Shenandoah Valley women choose to not get vaccinated, here is why

While every person across the globe is struggling their way to get the vaccine against deadly coronavirus, the situation in Shenandoah Valley is a little different.

The nurses' employer, Valley Health, the parent company of Winchester Medical Center had given the nurses an ultimatum: Get the shot or face termination.

To this, the women responded by standing on the corner of a busy four-way intersection at the entrance to Winchester Medical Center, protesting the hospital's recent coronavirus vaccine mandate.

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Some were on a quasi-strike, skipping a day of work to stand on the side of the road in scorching heat, holding signs that demanded, "NO FORCED VACCINATION."

The Valley Health announced a vaccine mandate for its 6,300 employees at its six locations on July 19, while offering religious and medical exemptions for eligible applicants.

For the majority of Valley Health employees, the policy was not a problem as 75 per cent are fully vaccinated, the company said.

However, in a region where vaccination rates are lower than they are statewide, Valley Health's mandate prompted a furious community debate, with numerous protests outside Valley Health's hospitals in Front Royal and Winchester.

There were pleas from unvaccinated people demanding the intervention from local government to stop the mandate.

In Winchester, 57 per cent of the adult population is fully vaccinated, compared with 66% statewide.

Meanwhile, in neighbouring rural Warren County only 46 per cent of the adult population is fully vaccinated.

Those who were standing outside the Winchester hospital said that they had weighed the risks, and despite more than 620,000 deaths from COVID-19 in the US, they still viewed the vaccine as riskier.

Some cited rare but serious side effects, including myocarditis tied to Pfizer-BioNTech's and Moderna's vaccines and blood clots tied to Johnson & Johnson's.

People also pointed to misinformation about fertility issues.

Others said they were banking on natural immunity after contracting the virus last year.

Brittany Watson, a behavioural health nurse at the Winchester hospital, was quoted by The Washington Post as saying, "We are not 'anti-vax".

She added, "We've done all the vaccines that you get when you grow up - but those have been around for decades. But this one, there's so much propaganda around it. It doesn't make any sense."