Time is of the essence when an employee or patron is found to be symptomatic or comes in contact with a known COVID-19 exposure. It is imperative to have updated strategies for your staff to help prevent and reduce transmission among the other employees. This can be done by following existing and updated recommendations by federal, state, and local public health sectors and following the 5 step guide below.
- Employers should identify a qualified employee that will be responsible for any COVID related issues & concerns and help to develop and implement a response plan with regards to infection control preparedness.
- When an employee becomes symptomatic and/or comes in contact with a confirmed case, you should instruct that person to self-quarantine at home until released by a physician or public health official.
- The qualified employee should refer the case and/or contact to the CDC guidelines noted here: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/if-you-are-sick/steps-when-sick.html
- After being informed that the employee has been exposed, is symptomatic or diagnosed with COVID-19, the qualified employee from step one should quickly identify all other employees who might have been in contact during the employee’s infection time period starting 2 days prior to symptom onset. The qualified employee should reach out to those employees and inform them that they could have been exposed and follow the CDC Public Health Recommendations for Community-Related Exposure. Please note to maintain confidentiality as required by the law. The contact/s should follow the CDC guidelines and stay home for 14 days after their last contact with the person who is infected with COVID-19.
- Follow up with the employee who is deemed possibly infected/exposed and possible contacts and provide as much support as you can via phone or email until they are able to return to work.
- Based on the size of the workplace and the potential exposure, the employer should consider closing immediately.
- If closure is deemed unnecessary, close off any areas used by the person, if any. Clean and disinfect the area after 24 hours if possible, to minimize potential for other employees to be exposed to any respiratory droplets. Please note that employers must ensure the person designated to clean the area is trained on the hazards of cleaning chemicals in accordance with appropriate OSHA and CDC guidelines. If possible, open all windows and doors to increase air circulation.