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Inmates at Ontario jails and correctional centres will be vaccinated for the swine flu Monday, while the guards protecting them have been told their clinics have been cancelled, the Sun has learned.
"This puts us at risk," says Matthew Duffy, an officer at the Toronto West Detention Centre who's a shop steward for OPSEU Local 517 and a "wellness" representative.
"They've told us they are holding a clinic for the inmates Monday, Nov. 1, but not one for us? It's ridiculous," he said yesterday.
The decision to take care of the health concerns of the inmates and not the officers is "insulting," Duffy said.
'POOR TURNOUT'
To suggest the clinics were cancelled because "there was poor turnout" in other years is ludicrous, he said.
"I mean this year there's a pandemic, isn't there?" Duffy said. "It's a little different."
And to add insult to injury, he said, the guards will be part of the security for the clinic.
"They want us to help put the clinic on and we're not getting the vaccine?" said Duffy, a 23-year veteran. "We have pregnant women on the job. It's not right."
The correctional services ministry couldn't be reached for comment last night.
MEMO
A memo sent to staff said the decision to not give flu shots to staff was based on poor turnout in other years.
"While inmates will be vaccinated at all institutions, the decision was made to not hold staff vaccination clinics at institutions this year due to the small uptake by staff in previous years," says the memorandum from Loretta Eley, of the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services.
Also, a memo from Nancy Ogden, a nurse adviser in the ministry states: "Over the last three years of collecting data on our flu clinics, it was identified that in the majority of facilities that conducted flu clinics the employee turnout was poor and some cited this as 'disappointing,' not cost effective, etc."