Pandemic Planning
Ways to stop the spread of flu at work
Protect yourself and your workplace using the following methods to reduce the spread of infection:
- Good coughing and sneezing habits
- Washing and drying hands properly
- Social distancing
- Barriers
- Gloves, overalls and eye protection
- Masks and respirators
- Health monitoring
- Ventilation
- Workplace cleaning
1. Good coughing and sneezing habits
What everyone should do
Use a tissue to cover your nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze
Keep away from other people
Place - do not throw - the tissue in a bin afterwards
Wash your hands with soap and water
Dry your hands well on a paper towel
People who are coughing or sneezing more than normal should be sent home.
What employers should do
Make sure staff know, and practise, good coughing and sneezing habits
Provide a supply of tissues
Provide a covered bin, located where it can't be knocked over, to put the tissues in
Provide plastic bags to line bins that have a drawstring top. Set up a system where the last person to put a tissue into the bin closes the bag, replaces the liner and puts the bag in the waste
Set up a system for disinfecting bins (see cleaning)
Provide hand washing facilities, including hot water, a basin, soap and paper towels. Provide a covered, lined bin for used paper towels.
2. Washing and drying hands properly
This is the most important thing you can do to reduce the spread of infection.
What everyone should do
Wash and dry your hands regularly and properly using the methods shown below
When you wash your hands use soap or an antiseptic hand wash
Dry your hands thoroughly, using a disposable towel. Use the towel to turn
off the tap and open the door
Keep your hands away from your face as much as possible
Always wash and dry your hands after coughing, sneezing, handling used tissues or other objects and surfaces touched by other
Wash and dry your hands before and after eating and grooming.
Full description of hand Hygene with Soap and Water
Full description of Hand hygene with Alcohol-based hand Sanitizer
What employers should do
Provide adequate supplies of soap, paper towels and other hygiene equipment. Be prepared for disruptions in supply during a pandemic
Make sure staff and visitors know, and practice, good hand washing and
drying habits.
Post hygiene notices in workplace entrances, washrooms, hand washing stations
and public areas
Use newsletters, emails, employee notice boards and information in payslips
to remind employees of the importance of good hygiene during a pandemic.
A
good source of notices is Wiscomsin's Department of Health and family Services.
3. Social distancing
What everyone should do
If you get influenza do not go to work until you are fully well again
Avoid crowded places and large gatherings
Try to stay at least one metre away from other people
Where practical, avoid contract with sick people
Avoid public transport. If you have to use it, avoid the rush hour
Bring lunch and eat it away from other people
Do not congregate in tearooms or other places where people socialise
Avoid face-to-face meetings. Use the phone, video conferencing and email instead
If you must meet face-to-face keep the meeting short, choose a large room or meet outside, and sit at least a metre away from each other. Avoid shaking hands, hongi or hugging
Where possible, postpone travel, training sessions, and other gatherings.
What employers should do
Make sure staff and visitors know about the importance of social distancing, and practice it
If possible, get employees to work from home, or introduce shifts
Have one shift leave the workplace before the next arrives
Thoroughly ventilate the workplace between shifts
Stagger start, finish and break times so fewer people are using changing rooms and other facilities at once
Set up systems so you can deal with clients and suppliers by phone, email
or fax
Cancel or postpone non-essential meetings, training sessions and other gatherings
If face-to-face gatherings must take place, provide large rooms so people
can sit at least a metre away from each other
Encourage staff to avoid recreational activities where they could come into contact with infectious people.
4. Barriers
What everyone should do
Make use of barriers supplied by your employer, such as wide counters and screens.
What employees should do
Where practical, erect barriers to protect staff from close contact with others
Where appropriate, install 'night service' barriers - like the ones seen in some service stations - to protect staff.
5. Gloves, overalls and eye protection
What everyone should do
Find out from your boss, union or official sources such as the Ministry
of Health, whether you should be using protective equipment such as disposable
gloves, eye splash protection and disposable overalls at work
Make sure you use any personal protective equipment that has been recommended.
What employers should do
If staff are exposed to a medium or high risk of infection supply them with disposable gloves, eye splash protection and disposable overalls. Use our Risk Analysis tool and information from the Ministry of Health to assess the level of risk
Make sure staff know how to use, and safely dispose of, this equipment.
6. Masks and respirators
What everyone should do
Find out from your boss, union or official sources such as the Ministry
of Health, whether you should be using a mask/respirator, and which one
to use
Make sure you know the proper way to put on and take off the mask/respirator.
See Wear it right below
Check the mask is fitted correctly every time you wear it
Perform risky tasks only when you are wearing the recommended mask/respirator.
What employers should do
Do a risk assessment to see if masks/respirators are necessary. See our Risk assessment tool
Decide which mask/respirator to use and make a plan for introducing them into your workplace. See Using respirators
Inform staff about the need to use masks/respirators and how they fit in with other protections such as hand washing
Ensure staff are trained how to use, fit and dispose of the masks/respirators properly
Give them opportunities to practise fitting and using the masks/respirators.
Supervise the proper fitting and use of masks/respirators.
7. Health Monitoring
What everyone should do
If you start feeling ill at work tell your boss, or follow your workplace's system for reporting suspected flu cases
If you are well enough, tell someone the names of everyone you have been in contact with and what you have been doing
If surgical masks are available, put one on
Leave work and immediately contact a health professional. Depending on what happens during a pandemic, this could be a nurse, doctor or special health centre. The latest advice on what to do if you fall sick is on the Ministry of Health website
If someone else at work is showing signs of flu, inform your boss, or follow the system for reporting suspected flu cases.
What employers should do
Set up a system for monitoring the health of staff members and visitors
Set up a system for staff to report suspected cases of flu, and for dealing
with suspected cases. Ensure staff know how to use these systems
Consider appointing an Influenza Manager to deal with flu issues.
Example system for dealing with suspected flu cases
If a person is ill at work:
Avoid visiting the person if possible, manage the process over the phone
Check if the person answers 'yes' to any of the following:
- High fever (or feels feverish and hot)
- Headache
- Fatigue and weakness
- Sore throat, cough, chest discomfort, difficulty breathing
- Muscle aches and pains
- Been overseas recently
- Been in contract with someone diagnosed with flu
If the person doesn't have any of these symptoms they are unlikely to have flu. Reassure them. But advise them to call again later if they are still concerned, or to contact their doctor
If the person answers 'yes' to some of these questions they should be treated as a suspect case
They should be told to immediately put on a surgical mask to protect other
people, and where to find this mask
The person should be told to leave work immediately, and contact a health
professional. This might be their usual doctor or a special centre set up
for the pandemic. Up to date advice on
who to contact will be available from the Ministry of Health
The person's manager should be told they have left work
Identify who the person has been in contact with, and tell those people they have been in contact with someone suspect of having flu
Ask these people to go home, and stay home until advised otherwise
Thoroughly clean and disinfect the employees work area. See workplace cleaning
Is it a cold or the flu?
Post this chart around your workplace to help staff identify whether the symptoms they are experiencing are signs of a cold or the flu:
| SYMPTOM or SIGN | INFLUENZA | COMMON COLD |
|---|---|---|
| Fever | Usual, sudden onset, 38oC - 40oC and lasts 3-4 days | Rare |
| Headache | Usual and can be severe | Rare |
| Aches and pains | Usual and can be severe | Rare |
| Fatigue and weakness | Usual and can last 2-3 weeks or more after the acute illness | Sometimes, but mild |
| Debilitating fatigue | Usual, early onset can be severe | Rare |
| Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea | In children less than 5 years old | Rare |
| Watering of the eyes | Rare | Usual |
| Runny, stuffy nose | Rare | Usual |
| Sneezing | Rare in early stages | Usual |
| Chest discomfort | Usual and can be severe | Sometimes, but mild to moderate |
8. Ventilation
What everyone should do
Try to ensure your workplace is well ventilated. Flu can spread in small enclosed spaces with in adequate ventilation
Where possible, open doors and windows, and tell your boss if you suspect the air conditioning system is faulty.
What employees should do
Make sure staff understand the importance of good ventilation, and how they can help improve it
Where possible, open doors and windows. Ventilate workspaces between shifts
If you own the building, ensure the air conditioning system meets standards
in the New Zealand Building Code, Clause G4, Ventilation
Otherwise, get the building owner to confirm the air conditioning meets
the standards in the Code.
9. Workplace cleaning
What everyone should do
Clean surfaces such as sinks, handles, railings and counters, with a detergent then a disinfectant. Flu viruses can live for up to two days on these surfaces
Surfaces frequently touched by hands should be cleaned daily
Ensure cups, dishes and cutlery are washed with soap and hot water. Do not
share these items.
What employers should do
Make sure staff know about, and practise, extra workplace cleaning during a pandemic
Arrange for surfaces frequently touched by hands to be cleaned daily, using a detergent then a disinfectant. The table below suggest products to use and concentrations
Ensure cups, dishes and cutlery are washed with soap and hot water. Do not let staff share these items
Remove all magazines and paper from reception areas and lunch rooms.
Workplace cleaning products
| Disinfectants | Recommended use | Precautions |
|---|---|---|
| Sodium hypochlorite: 1,000 parts per million of available chlorine, usually achieved bt a 1 in 5 dilution of hospital grade bleach. |
Disinfection of material contaminaetd with blood and body fluids | Should be used in well ventilated areas. Protective clothing required while handling and using undiluted bleach. Do not mix with strong acids o avoid release of chlorine gas. Corrosive to metals. |
| Granular Chlorine: e.g. Det-Sol 5000 or Diversol, to be diluted as per manufacturer's instructions. |
May be used in place of liquid bleach, ifit is unavailable | Protective clothing required while handling and using
undiluted bleach. Do not mix with strong acids o avoid release of chlorine gas. Corrosive to metals. |
| Alcohol: e.g. isopropyl 70%, ethyl alcohol 60% |
Smooth metal surfaces, tabletops and other surfaces on which bleach can not 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. |
