Planning for 2009 H1N1 Influenza: A Preparedness Guide for Small Business
Table of Contents
- Foreword
- Introduction
- How to Write Your Plan
- Keeping Healthy: 10 Tips for Businesses
- Keeping Healthy: 8 Tips for Individuals
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Resources
Printable Version (PDF – 3.74 MB)
Foreword
As a small business leader, you are a valuable partner in our nation's defense against natural and man-made threats. Preparedness is the best method to defend against the impacts of all threats and all hazards, including public health threats.
As we face the possibility of a wider H1N1 influenza outbreak, it is difficult to predict how the virus may or may not change. However, we know the nation must be prepared to respond appropriately. The Department of Homeland Security is working to ensure you have the necessary tools and information to be prepared as well. The severity of illness that 2009 H1N1 influenza flu will cause (including hospitalizations and deaths) or the amount of illness that may occur as a result of seasonal influenza during the 2009–2010 influenza season cannot be predicted with a high degree of certainty. Therefore, small businesses should plan to be able to respond in a flexible way to varying levels of severity and be prepared to take additional steps if a potentially more serious outbreak of influenza evolves during the fall and winter.
Small businesses are often the backbone of private sector industries and their local communities. With this in mind, we must partner to ensure the wheels of the nation's economy continue to turn, even if faced with absenteeism, restricted services, and supply chain disruptions. If prepared, small businesses can keep their doors open and our nation's economic health and security resilient.
The most important thing you can do to prepare your business is to have a written plan.
This guide is intended to help you write your plan and help spread the message of preparedness. Also, encourage your employees to prepare their own homes and families, which includes having a plan to care for sick family members and storing a two-week supply of food and medical supplies. More information is available at www.flu.gov. With your help, we can help keep our economy and our communities healthy and safe.
Yours truly,
Janet Napolitano
Secretary of Homeland Security
September 2009
Introduction
Small businesses play a key role in protecting employees' health and safety as well as limiting the impact to the economy and society during an influenza pandemic. Advance planning for pandemic influenza, a novel infectious disease that could occur in varying levels of severity, is critical. Companies that provide critical services, such as power and telecommunications, have a special responsibility to their community to plan for continued operations in a pandemic and should plan accordingly.
A new influenza virus, now called 2009 H1N1 influenza, or 2009 H1N1 flu, first caused illness in Mexico and the United States in March and April, 2009. On June 11, 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) signaled that a global pandemic of 2009 H1N1 flu was underway by raising the worldwide pandemic alert level to Phase 6. This action was a reflection of the spread of the new 2009 H1N1 flu virus across the globe, not the severity of illness caused by the virus. At the time, more than 70 countries had reported cases of 2009 H1N1 flu infection and there were ongoing community level outbreaks of 2009 H1N1 flu in multiple parts of the world. Since June, this new H1N1 virus has continued to spread. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) anticipates additional cases, hospitalizations and deaths associated with this pandemic in the United States during the U.S. 2009–2010 influenza season.
Community strategies that delay or reduce the impact of a pandemic (also called nonpharmaceutical interventions) may help reduce the spread of disease until a vaccine is available. Over the past several years, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the CDC, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration have developed guidelines, including checklists, to assist businesses, industries, and other employers in planning for a pandemic outbreak as well as for other potential disasters.
The Department of Homeland Security, the CDC, and the Small Business Administration have developed this booklet to help small businesses understand what impact a new influenza virus, like 2009 H1N1 flu, might have on their operations, and how important it is to have a written plan for guiding your business through a possible pandemic.
... More ...
No comments:
Post a Comment