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PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS FOR BUSINESSES
PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS FOR BUSINESSES
MANAGING ILLNESS AT WORK
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MANAGING ILLNESS AT WORK
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Discovering illness in the workplace could mean healthy employees' refusal to come to the office due to safety concerns. According to the workplace health and safety regulations in most countries they would be well within their rights to do so.
It is imperative therefore to have clear guidelines in place for dealing with illness and these plans must be communicated effectively to all staff.
Such plans should include the following:
If a person feels ill, or if someone observes that another person is sick at work, they are to contact the Crisis Manager/Influenza Manager or person responsible by telephone as soon as possible.
Avoid visiting this person if possible - manage the process over the phone.
Check if the employee has any of the symptoms. Use the illness screening flow chart.
If the sick employee does not have any symptoms like those listed, they are very unlikely to have influenza, and should be reassured but advised to call the Influenza Manager again later or to see their doctor if they are still concerned.
If the illness does have symptoms that match some of those listed, they should be treated as a 'suspect case'. It may be helpful to have a Sickness at Work Report Form completed, including details of any staff and/or visitors they have been in contact with.
This information will permit the Influenza Manager to identify recent movements and monitor well-being during the pandemic.
The ill employee should be informed where they can find a face mask and instructed to wear it immediately. This is to help protect other staff.
The sick employee should leave work and immediately contact medical assistance. This may involve phoning the person's normal doctor or nurse, or a specially designated centre to seek further advice. The employee's manager should be informed that they have left work.
The ill employee, should, if at all possible, avoid public transport when leaving work.
Ascertain who has the sick staff been in contact with. Identify contacts (once an employee is suspected to be infected) and advise contacts in person that they have been in contact with a person suspected of having influenza.
Ask contacts to go home, and stay at home until advised otherwise.
The ill employee's work station should be cleaned and disinfected.
The Influenza Manager will need to set up pandemic response procedure to manage the absence and return to work of the employee and their contacts. Some issues to consider include:
Advice to the ill employee on how long to stay away from work.
Decisions on the leave and cover arrangements.
Checking on the sick staff member during his/her absence from work. This will facilitate treatment, contact tracing, etc., if they become ill.
Set up a process in the plan for ensuring both that: the ill employee is healthy before allowing them to return to work; and that they are encouraged to return to work once they are well.
Prevention is always better than cure. Encourage staff to perform a self illness check before coming to work each day, including themselves and their families.
Have a return-to-normal notification tree in place so that all staff are aware of the all-clear in the office in case some are waiting to return to work.
Have Public Relations plans in place and ensure all staff are aware of the 'line-to-take' in case they are asked by the press or public to comment on the situation.
Workplace cleaning. Most modern offices sub-contract cleaning services, organised either by the businesses themselves or by the building's management company. If your cleaning services are sub-contracted or otherwise managed by outside service providers, query their plans for cleaning and disinfection during a Bird Flu outbreak.
Study the response to those queries, or if cleaning services are provided internally, consider the following:
During a pandemic, it is necessary to implement additional measures to minimise the transmission of the virus through environmental sources, particularly hard surfaces (e.g. sinks, handles, railings, objects and counters).
Transmission from contaminated hard surfaces is unlikely but influenza viruses may live up to two days on such surfaces.
Influenza viruses are inactivated by alcohol and by chlorine. Cleaning of environmental surfaces with a neutral detergent followed by a disinfectant solution is recommended. Surfaces that are frequently touched with hands should be cleaned often, preferably daily.
Should no additional cleaning services be available for whatever reason, then refer to the following table to assist in your own cleaning and disinfecting regime.
Workplace Cleaning Products:
| Disinfectants | Recommended use | Precautions |
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Sodium hypochlorite: 1000 parts per million of available chlorine, usually achieved by a 1 in 5 dilution of hospital grade bleach. |
Disinfection of material contaminated with blood body fluids. |
Should be used in well ventilated areas. Protective clothing required while handling and using undiluted bleach. Do not mix with strong acids to avoid release of chlorine gas. Corrosive to metals. |
| Granular chlorine: | May be used in place of liquid bleach, if it is unavailable. |
Should be used in well ventilated areas. Protective clothing required. while handling and using undiluted bleach. Do not mix with strong acids to avoid release of chlorine gas. Corrosive to metals. |
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Alcohol: e.g. Det-Sol 5000 or Diversol, to be diluted as per manufacturer's instructions. e.g. Isopropyl 70%, ethyl alcohol 60%. |
Smooth metal surfaces tabletops and other surfaces on which bleach cannot be used. |
Flammable and toxic. To be used in well ventilated areas. Avoid inhalation. Keep away from heat sources, electrical equipment, flames,and hot surfaces. Allow it to dry completely, particularly when using diathermy, as this can cause diathermy burns. |
Among other things, planning should identify the basic hygiene practices (including hand hygiene) to be followed by cleaners, protocols for the use personal protection equipment and methods for waste disposal.
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Latest Bird Flu / Avian Flu News From Medical News Today.
| 06/25/2009 05:00 PM |
| Preclinical Proof-of-Concept Studies Published For Novavax Seasonal Influenza Virus-Like-Particle Vaccine |
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Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVAX) announced publication of the preclinical study results that supported the clinical development of the company's investigational VLP vaccine against the H3N2, H1N1 and B influenza strains. The study, which was conducted by scientists from the University of Pittsburgh, Center for Vaccine Research and Novavax, was published in the June 24, 2009 online issue of PLoS ONE.
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| 06/05/2009 08:00 PM |
| A Closer Look At The I-Con™ - Isolation And Containment For Pandemic Control |
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American Innovative Research (A.I.R.) cofounders, David Palmer and Judy Piscione, explain how the impact of the avian flu pandemic originally motivated their company's researching a home option of an isolation and containment unit. A.I.R. CEO Palmer states that he and Piscione leveraged decades of success in biomedical research and semiconductor clean-room technology to found American Innovative Research Corp. Palmer defines A.I.R.
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| 06/05/2009 06:00 PM |
| Animal Production And Health To Be Addressed At FAO/IAEA Symposium |
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An international symposium to be held in Vienna next week will focus on the use of nuclear technologies to enhance animal nutrition and reproduction strategies and to detect and control animal-origin diseases that can be transmitted to humans, such as swine and avian influenza. Around 500 animal production and health experts from over 100 countries will present up-to-date findings for solving or alleviating factors affecting animal production.
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| 06/04/2009 04:00 PM |
| Indirect Transmission Can Trigger Influenza Outbreaks In Birds |
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New data on the persistence of avian influenza viruses in the environment has allowed a team of University of Georgia researchers to create the first model that takes into account both direct and indirect transmission of the viruses among birds. The model, which is detailed in the early online edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has the potential to shed new light on how outbreaks begin in wild bird populations.
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| 06/02/2009 06:00 PM |
| News From The American Chemical Society, May 27, 2009 |
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Bird flu virus remains infectious up to 600 days in municipal landfills Amid concerns about a pandemic of swine flu, researchers from Nebraska report for the first time that poultry carcasses infected with another threat - the "bird flu" virus - can remain infectious in municipal landfills for almost 2 years. Their report is scheduled for the June 15 issue of ACS' semi-monthly journal Environmental Science & Technology. Shannon L.
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| 05/31/2009 04:00 PM |
| Bird Flu Virus Remains Infectious Up To 600 Days In Municipal Landfills |
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Amid concerns about a pandemic of swine flu, researchers from Nebraska report for the first time that poultry carcasses infected with another threat - the "bird flu" virus - can remain infectious in municipal landfills for almost 2 years. Their report is scheduled for the June 15 issue of ACS' semi-monthly journal Environmental Science & Technology. Shannon L.
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| 05/25/2009 04:00 PM |
| The Challenges Of Avian Influenza Virus: Mechanism, Epidemiology And Control |
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The latest special issue of Science in China Series C: Life Sciences focuses on the recent progress in the H5N1-related research field. Early 2009, eight human infection cases of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus, with 5 death cases, were reported in China. This again made the world alert on a possible pandemic worldwide, probably caused by avian-origin influenza virus.
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| 05/25/2009 03:00 PM |
| Tighter Surveillance Of Swine Flu In Pigs Needed Worldwide Says CDC |
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The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that there is a "global need for more systemic surveillance of influenza viruses in pigs", during a press briefing where they explained the findings of a recent study on the genetic and antigenetic properties of the new 2009 H1N1 swine flu virus.
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| 05/20/2009 10:00 PM |
| In A New Way Of Treating The Flu, Both The H And N Portions Of The Virus Are Targeted |
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What happens if the next big influenza mutation proves resistant to the available anti-viral drugs? This question is presenting itself right now to scientists and health officials this week at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, as they continue to do battle with H1N1, the so-called swine flu, and prepare for the next iteration of the ever-changing flu virus.
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| 05/19/2009 09:00 PM |
| New Vaccine Strategy Might Offer Protection Against Pandemic Influenza Strains |
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A novel vaccine strategy using virus-like particles (VLPs) could provide stronger and longer-lasting influenza vaccines with a significantly shorter development and production time than current ones, allowing public health authorities to react more quickly in the event of a potential pandemic. Ted Ross, Ph.D.
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| 05/13/2009 08:00 PM |
| News From Burnham Institute For Medical Research, May 2009 |
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Human monoclonal antibodies effective against bird and seasonal flu viruses Dr. Robert Liddington and colleagues, working with researchers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reported the identification of human monoclonal antibodies that neutralize an unprecedented range of influenza A viruses, including avian influenza A (H5N1) virus, previous pandemic influenza viruses and some seasonal influenza viruses.
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| 05/11/2009 06:00 PM |
| Bird Flu Research Could Help With Swine Flu Vaccine |
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A study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America shows that Aflunov®, the Novartis investigational pre-pandemic avian influenza vaccine formulated with Novartis' proprietary MF59® adjuvant, can elicit a broadly cross-reactive immune response covering all known H5N1 antigenic variants, even when that booster dose is administered six years after the initial priming dose.
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| 05/05/2009 11:00 PM |
| EFPIA Response To The A (H1N1) Novel Influenza Virus |
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EFPIA is aware and concerned by the current outbreak of a novel influenza, which appears to have originated in Mexico. We note the WHO's decision to raise the level of influenza pandemic alert from the current phase 4 to phase 5. We will continue to monitor the situation closely, working with our colleagues at the International Federation of Pharmaceutical manufacturers and Associations.
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| 05/02/2009 07:00 PM |
| Novartis Investigational Adjuvanted (MF59) Pre-pandemic Avian Influenza Vaccine Aflunov® Shows Long Lasting, cross-protective Immune Response |
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A study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America shows that Aflunov®, the Novartis investigational pre-pandemic avian influenza vaccine formulated with Novartis' proprietary MF59® adjuvant, can elicit a broadly cross-reactive immune response covering all known H5N1 antigenic variants, even when that booster dose is administered six years after the initial priming dose.
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| 04/30/2009 06:00 PM |
| Avian Flu Research Sheds Light On Swine Flu Outbreak |
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A new study by University of Maryland researchers suggests that the potential for an avian influenza virus to cause a human flu pandemic is greater than previously thought. Results also illustrate how the current swine flu outbreak likely came about. As of now, avian flu viruses can infect humans who have contact with birds, but these viruses tend not to transmit easily between humans.
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| 04/29/2009 03:00 PM |
| Is Swine Flu A Worldwide Threat? |
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After human cases of a new H1N1 swine influenza A virus were first reported in Mexico and then quickly spread around the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) raised its pandemic alert level from phase 3 to phase 4, on April 27. The virus is a fusion of human, pig and avian influenza. There was growing international concern a week ago, after outbreaks of illnesses similar to influenza were reported in Mexico and in other countries.
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| 04/29/2009 03:00 PM |
| Swine Flu Baffles Experts And Raises More Questions Than Answers |
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As countries around the world ready themselves for the possibility of a global pandemic in the wake of increasing numbers of confirmed cases of people infected with a new strain of A/H1N1 influenza virus that is being described as swine flu, investigations digging deeper into the history and evidence surrounding the outbreak are coming up with more questions than answers.
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| 04/28/2009 11:00 PM |
| NanoViricides, Inc. Says Flu-Cide Drug Designed To Destroy All Influenza A Viruses Including Swine And Bird Flu |
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NanoViricides, Inc. (OTC BB: NNVC.OB) (the "Company"), announced that it is developing FluCide(™), its flagship anti-influenza drug candidate, to work against all influenza types and subtypes. FluCide has been shown to be effective against both common influenza subtype H1N1, as well as two different variants of bird flu subtype H5N1.
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| 04/28/2009 09:00 PM |
| Pandemic Flu Vaccine 6-Month Time Lag Warns Scientist |
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New research published April 27 from the University of Leicester and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust warns of a six-month time lag before effective vaccines can be manufactured in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak. By that time, the first wave of pandemic flu may be over before people are vaccinated, says Dr Iain Stephenson, Consultant in Infectious Diseases at the Leicester Royal Infirmary and a Clinical Senior Lecturer at the University of Leicester.
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| 04/28/2009 06:00 PM |
| Scientist Warns Over Pandemic Flu Vaccine Six-month Time Lag |
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New research published from the University of Leicester and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust warns of a six-month time lag before effective vaccines can be manufactured in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak. By that time, the first wave of pandemic flu may be over before people are vaccinated, says Dr Iain Stephenson, Consultant in Infectious Diseases at the Leicester Royal Infirmary and a Clinical Senior Lecturer at the University of Leicester.
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