Patients will fear going to hospital while NHS staff remain unvaccinated

sir – I am frightened by the thought of needing to go into hospital this winter (“11,600 caught Covid in hospital and died”, report, November 9).

A large percentage of the people I could come into contact with will not be vaccinated, with jabs for frontline staff not mandatory until next spring. This will increase my risk of being very ill or dying. How can unvaccinated NHS staff be so insensitive?

Nick Hawker

Bedford

sir – I am horrified that some are still allowed to refuse jabs while performing tasks that bring them into contact with the public.

In the 1940s, almost every transfer in the Royal Navy meant one or more inoculations and physical examinations – and woe betide anyone who attempted to decline. Objections were neither invited nor entertained. Ron Button

Haywards Heath, West Sussex

sir – I write from a village in France where community nurses played a frontline role in the battle against Covid. When the village was struck by the virus our neighbours were visited twice a day by a nurse, fully protected with appropriate PPE. The outcome was that Covid sufferers could be kept at home until they needed to go to hospital, and non-covid patients could be cared for at home instead of being put at risk in hospital.

This was not the case in England, where my 90-year-old mother was rushed to hospital during the height of the pandemic with a mild bronchial infection. We were promised that she would not go into a Covid ward but, much to our distress, she was immediately placed in a pandemic reception ward alongside patients with Covid symptoms. It is no surprise to our family that 11,600 caught Covid in hospital and later died.

Teresa Orange

Blauvac, Vaucluse, France

sir – It would indeed be wonderful if the NHS could “learn the lessons so that scandals like this don’t happen again” (report, November 9). Unfortunately, I know that it won’t.

Less than 20 years ago my brother went into hospital with bladder cancer. His operation was successful but he contracted MRSA and later died. I seem to remember comments then about “lessons to be learnt”.

Nina Lloyd-hirst

Newcastle upon Tyne

sir – The Government repeatedly says it “follows the science”. Yet Sajid Javid, the Health Secretary, who has no formal training in medical science, also said: “We know immunity will fade over time.”

One action of vaccines is to stimulate the formation of memory T-cells, which provide long-lasting protection against bacteria and viruses. Many scientific papers have shown this occurs with Covid vaccinations.

The confusion of truth and political statements is helping no one.

Dr Aidan Gill

Unterägeri, Zug, Switzerland