By Shelby Baker
Fox8 News | Rebecca Bowling says she was shocked when she received an e-mail from her employer, Moses Cone Health Systems, that said employees must either get the H1N1 vaccine or turn in their employee badge.
"You are asking me to put a vaccine into my body. That should be my decision," said Bowling, noting that mandating vaccinations is different from enforcing a dress code or code of conduct.
The hospital administration says employees have a choice: get the vaccine or voluntarily resign. The deadline to get vaccinated is the end of the month.
The hospital's chief nursing officer issued the following statement in response to a reporter's question about the mandatory vaccinations:
"As health care workers, the public expects us to be there when they need us, and more importantly, they expect us to keep them safe. This vaccine protects our workforce and our families and allows us to meet public expectation."
Bowling, who has been a nurse at Moses Cone for three years, believes pushing the H1N1 vaccine on employees is out of line.
"Vaccines are controversial anyway, and this particular vaccine has only been around since July, so it's impossible to say what the long-term consequences are. Nobody knows," she said.
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem is also requiring employees to get the H1N1 vaccine. Employees who do not get the vaccine could also risk losing their jobs.
Both hospitals make exceptions for employees who refuse based on medical reasons or religious beliefs.
"For people like me whose spouse is working but their income is not sufficient, it's not a choice. It's not a choice to say I will refuse this vaccine and lose my job," said Bowling.
In order to keep her job, Bowling decided to accept the H1N1 vaccine.
"I'm so mad at myself. I feel like I have compromised my integrity, and I'm very upset with myself. But again, it was an economic necessity that made me do it," she said.
