'We're not permitted to make the connection': Social worker shares aftermath of COVID vaccine injury

 As a social worker known for her expertise when handling high-stress conflict management cases, Angela Loerzel Swafford figured she'd navigate her own concerns when it came to addressing her employers' vaccination mandate last fall.

And she definitely had concerns.

Like many hospitals and health systems across the nation during that time, the hospital where the 46-year-old was and is still employed required their health workers to get the jab. But Swafford suffers from a venous malformation, a condition where veins in the body develop in an unusual way. Because the abnormality can increase the risk of developing blood clots and deep vein thrombosis, she was hesitant about getting the COVID jab.

Still, worried about the possibility of losing the job she loved, the licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) practicing in both Oregon and Washington, was willing to do what was needed to protect her patients from COVID-19.

"I love that job," said Swafford who had always gotten the flu vaccine every year to protect the vulnerable patients she visits in hospice care. "I have this concern about my own safety but I also understand what I need to do to protect the community."

"It stops with you," she added, or so she had always been told...<<<Read More>>>..