Business & Economic Impact and Preparation

1. Business & Economic Impactand Preparation Bonnie Black Director Employee Assistance Services June 20, 2006 • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

2. Who Will the Pandemic Affect? • Education • Emergency Services • Congregate Living Facilities • Medical Facilities • Media/Communications • Municipalities • YOUR organization • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

3. Businesses Will Play a Key Role • Protecting employees’ health and safety • Limiting the negative impact to themselves, the local economy and society • Planning is crucial • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

4. When Should You Start Planning? • When you return, this afternoon! It takes time to implement strategies. Planning needs to occur as soon as possible looking at the checklist provided today for continuity and contingency plans. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

5. How Do I Begin? • Check that your existing disaster plans are applicable to a pandemic so that core business activities can be sustained over several weeks. • High absenteeism (as much as 30-50%) is projected. • Is telecommuting an option? • Can employees job share? • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

6. What Plans Do I Need to Make? • What will you do if sanitation, water, power and disruptions to the food supply exist? • What are the essential functions of our organization? • Who performs those functions? • What training redundancy will be necessary to keep your organization functioning with only a partial workforce? • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

7. What About Employees Who Will Be Able to Come to Work? • Ensure adequate air circulation • Post tips on how to stop the spread of germs in the workplace • Promote handwashing and coughing/sneezing etiquette (see handouts) • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

8. Assess Critical Functions • What will you do if transportation systems are disrupted? • What policies need to be established or expanded to allow employees to work from home (appropriate security and network access) ? • Can you establish or expand online and self-service options for your customers and business partners? • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

9. How Do I Assure My Employees? • Inform your employees about pandemic influenza. • Communicate the steps your organization is taking to prepare for it. • Encourage employees to stay home in order to stop the spread of illness. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

10. How Do I Assure My Employees? • Update your sick leave as well as your family and medical leave policies for disaster situations. Concern about lost wages is the largest deterrent to self-quarantine. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

11. How Should Your Organization Respond? Step 1 – Get the facts and stay updated • To obtain the current WHO phase of pandemic alert: www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/ phase/en/index.html • To obtain flu situation updates around the world: www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/ updates/en/index.html • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

12. How Should Your Organization Respond? • To obtain answers about Avian Flu risk factors: www.eapassn.org/public/articles/Q&A.pdf • To obtain facts about the status of vaccine development: www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/ vaccineresearch2005_11_3/en/index.html • To obtain facts about antiviral drugs: www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/ antivirals2005_11_3/en/index.html • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

13. How Should Your Organization Respond? Step 2 – Create a business pandemic influenza plan The Center for Disease Control has an outstandingly comprehensive business pandemic influenza checklist which is in your packet today • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

14. How Should Your Organization Respond? Step 3 – Establish a pandemic preparedness team with responsibility for planning all aspects of your company’s response to a potential crisis The CDC offers a comprehensive Pandemic Flu Planning tip sheetfor individuals and families: www.pandemicflu.gov/plan/pdf/Individuals.pdf The CDC also offers a tip sheet aimed at helping stop the spread of germsin the workplace: www.cdc.gov/germstopper/pdf/work.pdf (both are in your packet today) • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

15. How Should Your Organization Respond? Step 4 – To be effective during a crisis take care of your staff and be prepared. • Educate your staff about the disease - from prevention to treatment - as well as the organization's plan to address a potential pandemic. • Prepare for absenteeism – If a pandemic occurs, you should plan for up to 40% staff absenteeism for at least two weeks. • Establish a detailed telecommuting strategy so that key staff can continue to work from home or other remote locations. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

16. How Should Your Organization Respond? • Establish a communication plan so that staff can maintain contact with management and each other. • If your organization operates locations abroad, particularly in high risk areas, plan to deal with local business closures, quarantines and transportation restrictions. • Quarantine affected staff. Staff exposed to pandemic influenza should be encouraged to stay home for at least 8 days before returning to the workplace. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

17. How Should Your Organization Respond? • Prevent disease in the workplace – staff should be encouraged to frequently wash their hands, particularly after using the rest room. • Establish a vaccination plan – even if a vaccine and/or treatment may not be quickly available. • Have a plan to connect with your EAP to provide emotional support and other resources to management and staff. • Test your organization’s protocols before the pandemic occurs. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

18. What Else Should I Consider? • Most of today’s information is focused on medical preparation and response and on advice for companies, such as those just reviewed. • Very little information has been focused on behavioral considerations. Yet behavioral issues may have a far greater impact on organizations and their employees than the medical realities. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

19. Fear of the Unknown • Even if a true pandemic fails to materialize, minimizing and responding to the climate of fear and mistrust that may develop simply in anticipation of the possible spread of the flu is likely to be a significant business challenge. • Behavioral responses will create an even greater challenge if a pandemic does begin. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

20. Behavioral Concerns • Regardless of the actual threat level, fears are building, and work organizations need to begin planning. • If you have access to an EAP, either locally or through your home plant, this should be among your primary resources to improve the productivity and healthy functioning of the workplace. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

21. Remember the Ice Storm? The behavioral impact of a disaster is not necessarily as it happens. We focus, as Maslow taught us, on our basic needs at first. Your business may not see the long-term impact on your employees until months after ‘normalcy’ returns. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

22. What Did We Learn? About 60 days after life returned to ‘normal’ the human impact of the crisis hit the workplace: • Increased absenteeism • Lack of concentration on the job • Increase in on-the-job accidents • Relationship issues at home and at work • Increase in substance abuse • Impact of personal financial problems • Preoccupation with non-work issues • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

23. Human Impact • It may be long term with certain individuals • Encouragement will be needed to access appropriate services • Supervisors/managers will need advisement on how to guide employees toward assistance • Plans should be in place before a crisis to assure the return of healthy employees to the workplace – both physically and mentally • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

24. Review: Preparations • Make sure you are specifically preparing for the needs of your employees across the lifecycle of a crisis, from prevention and early identification through the response and recovery process. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

25. Review: Preparations • What do your employees need to stay healthy, productive, and motivated in order to keep your organization running. • Think about the people behind the plan. • Anticipate the needs of your employees, figure out how they operate under pressure, and design plans that will work accordingly. It’s a team effort. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

26. Review: Preparations • The five component areas are: • Emergency Assistance • Psychological Support • Family Readiness • Organizational Readiness • Additional Stakeholders • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

27. Review: Preparations • Set up structures in your agency to help you identify folks who may be more vulnerable for long-term impact, if you do have a crisis. There are a lot of different things from a psychological perspective that can be preventive. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

28. Review: Preparations • Create your human impact team • Develop a plan • Ensure that all members of your organization have input into the process. • Have your team establish what they think your business is most susceptible to and put your plans together focusing on that. The point is to ask these questions in advance so you simply activate the plan instead of playing catch-up. • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org

29. Final Thought “Leaders keep their eye on the horizon, not just on the bottom line” • a program component of • BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES NORTH • www.bhsn.org