Pandemic Plan - sample

PANDEMIC PLAN

Created October 2015 Last Updated: February 2020

3/10/2020

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Rationale for Creation of this Plan: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a PANDEMIC can start when three conditions have been met: • the emergence of a disease new to the population; • the agent infects humans, causing serious illness; • the agent spreads easily and sustainably among humans.

It is believed that the functionality of the U.S.VETS and its programs could be adversely affected during a pandemic, or other pandemic. It is the goal of the Organization to continue providing essential services and maintaining performance levels in its current contracts to the best of its ability, while also working to protect the health of its employees. The purpose of this plan is to guide decision-making and detail appropriate actions to be taken by the Organization in case of a pandemic.

CONTENTS: 1.

Key Succession and Performance Plan

Pages 3 - 6

2.

Alternative Methods of Service Delivery

Pages 8 - 9

3.

Organization Contact List

Page

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4.

Appendix A: Emergency Procedure

Page

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Key Succession and Performance Plan The Program Director of U.S.VETS shall serve as the Organization’s “Pandemic Coordinator”. In the event that that person is unable perform her duties in that capacity, the line of succession for Key Staff shall follow the current Organizational Chart, attached to this Plan. The next in line of succession is the Director of Behavioral Health, followed by the Operations Manager, followed by the Workforce Coordinator and TIP Coordinator, respectively. A current phone roster for all Key Staff shall be maintained as part of this Plan. At such time as a State of Emergency due to pandemic is declared by the Governor, the Pandemic Coordinator, or the highest-ranking staff member on duty at that time, will begin notification of all staff using the U.S.VETS Calling Tree, and this Plan shall be put in effect.

According to the Arizona Pandemic Response Plan1 (05/19), the following agencies will play a lead role during any pandemic outbreak as it effects the Prescott region.

• •

Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) Yavapai County Health Department Public Health Preparedness & Response

All Hours Urgent or Emergency Contact

602-542-1000

928-442-5489 928-713-9424

Performance of U.S.VETS’ core services and contractual obligations shall continue in case of a pandemic, using the following plan, to the best of the Organization’s abilities.

Staff Health Recognizing that the first step in maintaining performance levels is to preserve the health and availability of the Organization’s employees to the greatest extent possible, U.S.VETS will take the following proactive steps to preserve the health of Staff members and their households.

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https://www.azdhs.gov/documents/preparedness/emergency-preparedness/pandemic-flu/az-pandemicinfluenza-response-plan.pdf

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Travel, which is normally undertaken as part of the services provided by the Organization, shall be suspended in any of the following cases: it is nonessential, as determined by the Pandemic Coordinator; the CDC and/or Arizona Department of Health has required that travel be suspended; the staff member to travel, or any member of his/her household, has exhibited any signs/symptoms of the pandemic disease.

Contingent upon the decision of the U.S.VETS leadership, the Organization will purchase and maintain a stock of health protection supplies to be utilized by Organization employees in the event of a pandemic. The decision concerning the type and amount of supplies to be purchased, and when they should be utilized, shall be made by the Pandemic Coordinator based upon the best available information concerning health risks posed by a pandemic.

The following items may be purchased at the discretion of the Program Director for pandemic preparedness: • • • • • • •

Liquid Hand Sanitizers (active ingredient 60% alcohol or more) Tissues Latex Gloves Computer keyboard/mouse covers (to be sanitized frequently with chlorine solution) N95 Respirator Masks Anti-viral medications such as Tamiflu or Relenza (if available) Other protective gear deemed appropriate.

At the discretion of the Pandemic Coordinator and based upon best available information concerning pandemic health risks the following protocols regarding social distancing and hygiene will be put into practice: • • •

All employees will be encouraged to wash their hands and use hand sanitizers frequently.

Social distancing will be encouraged with the goal of maintaining a minimum distance of three feet between individuals at all times.

Employees will be encouraged to cover their nose and mouth with a tissue or handkerchief when coughing or sneezing.

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• •

• •

Shaking hands will be discouraged.

Eating lunch at restaurants and other unnecessary trips outside the office/facility will be discouraged. Employees will be expected to bring their own lunches and wash any silverware or containers at home.

Organization will encourage and, if possible, facilitate immunization of all employees with the annual influenza vaccine and pneumonia vaccine.

If feasible, anti-virals and immunization with the pandemic influenza vaccine will be provided.

All employees will be prohibited from coming to work while ill, or while members of their household experience pandemic-like symptoms. If an employee begins to run a fever or feel ill while at work, they will be required to go home immediately and not return until all symptoms have disappeared. In the event of a severe pandemic, employees will be allowed/expected to “telecommute” to the greatest extent possible in the performance of duties that do not require physical presence in the VIP transitional housing, business offices, or Work Force Center. “Telecommuting” includes work from home using the internet, email, telephone, and fax. During this time, the Organization may facilitate conference calls on an as needed basis to help coordinate Organization work. Of course, due to the nature of the Organization’s services, this will only be possible on a limited basis. For that reason, this plan concentrates on measures to prevent infection of Staff, their household members, and clients to the greatest possible extent.

In the event of staff absences due to illness, three primary methods will be used to maintain services: •

Request unaffected staff to increase service hours, may include reassigned/additional roles;

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Maintain a list of emergency alternates who agree to be available, if possible, for service in case of a pandemic. These alternates may include volunteers, former employees, employment agencies, or other community members;

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Only when necessary, temporarily curtail those services defined as “ancillary” (see Alternate Methods of Service Delivery section) and reassign staff as needed to cover those services defined as “essential”.

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In the time period leading up to a possible pandemic, and at the direction of the U.S.VETS leadership Team, Organization staff will assess essential office and VIP supplies needed during a pandemic. Due to the possibility of a shortage of goods and services during and immediately after a pandemic, these supplies will be purchased and stockpiled at the Organization offices, VIP facility, and/or employee’s homes, to the best of the Organization’s abilities per available resources. In the time period leading up to a possible pandemic, the Organization will encourage employees to purchase and stockpile for their personal use supplies such as food, water, medications, etc. at home. A goal of maintaining at least a 3-month supply of essential items is the goal recommended by leading health agencies.

Client Health Due to the nature of U.S.VETS’ services, many of which are residential services with a transitory population, it will not be possible to eliminate all risk of spreading the pandemic disease among staff and clients, nor will it be possible to perform all essential and contractual services without person to person contact. The goal, therefore, is to minimize risk of spreading disease by: maintaining client health; quarantine of residential clients who exhibit signs/symptoms of the pandemic disease; and observing Social Distancing protocols whenever possible.

The Organization’s Pandemic Coordinator shall lead staff in educating all current/incoming VIP facility residents on basic health recommendations issued by the Centers for Disease Control and the Arizona Department of Health Services. The Organization shall develop and disseminate materials covering pandemic fundamentals (e.g. signs and symptoms of pandemic, modes of transmission), personal and family protection and response strategies (e.g. hand hygiene, coughing/sneezing etiquette, social distancing, contingency plans), and shall cover those materials verbally with all residents.

Residential clients shall be strongly advised to minimize unnecessary contact with the outside community and will be required to wash their hands thoroughly immediately upon returning to the VIP facility.

For residential clients, it is vital to determine as soon as possible if infection has occurred, and to quarantine any infected individual(s) immediately. All Staff shall be informed of the signs/symptoms of pandemic disease and upon observing any of those

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signs/symptoms in the client population, shall: require the client to stay in his/her room, call the Pandemic Coordinator, and contact available volunteer nurse/paramedics or physicians for examination, diagnosis, and treatment. Residential clients shall receive educational materials regarding the signs and symptoms of the disease and shall be made aware of the importance of self-reporting any illness or suspected illness. Permanent Housing clients will be quarantined within their own individual units.

U.S.VETS essential nonresidential services will continue to the greatest extent possible, with Staff observing social distancing protocols, providing hand-sanitizer at all point of contact locations, and briefly educating clients regarding protocols to help prevent the spread of disease. Some services provided to both residential clients and non-residential clients may be considered unadvisable to carry on in the usual manner during a pandemic (e.g., support groups) and in those cases the Pandemic Coordinator may decide to: segregate residential from non-residential clients; require Social Distancing protocols be maintained; work with Staff to arrange for conference calling or other forms of telecommuting to accomplish groups or other services; suspend a group temporarily.

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Alternate Methods of Service Delivery It is important to define “essential” vs. “ancillary” services for the purposes of this Organization. It should be noted that all contractual obligations of the Organization, whether deemed “essential” or “ancillary” for the purposes of this plan, shall be carried out to the best of the Organization’s ability, and for as long as possible, with modifications as needed to preserve the safety of clients, staff, and the community.

However, given a reduction in available resources to carry out programs, those activities listed as “essential” shall take priority, in the order in which they are listed.

Essential Services 1) Providing safe shelter, food, and other daily living necessities to veterans: This essential service must be continued, but Social Distancing and hygiene protocols will help to ameliorate risks, while quarantining will be used when needed, as described in the previous section. The Pandemic Coordinator will remain informed of warnings of a possible pandemic, and take measures to stockpile food, hygiene supplies, and other essential supplies prior to the declaration of an emergency condition. The Pandemic Coordinator shall be in charge of ensuring that clients who are ill are quarantined and have all necessary supplies and receive medical services.

If it becomes necessary to evacuate the residential facility, the facility Evacuation Plan in a Disaster shall be followed (attached). In that case, all residents shall be transported to temporary shelter, provided by the Grand Canyon Chapter of the American Red Cross.

2) Telephone: This service will continue using the usual methods, as it is a “distance service”. The only possible service alteration might occur due to a lack of staff available to work the telephone. In that case, alternate staff/volunteer lists will be maintained, and the telephones may be forwarded to allow staff to “shelter in place” by telecommuting this service.

3) Residential case management. This service will continue in the same manner, with the most critical issues taking top priority and all other case management and other

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services being accomplished as available staff time permits. The frequency of case meetings may be reduced, and social distancing will be observed during sessions.

Quarantined clients may be contacted via telephone, in writing, or through an intercom system, when necessary.

4) Providing supportive housing scattered site housing: Units of transitional housing are self-contained. The Case Manager or in their absence, the Outreach Specialist, shall oversee ensuring that clients who are ill are quarantined and have all necessary supplies and receive medical services.

Ancillary services: 1) Residential and non-residential support groups/counseling; residential and nonresidential education groups; individual counseling: These are services that are normally provided to both residential and nonresidential clients. Due to the nature of a pandemic, health organizations recommend minimizing group contact during an outbreak. Therefore, non-residential services shall most likely be conducted by telephone, internet, or some combination of the two; or shall be suspended (only if adequate staff is not available to conduct the services). Residential services shall continue, observing social distancing and hygiene protocols, for as long as adequate staffing is available. Quarantined residents will continue to be included in services, if they are able to benefit from those services, via telephone, intercom, or other distance means, as practical.

2) Outreach services; Community outreach, education, and training: The Organization’s normal activities include coordinating with many local area community partners. Most trainings, case reviews, and communications with stakeholders shall be accomplished over the telephone, conference call, internet, or other distance means, in the event of a pandemic. Face-to-face public outreach and educational contacts shall be suspended during the pandemic, but alternate methods of distance outreach may be increased (e.g., media features), if resources are available.

This plan shall be considered as no longer in effect only after the acting Pandemic Coordinator has informed all staff members that the pandemic is considered to be

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at an end. The Pandemic Coordinator will do so only when she has received official notification from the State Incident Commander, of the Arizona Department of Health Services, that the pandemic has been officially declared as resolved.

Organization Contacts – Pandemic Coordinator highlighted in yellow.

Staff Member Name

3/10/2020

Position Title

Work Phone #

Cell Phone #

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Appendix A

U.S.VETS-PRESCOTT Emergency Procedure Please refer to the site Emergency Plan on the shared drive for further details.

V:\Safety Committee\MANUALS AND PROCEDURES A. In the event of any emergency involving an injury, the staff on duty shall administer first aid or CPR as needed.

B. In the event there should be a natural disaster such as a flood, tornado, hurricane type winds, etc. staff and all VIP facility residents will find a place of safety inside the facility, away from doors and windows. A place of safety would be away from breakable items or anything that might fall on any person in the facility. Staff and residents would remain inside the facility until such time the disaster is under control.

If any person in the facility should be injured, staff will take appropriate action by tending to the injured person until medical help arrives.

C. In the event of an emergency inside the facility such as fire or natural gas leak, staff and all residents will follow the emergency exit plan. All staff and residents will come to a meeting place in front of the facility at the front parking lot.

D. If the facility should become uninhabitable due to damage from any emergency, the American Red Cross has agreed to provide a temporary emergency evacuation site until suitable housing can be arranged. The contact person is Jenn Winters-Ashcraft and she can be reached at (928) 776-1015.

E. In the event of any emergency the VSA on duty shall notify the Executive Director and the Operations Manager as soon as possible.

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