BlackburnNews.com file photo of Windsor Regional Hospital's Metropolitan Campus, July 16, 2015. (Photo by Jason Viau)BlackburnNews.com file photo of Windsor Regional Hospital's Metropolitan Campus, July 16, 2015. (Photo by Jason Viau)
Windsor

UPDATE: WRH, HDGH set deadline for staff to get fully vaccinated

Staff, volunteers, students, and contractors at Windsor Regional Hospital have until September 22 to get both of their shots of the COVID-19 vaccine.

After that, those who have not had their shots will go on a two-week unpaid leave of absence.

If they remain unvaccinated, their employment will be terminated.

The date was announced Thursday night at the hospital's board of directors meeting, where members went over the latest COVID-19 information.

Also, Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare CEO Janice Kaffer told Blackburn News Friday afternoon that it will also impose a September 22 deadline.

Windsor Regional and HDGH are two of five hospitals in the Erie St. Clair Local Health Integrated Network setting deadlines for staff to be fully vaccinated.

Chatham-Kent Health Alliance announced an October 31 deadline for vaccinations Friday morning. Erie Shores Healthcare and Bluewater Health have not yet set a date, but workers at those organizations could also face termination if they do not comply with their deadlines.

The hospitals told their staff a deadline was coming back on September 3 when it announced the new policy.

At the time, Windsor Regional CEO David Musyj told BlackburnNews.com that 94 per cent of the staff there were already fully vaccinated.

"We can't on one hand, tell the community how important it is to go get vaccinated, and on the other hand, as a health care organization, not adhere to that same statement," he said at the time.

Read More Local Stories