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Novant Health leaders say recent terminations did not have a major impact on staffing

99% of Novant Health employees are in compliance with the vaccine mandate. Dr. David Priest said staffing issues occur when people test positive for COVID-19.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — What's next for Novant Health? That is the question WFMY News 2 is asking after 175 employees were fired for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Novant Health’s chief safety, quality and epidemiology officer said currently the health system has more than 35,000 employees across the state, a large number compared to the 175 that was terminated Monday.

Dr. Priest said while staffing has always been an issue even before the pandemic, he is confident care will not be jeopardized. "We've been in a deadly pandemic for 19 months. There are 680,000 Americans who have died and we cannot contribute to that number, not a single time," Dr. Priest said. 

He said the top priority is keeping patients safe and it starts with keeping everyone out of harm's way. "The way we do that is to put every barrier up that would protect them. So, that's the use of PPE between masking and eye protection, gloves and gowns and all the things they put on. But, it's also being vaccinated," Dr. Priest explained. 

The health system said 99% of Novant Health employees are in compliance with the vaccine mandate. Dr. Priest said the staffing issue is not about the mandate, it's keeping employees healthy enough to work. "There are members in the community and throughout the pandemic, certainly pre-vaccine, we had team members getting COVID and they have to be out and be out often for a couple of weeks. And then, with long COVID they may have issues much longer than that," he said.  

Dr. Priest said right now he feels good with the amount of staff caring for patients, and there are a number of ways to accommodate if needed. "We can move team members to other parts of the organization. We are always hiring new team members. We occasionally have to use some traveling nurses to fill those gaps, but our teams have done a remarkable job doing that," he said. 

The health system has competitive compensation incentives aimed toward recruiting. Employees that still have to take their second dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine have until Oct. 15 to stay compliant.

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