97% of FirstHealth staff now vaccinated ahead of deadline

Gavin Stone, Richmond County Daily Journal, Rockingham, N.C.
·3 min read

Nov. 17—ROCKINGHAM — With just days left before the deadline for FirstHealth employees to complete a 2-dose series of a COVID-19 vaccine, nearly all of the hospital chain's employees have gotten the vaccine.

FirstHealth of the Carolinas announced on Sept. 22 that all employees would be required to be fully vaccinated by Nov. 19, that those who didn't would be suspended for a maximum of 28 days and if an employee is not fully vaccinated by Dec. 17 they will be fired. After about the first week, more than 100 employees had scheduled an appointment to get a dose of the vaccine, and only "a few" said they planned to quit over the requirement, the hospital told the Daily Journal last month.

"Currently, 97% of our staff are compliant with the vaccine requirement policy," said Public Relations Director Emily Sloan on Tuesday. "This number will likely change in the coming days as employees continue to send in proof of vaccination and additional vaccine clinics are being held this week."

Sloan declined to comment on how many staff members have quit, plan to quit, or have been fired over the mandate at this point. Those who work directly with COVID-19 patients have been required to be vaccinated since the vaccines became available in December 2020.

The Nov. 19 and Dec. 17 deadlines are the Fridays before the weeks of Thanksgiving and Christmas, respectively, which last year coincided with a massive uptick in the spread of the virus due to people traveling and gathering in large groups.

The company waited until after at least one of the vaccines received full FDA approval before requiring vaccination for staff. The Pfizer vaccine received full FDA approval in August.FirstHealth conducted a company-wide survey, as well as multiple employee focus groups, before deciding to require vaccination for continued employment. Chief Executive Officer Mickey Foster said in a press release that the requirement is in the "best interest of FirstHealth's staff and demonstrates the system's commitment to its core purpose: to care for people."

"We are committed to the health and safety of our FirstHealth family and the communities we serve," Foster continued. "Requiring COVID-19 vaccines is the right decision for our system, but it's not one we take lightly."

Richmond County has seen a drop in COVID-19 spread over recent months. The CDC's most recent data shows that the county saw a 14.58% drop in new cases from Nov. 8 to Nov. 15, and from Nov. 6 to Nov. 13 saw a 1.78% drop in the COVID-19 positivity rate. According to the CDC, 51.2% of Richmond County's total population has at least one dose as of Tuesday, and 43.2% are fully vaccinated. Of those 12 years of age and older, 60.2% have at least one dose and 50.9% are fully vaccinated.

The Richmond County Health Department will be holding a Covid vaccine clinic Saturday, Nov. 20 from 10 a.m. — 2 p.m. at the Health Department. Vaccines will be given to ages 5 and up. Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be available at no charge and no appointments are needed. First, Second and Booster doses are available.

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Reach Gavin Stone at 910-817-2673 or [email protected]