OHSU COVID-19 vaccine policy implementation, operations update

Coronavirus (COVID-19) , Viewpoint
Joint statement on MCMC and OHSU agreement
Joint statement on MCMC and OHSU agreement
OHSU logo of yellow and green lines that form a flame-like image above the letters OHSU.

 

*** Updated Oct. 20, 2021 ***

At OHSU, the health and safety of our patients, employees and learners is our first priority. As the state’s academic health and science university, OHSU supports and adheres to the scientific evidence confirming the safety and efficacy of all three COVID-19 vaccines currently available in the United States.

OHSU strongly encourages vaccination for all who are eligible and firmly believes that getting vaccinated is one of the best things anyone can do to protect themselves, our patients, loved ones, neighbors, friends and the community at large from severe illness or death.

To help ensure our hospitals and clinics remain as safe as possible for the long term, as of Oct. 18, 2021, all OHSU members – employees and learners institution-wide – must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or have received an approved medical or religious exception.

OHSU acknowledges that getting vaccinated is a personal choice and that the decision to do so may be difficult for many of our members. The situation is also difficult for our university because we greatly value our more than 22,000 employees, learners and volunteers. 

OHSU has one of the highest rates of vaccination among hospitals and health systems regionwide, with more than 96% of OHSU members fully vaccinated, in compliance with OHSU policy and Oregon state law.

Since we first announced an institutional vaccine policy in May 2021, OHSU has experienced a steady increase in workforce vaccination rates, which is a testament to our members’ steadfast dedication to ensuring the health and safety of their patients, colleagues and themselves. 

Vaccinations are the key to protecting ourselves and those we hold most dear from becoming infected with COVID-19 and to ending this devastating pandemic. We hope everyone who can get vaccinated will get vaccinated.

Operations

Vaccine policy compliance is just one of many issues affecting health care staffing at OHSU, around the state and across the nation. OHSU is committed to ensuring the best and safest possible access to health care services, and will not close any clinics or hospital units as a direct result of vaccination policy non-compliance.

OHSU is focused on increasing available staffing to further minimize operational impacts and maintain the necessary services our patients require. Thirty-two OHSU members have received exceptions to the vaccine policy and 422 members, across OHSU’s health care, research and education missions, have been laid off or placed on unpaid leave, as of Oct. 18, 2021. We continue to assess hospital and outpatient operations on a daily basis, and are prepared to redistribute staff to teams that need assistance due to departures and are onboarding temporary staff to help fill workforce vacancies.

At various times during the pandemic, OHSU has limited the number of nonemergency procedures and surgeries performed each day in response to dramatic increases, or surges, in patients severely ill with COVID-19. At this time, we continue to see the high demand for hospital admission from emergency rooms, surgeries, clinics and transfers from across the state exceed our staffed bed capacity. We expect to continue to have to limit scheduled procedures, surgeries and hospital admission every day, as well as limit the hours of some imaging and lab services, to varying degrees.

By the numbers

As of Tuesday, Oct. 19:


OHSU Communications
503 494-8231