Nov

10

H1N1 vaccine causing PR problems for Canadian teams

Filed Under Crisis Communications, Sports PR 

Sports Business Daily has followed this interesting storyline of Canadian hockey teams taking the H1N1 vaccine and the public controversy that followed. Why is taking a vaccine a big deal? Millions of Canadians who have been waiting in line to get this vaccine have yet to get the vaccine, while these professional hockey players seemingly jumped ahead in the queue line according to those angered by this situation.

Since there is a lot to this story, let me break it down for you by bullet points:

  • The Calgary Flames were the first organization to be mentioned by the media, but the Toronto Maple Leafs and Raptors (NBA) were later added to the discussion.
  • The Flames’ players were given the opportunity last Friday to take the vaccine. The players were not required to do so by the team, but it sounds like the majority if not all of the team took the shots. The same players did not realize that they were “jumping” in line or even how many people were waiting for a vaccine.
  • It appears that the Toronto Maple Leafs’ players were actually the first to receive the vaccine last Tuesday after a home game, but word did not get out until two days after the news about the Flames.
  • The provincial government is particularly upset, which the Globe & Mail suggests is due to the fact that they were already taking a lot of heat for how they have handled this vaccine allotment and seeing pro athletes get the vaccine over pregnant women and children just added to the flames.
  • High at-risk individuals are to be given the vaccine first and with the low supply should be the only ones to receive the vaccine in Canada right now. These individuals would include “children between the age of six months and five years, pregnant women, elderly people and health-care workers.”
  • So if athletes don’t fall under that umbrella, how did they get the vaccines for the team? Toronto says they did not go through improper means to do so and the Flames seconded that statement.
  • The Calgary Herald later reported that a mid-level manager in the province health superboard was fired after it was discovered he was why the Flames jumped up in the queue line: “Cooney said the manager was the most senior staff member involved, adding the person was senior enough that the Flames would have no reason to believe the decision to go ahead with the shots was inappropriate.” A second worker was also fired in the connection to this H1N1-Gate as some are calling it.
  • A column in The Toronto Star says that it’s no surprise professional athletes got preferential treatment over the Average Joe, which gets at the heart of this controversy and why this is such a PR problem for the teams.
  • The Ottawa Senators made it clear by Nov. 5 — the day that news about the Maple Leafs broke — that they had not received the vaccine yet and they would be waiting in the queue with everyone else and that the shot would not be a requirement for its players.

So how did these different sports teams respond to this unique controversy?

On Saturday, the Flames held a meeting with season ticket holders “to answer their questions about members of the team receiving the H1N1 vaccine ahead of high-risk Albertans.”

Flames president and CEO Ken King said he wanted to hold the meeting so season ticket holders could get all the facts about what happened.

“People were supportive. They wanted to understand things more. It [the meeting] served its purpose. They wanted to get a better understanding of what took place, the timing, how it took place, rationale, and that type of thing,” he said.

The Globe and Mail briefly addresses a release put out by the Flames and referenced a quote of the team president:

The Flames released a statement and answered questions but never acknowledged any wrongdoing. “We sought counsel and guidance on this matter and determined it appropriate given the facts available at the time,” the statement said pointing out it had all been arranged through Alberta Health Services. “We accept full responsibility for our actions and decisions.” …

Flames’ president Ken King was adamant in his defence of the players saying, “Our players did not seek to avoid a line-up. They didn’t ask for special attention, they followed the direction of our physicians, they followed the organization’s direction.”

The Toronto Maple Leafs also opted to use a release to address the issue and president/GM Brian Burke would not speak publicly per The Globe and Mail:

Leafs president and general manager Brian Burke refused to comment aside from an official statement released by the team. The Leafs and Raptors spokesmen insisted the teams did not receive the vaccination outside the usual channels and did not jump any lines at medical clinics. They also said the close contact between teammates and opponents plus the heavy travel schedule make infection a high risk for sports teams.

“Any vaccine supplies received were obtained through normal distribution and no preferential treatment was requested nor received,” Leafs director of media relations Pat Park said in a statement. …

“We’re not going to comment on medical stuff. That’s really not our cup of tea to talk about,” said Leafs forward Matt Stajan, who also declined to say whether the players were ordered by management not to talk about it.

Leafs head coach Ron Wilson said the issue was “an internal matter.”

The Vancouver Sun spoke with media relations officials for the many Canadian NHL teams:

Donald Beauchamp, vice-president of communications for the Montreal Canadiens, said to date none of the team’s players have been vaccinated.

“There hasn’t been one player vaccinated and we will comply to the letter with the health services’ directives and whatever they tell us to do,” he said from Boston, where the Canadiens prepared to play the Bruins. …

Ottawa Senators spokesman Phil Legault also said no players have received the vaccine. “We are waiting in line just like everyone else here in Ottawa,” he said. “They’ll wait in line until it’s their turn.”J.J. Hebert, media director for the Edmonton Oilers, said players are waiting to be vaccinated. “At this point we are still waiting direction from our team medical staff,” he said.

A spokesman for the Vancouver Canucks said the team is “taking every precaution possible to protect our staff and players from illness. . . We will provide players and staff with the option of flu shots at the appropriate time.”

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