93% Stony Brook Hospital Staff Got 1st COVID-19 Vaxx: Officials

STONY BROOK, NY — Stony Brook University officials say that as of Tuesday morning 93% of Stony Brook University Hospital employees have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in response to the state's mandate.

It was not immediately clear if that amount is a combination of workers who are fully vaccinated and how many have only received the first dose of the vaccine. The percentage of employees who are fully vaccinated is not available, according to officials.

Southampton Hospital and Eastern Long Island Hospital are not included in the calculation.

There is no requirement for healthcare workers to have a second dose at this time.

In a statement to Patch, hospital officials said the number of vaccinated employees “continues to grow daily.”

“We have continually communicated to our staff who qualify under this mandate, to encourage them to get the vaccine, and to make them aware of opportunities to become vaccinated,” the statement continues.

The hospital is following the "current guidelines" and plans to set up meetings with employees who decide "not to get the vaccine" beginning on Tuesday, officials said.

The Civil Service Employees Association is considered the largest in the state's hospital system with members ranging from non-medical facilities workers to licensed practical nurses, operating room technicians, and hospital assistants, according to the state's website.

CSEA Local 614 President Carlos Speight said he received over 75 suspension letters for hospital employees as of Monday, and called it a “sad and dejected day” for the state “when a year ago hospital employees, front line workers, and or essential employees went from heroes putting their lives and family members on the line daily to zeroes a year later.”

“Think about this…arriving at work, the dedicated employee, being handed a document from their employer stating they are suspended without pay,” he wrote in a statement to Patch.

Speight went on to say that an “unknown number of employees were placed on involuntary leave without pay because of religious exemption.”

“It goes without saying this will put a strain on the health and safe wellbeing of employees and patients at Stony Brook hospital,” he said. “This should have been handled in a more compassionate and empathic fashion. A compromise should have been made with the unvaccinated hospital workers.”

He said the fact that there was no compromise “only deepens the mistrust” that New Yorkers and the state workforce at Stony Brook “continue to have with their elected officials and hospital leadership.”

The university and the hospital’s leadership are placing employees on suspension without pay and are not following the collective bargaining agreement and the past practice affording employees’ “rights to due process the last 30 years.”

The state's Public Employees Federation membership includes workers from the nursing field in the state's health sciences centers, as well as physicians in the student health service, according to the state's website.

Stony Brook Council Leader Anthony Tirella did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Delegates were headed to mediation over the mandate on Sept. 22, according to its website.

A Public Employment Relations Board mediator brought together representatives from the union and Gov. Kathy Hochul's Office for Employee Relations "in an attempt to negotiate the impact of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate imposed" by the state.

Union president Wayne Spence said, "negotiations continue over the impact of a vaccine mandate, but in the same way the state has negotiated for years — in a vacuum, until unions like PEF apply some pressure and go over the head of [the Governor's Office for Employee Relations]."

"Gov. Hochul inherited a dysfunctional state government and too many decisions are still being made by [Gov. Andrew Cuomo] appointees," Spence said, adding, "She is not to blame for the current statewide staffing crisis or the fact that some healthcare professionals are choosing to leave what was once the gold standard — a state job with a pension and good benefits."

Nurses employed by the State of New York have not seen an increase to their starting salary grade in 30 years — since 1981, according to Spence.

"The vaccine mandate is just the final straw for some of them, " he said. "Is it any wonder that some of them are choosing to resign? My job as president of PEF is to make sure the dedicated public servants in the state’s second-largest public-sector union can do what they do best — provide quality public services to their fellow New Yorkers. I’m committed to working with the Hochul administration to make sure they can do that today, tomorrow, and into the future.”

Stony Brook is following the state Department of Health’s regulations and guidelines for immunization against SARS-CoV-2, and that includes “the order that ‘all hospitals and nursing homes continuously require all personnel to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, with the first dose for current personnel received by Sept. 27,’” the statement read.

"We are monitoring the situation to optimize preparedness and make staffing adjustments as necessary," the statement continued. "These staffing contingency plans will allow us to continue to provide safe staffing and the best possible care to our patients. Throughout this unprecedented health crisis, Stony Brook University Hospital has upheld its standard of safety and quality of care for our patients and this remains our highest priority."

If officials see attrition due to employee decisions not to become vaccinated, an upcoming job fair will be hosted at Stony Brook University Hospital and it will help supplement staffing needs for various positions, officials said.