Please email me privately,
Rachel.leibu@atlantichealth.org to discuss further.
From: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh-bounces@mylist.net> On Behalf Of
Reichen, Catherine
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2025 3:42 PM
To: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh@mylist.net>
Subject: Re: [MCOH-EH] EH Requirements for Fully Remote Employees
WARNING: This message originated from outside of Atlantic Health System. Any attachments or links should be carefully
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Do you have a copy of this remote flu accommodation request form that we can check out and possibly recreate for our facilities? This is a great idea.
Thanks
Cathy Reichen, PT, DPT
Director, Employee Health and Safety
Glens Falls Hospital
518-926-2141 – office
518-926-2167 – Fax
From: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh-bounces+creichen=glensfallshosp.org@mylist.net>
On Behalf Of Leibu, Rachel
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2025 2:45 PM
To: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh@mylist.net>
Subject: Re: [MCOH-EH] EH Requirements for Fully Remote Employees
Hi David, At our Medical Centers, strictly remote team members may complete a Remote Flu Accommodation Request which also must be signed by their manager stating
that they do not ever come to any of our facilities for work related purposes.
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Hi David,
At our Medical Centers, strictly remote team members may complete a Remote Flu Accommodation Request which also must be signed by their manager stating that they do not ever
come to any of our facilities for work related purposes.
From: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh-bounces@mylist.net>
On Behalf Of David S. Cockrum via MCOH-EH
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2025 11:40 AM
To: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh@mylist.net>
Cc: David S. Cockrum <David.S.Cockrum@hitchcock.org>
Subject: [MCOH-EH] EH Requirements for Fully Remote Employees
WARNING: This message originated from outside of Atlantic Health System. Any attachments or links should be carefully
considered before proceeding. Messages from our business partners still need to be reviewed and should not be opened if suspicious.
Please use the report phishing button to report a questionable email.
Fellow Med Center leaders-
In past years, DH has mandated flu vaccine for all employees, even those that are fully remote and never come to our facilities. This includes employees that reside in other states and work from home with no expectation of ever entering
our facilities.
The justifications have been two-fold: 1) the organization has an obligation to support community health so mandating the flu shot has a positive impact on every community in the employees reside, and 2) all employees should be treated
the same regardless of where they physically perform their jobs.
I have proposed that we exempt the fully remote employees from the flu shot mandate. We can strongly encourage it as we do for our patient population. But the mandate creates significant administrative challenges to enforce compliance.
And from my perspective as Medical Director of Employee Health, I am focused on Infection Prevention/disease control in our facilities. A remote employee won’t interface with the patients coming into our facilities so there is no change in risk to our facility
whether that employee is immunized or not. While community health is important, I am not convinced that mandating a flu shot for someone who works at home in Utah (or wherever) makes any kind of impact on that local community.
I’m wondering if any of the other larger medical centers has a policy on flu shots for remote employees, or how your organization handles this. If there is some aspect that I am missing in my thought process, I would appreciate hearing
it – I’m always open to learning and adjusting my approach based on what I learn (which is why I attend AOHC!).
Thanks,
David
David S. Cockrum, MD, MPH
He/Him/His
Medical Director & Section Chief
Occupational & Environmental Medicine
Department of Medicine
Tel (603) 653-3881 | Fax (603) 650-0930
Dartmouth-Health.org
Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
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