Forbes recently released an article that warns the public that the 2017-2018 flu season may be more severe than normal. In addition to that, reports indicate that the effectiveness of this year’s vaccine can be as low as 10%!
This is quite a gloomy forecast!
In light of this news, many facility managers are challenged to find ways to decrease their buildings’ exposure to the virus. Below are 3 great tactics to implement today to keep your building occupants healthy during this dangerous time.
- Implement a touch point cleaning approach
Touch point cleanup includes a targeted approach to areas most exposed to hands throughout the day: light switches, door handles, telephones, elevator buttons, etc. A study conducted by Kimberly-Clarkshowed that providing hand sanitizers, face tissues, and wipes along with briefing employees about high frequency touch areas helps to reduce the number of viruses contaminated surfaces by 62%. Additionally, employee absence time can be reduced by 45%. - Ask your janitorial company about the disinfection services they offer
The main thing you need to know about the disinfection is that it is not possible to clean and disinfect in one step. Many germs can hide underneath dirt and other materials. This makes cleaning and disinfecting at the same time ineffective. Taking into account that the flu virus can live on surfaces for up to 24 hours, many janitorial providers offer an additional step of disinfection to support the facility team in their fight against the virus. - Make sure your cleaning service provider uses the right equipment
The flu virus is an airborne disease that begins to spread even before a person feels that he/she is falling sick. One of the best ways to prevent spreading of the virus is to focus on IAQ (indoor air quality). Make sure that your janitorial service provider uses the HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter vacuums that remove 99.9% of even the smallest particlesthus preventing them from being blown right back into the work atmosphere.
We know it is much easier to prevent issues versus solving them. Aside from the tips mentioned above, we recommend facility managers work directly with the leadership/HR team to encourage employees to stay home while feeling sick!
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