Mandatory vaccination for Tallinn's ambulance staff

The ambulance service in the Estonian capital of Tallinn has given its employees an ultimatum: those who haven't been vaccinated by the middle of May will have their contracts terminated. A member of staff contacted the media to report the new policy. Estonia's press discusses whether mandatory vaccination is justified.

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Õhtuleht (EE) /

Patient safety comes first

Õhtuleht argues that in this particular case compulsory vaccination is right:

“It's clear that the Tallinn Ambulance Service's decision to dismiss unvaccinated staff is not an isolated case but the beginning of a larger process. Of course, everyone has the right to decide for themselves about vaccination. In the emergency room, however, it's a matter of patient safety - the doctor himself must not pose a threat to patients who are unvaccinated due to medical contraindications. ”

Eesti Päevaleht (EE) /

What comes next?

Conservative columnist Mari-Vivian Ellam warns in Eesti Päevaleht about the consequences of compulsory vaccination:

“In human terms, I understand employers who seek to motivate their employees to get vaccinated using every means at their disposal, including threats and coercion. Yes, their reasons are convincing, nevertheless it's the overstepping of medical-ethical boundaries that this entails that's worrying. If we're willing to take such a step after only one year of pandemic, what lies down the road? What kind of world will we enter if we accept that human beings can be deprived of their free will to decide about their own health?”