Checklist to Help Businesses Prepare for a Pandemic

The government has released a checklist designed to help companies prepare in case of a flu pandemic. But will it really help protect employees and keep businesses running?

According to a new article on the Poultry Today website, the checklist is a joint effort announced by Health & Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention developed the “Business Pandemic Influenza Checklist,” and it is designed to identify specific activities companies can do immediately to prepare for a pandemic.

The article says the checklist suggests that “companies plan how they would forecast employee absences during a pandemic; disseminate information to employees; establish flexible work sites, and; establish policies for employees who have been exposed, are suspected to be ill or become ill at the worksite.”

The checklist also breaks down planning activities into broader categories, including:

- Planning for the impact of a pandemic on a business

- Planning for the impact of a pandemic on employees and customers

- Establishing policies to be implemented during a pandemic

- Allocating resources to protect employees and customers during a pandemic

- Communicating and educating employees

- Coordinating with external organizations and communities

A copy of the business checklist and other pandemic planning information is available online at http://www.pandemicflu.gov.