Training is key to preventing the flu at work

As of this morning, there have been 64 confirmed cases of swine flu in the U.S., including 45 in New York City, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In response to the intensifying outbreak, President Barack Obama said that swine flu is a cause for concern, but not a cause for alarm. Because government officials don’t yet know how widespread the flu may be in the U.S., they are focused on aggressive planning and precautions.

The CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have developed a planning checklist for businesses, especially large businesses, to use in the case of a swine flu pandemic.

“In the event of pandemic influenza, businesses will play a key role in protecting employees' health and safety as well as limiting the negative impact to the economy and society,” the agencies said in a statement at PandemicFlu.gov. “Planning for pandemic influenza is critical.”

Along with how a pandemic could impact business operations, the checklist also includes valuable information that any organization can use to educate and inform employees on the dangers of the flu.

Officials suggest that businesses complete these tasks to communicate to and educate employees:

• Develop and disseminate programs and materials covering pandemic fundamentals (e.g. signs and symptoms of influenza, modes of transmission), personal and family protection and response strategies (e.g. hand hygiene, coughing/sneezing etiquette, contingency plans).
• Anticipate employee fear and anxiety, rumors and misinformation and plan communications accordingly.
• Ensure that communications are culturally and linguistically appropriate.
• Disseminate information to employees about your pandemic preparedness and response plan.
• Provide information for the at-home care of ill employees and family members.
• Develop platforms (e.g. hotlines, dedicated websites) for communicating pandemic status and actions to employees, vendors, suppliers, and customers inside and outside the worksite in a consistent and timely way, including redundancies in the emergency contact system.
• Identify community sources for timely and accurate pandemic information (domestic and international) and resources for obtaining counter-measures (e.g. vaccines and antivirals).

Educating and training employees on the dangers of the flu, including swine flu, is the best way to prevent illness within your organization and calm employees’ fears about a potential outbreak at work. Be prepared to answer employees’ questions and concerns, and prepared to squash any misinformed rumors that may be circling the office.

Whether your business is preparing for a natural disaster like a hurricane or flood, or a health crisis like the flu, your success will ultimately be determined by the information and training your workforce receives. Ensure that everyone in your organization knows what to do during a crisis. Your business depends on it.

Is it time for businesses to start getting involved? Is your company actively preparing for a swine flu outbreak? What types of informational materials/training have you provided employees with?

Please leave a comment and let us know what you think.

Disaster planning: Would your company sink or swim?

While it looks like the southern US coast evaded Hurricane Ike for now, it reminds us how serious the threat of disaster is and the importance of being prepared. Does your business have what it takes to come back from a catastrophic event?

No matter where your business is located, disaster preparedness and continuity plans are critical to survival after a disaster. A lack of planning can have dire consequences.

According to the Association of Small Business Development Centers:

• More than one quarter of businesses will experience a “significant crisis” every year.
• After a major disaster, 43% of businesses without an emergency plan will never reopen.
• Of those that do reopen, only 29% are still operating after two years.

Whether your business is threatened by hurricanes, tornadoes, flood or man-made disasters like identity theft or crippling computer viruses, no business is immune to disaster. Blocked roads and flood waters may limit access even if your building suffers little damage.

"How quickly a company gets back to business after a fire or flood, terrorist attack, tornado, or man-made crisis often depends on emergency planning done now," said Dr. Robert Leviton, president and chairman of the board of the Corporate Emergency Access System (CEAS).

What can you do to limit lost productivity and profits after a disaster? The first step is to put together a disaster recovery plan. A basic plan should include:

• Emergency contact numbers. Keep a current database of employee and emergency service phone numbers.


• Detailed communication plans. How will top management deliver information to employees after a catastrophic event?


• A list of critical tasks. Identify and distribute critical business operations to supervisors and employees.


• An off-site meeting place. Designate an off-site location for top management to meet in case your building is unaccessible.


• Customer communication plans. How will you communicate with customers on the status of their orders and deliver information to business clients?


• Data recovery plans. Natural and man-made disaster can easily wipe out hard drives and destroy databases. Keep critical back-up data at an outside location and have a plan on how to retrieve that information if disaster strikes.

Once your disaster plan is in place, practice it and then practice it again. Train employees and supervisors on emergency procedures and what to do if they have limited or no access to the building.

Test your plan with emergency dry-runs and document performance. Look for ways to improve and update your plan wherever necessary.

The amount of lost time and productivity after a major disaster will ultimately come down to the effectiveness of your communication. With effective communication and employee cooperation, your business can keep recovery time to a minimum and your business standing after disaster.