eroded the already damaged trust between NHS staff and the Government and could have led the NHS to lose staff it can ill afford to, worsening the already chronic midwife shortages buckling our maternity services.

“Now we need to look to the future. This means solving the midwifery and maternity staff shortages facing the NHS and giving maternity services the money and resources needed to deliver the safest and best possible care.

ENDS 

To contact the RCM Media Office call 020 7312 3456, or email media@rcm.org.uk. 

Notes to Editors: 

See also RCM welcomes suspension of ‘wrongheaded’ mandatory vaccine policy and RCM calls for immediate delay to NHS staff mandatory vaccination plans.

Read the Government’s announcement at Regulations making COVID-19 vaccination a condition of deployment to end - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) is the only trade union and professional association dedicated to serving midwifery and the whole midwifery team.  We provide workplace advice and support, professional and clinical guidance, and information, and learning opportunities with our broad range of events, conferences, and online resources. For more information visit the RCM | A professional organisation and trade union dedicated to serving the whole midwifery team.