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Federal OSHA Alert

May 7th, 2007 Posted by Amelia

The 1918-20 influenza pandemic killed 50 million people in a year and a half. There is no flu pandemic now. No new strain of the virus has appeared. However, every workplace should have emergency plans, and according to a recent alert put out by OSHA, those plans should include coping with the possibility of such a worldwide pandemic.

What can workplaces do to help curb the spread of a major pandemic? Limit contact between workers, according to a Federal OSHA alert. Schedule conference calls rather than meetings. Assign employees to work from home when possible. And, in those businesses where there is contact with the public, drive-through windows can be set up to restrict transmission of the illness between the public and employees.

There are also personal measures that can be taken in the event of a pandemic, similar to those taken during any flu or cold season. They involve washing hands frequently, using a hand sanitizer; keeping a distance of 6 feet from those who are infected; and covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze, while taking care to use a disposable tissue.

Another flu pandemic could wreak havoc on the world economy in ways worse than a terrorist attack, according to OSHA. The last big flu pandemic, the 1918-20 outbreak, first showed up at a military base in Kansas, then spread around the world quickly. Many of the 50 million killed during those 18 months were healthy young adults. Many of those died within days of getting the illness. During a pandemic, according to the Federal OSHA alert, a new viral strain emerges, one to which nobody has an immunity. As a result, it spreads rapidly worldwide.

Such an outbreak is nothing like our seasonal influenza, usually thought of as an unpleasant but not dangerous event. Usually, because we have developed an immunity, seasonal flu is not life-threatening except for small children, the aged, or people with weakened immune systems.