How to Reopen Businesses Safely After Coronavirus

Stay-at-home orders are being lifted and life is beginning to slowly go back to some normality in the Country within the next couple days and/or weeks – depending on the State and their instated phase level for Opening Up America Again. However, as restrictions are being carefully removed, businesses and their employees are facing increasing fears of how to once again integrate back into the workplace in a safe, cautious, and methodical manner. Employers are working diligently on the necessary preparations that are needed to allow for their workers to return to the workplace, while also providing them a safe environment that follows all the social distancing requirements outlined by the CDC. In addition, disinfecting, purification, and other sanitation solutions are being stocked in these indoor business spaces to help reduce the risks of pathogen transmission in the environment that pose a threat to their workers and their health.

Getting back to work has become an important plan, as Government officials strive to restart the economy and dig our Country out of the economic turmoil that resulted from the Coronavirus outbreak. As states begin to reopen portions of their economies, including certain businesses such as restaurants, retail stores, libraries, and other businesses, increasing concern has accumulated from the workers in these industries. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), most American workers will likely experience low (caution) or medium exposure risk levels at their job or place of employment. Therefore, having the necessary safety precautions instilled in the workplace – including social distancing, disinfecting and sanitation practices, increased air filtration and germicidal protection, as well as educating all employees on transmission threats will be critical to succeeding in reopening businesses safely after the coronavirus pandemic.

In this article we will further discuss the steps businesses need to be taking in reopening their workplace, as well as reducing transmission risks among their employees during this reopening phase in the Country.

What is Coronavirus & How Does it Spread

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease that has swept the Nation leading to lockdowns, stay-at-home orders, and other regulations in an effort to flatten the curve, in an attempt to bring the number of infected individuals down over the last couple weeks. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention describes coronavirus as an illness caused by a virus that can spread aggressively from person to person. The initial case of infection of Coronavirus began back in December 2019 in Wuhan, China with the earliest hypotheses thought to be linked to a seafood market in this area of China, however, the investigations of its origins are still ongoing – according to John Hopkins Medicine. Since this time this highly infectious respiratory disease has begun to spread throughout the world, impacting several countries include the Unites States of America with the total reported cases of Coronavirus in our Country reaching over 1 million infected individuals, as reported by the CDC. As these numbers steadily climb, it is becoming increasingly important that you understand and recognize the potential transmission paths of this virus and how it can spread throughout an environment – such as a workplace.  

The pathways of transmission will include through droplets released into the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Generally, these droplets will not travel in the air for more than a few feet and will eventually fall to the ground and settle onto surfaces in the tainted environment. When the coronavirus pathogens spread in an environment and settle onto surfaces, these pathogens can last on the various surfaces for various amounts of time which increases the risks of exposure to those occupants in this shared space, like a workplace. WebMD discussed the preliminary testing of the coronavirus on surfaces and how long the COVID-19 pathogens can last on a variety of surfaces such as metal, wood, plastic, stainless steel, carboard, copper, aluminum, paper, and glass. These initial testing showed that coronavirus can live on these surfaces as follows;

  • 5 days on Metal
  • 4 days on Wood
  • 2 to 3 days on Plastic
  • 2 to 3 days on Stainless Steel
  • 24 hours on Cardboard
  • 4 hours on Copper
  • 2 to 8 hours on Aluminum
  • Up to 5 days on paper, this surface will vary

How a COVID-19 Outbreak Could Impact the Workplace

As many businesses begin their preparations to return back to the workplace, many safety procedures and preventive measures will fall on these business owners and employees to help prevent the spread or outbreak of COVID-19 in this highly occupied indoor space. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) outlined that employers should plan to respond to this situation in a flexible manner to the varying levels of disease transmission in the community, while also preparing to refine their business response plans as needed for a potential COVID-19 outbreak in the workplace. In addition, businesses should coordinate with both State and Local health officials when it comes to high coronavirus transmission levels in their business throughout employees  – and these health officials will ultimately help to provide timely and accurate information that will allow for these businesses to have a safe, appropriate response to transmission risks.

There are three important considerations that need to be strategized, analyzed, and monitored as employees return back to the workplace, according to the CDC these include; reducing transmission among employees, maintaining healthy business operations, and even maintaining a healthy work environment. Properly implementing basic infection prevention measures will be critical to reducing a large outbreak in the workplace, such preventative measures outlined by OSHA consist of employees maintaining good hygiene through hand washing, encouraging workers to stay home if they become sick and encouraging respiratory etiquette by covering coughs and sneezes. Additionally, instilling cleaning practices in the workspace through providing proper disinfecting of surfaces in the office, as well as sanitation products readily available for employees to use such as hand sanitizer, hand soap, gloves, tissues, etc.

Steps to Reducing Transmission Risks Among Employees

Changes are coming, especially to the workplace as we continue to struggle with the coronavirus pandemic, a highly infectious respiratory disease that is spreading throughout the world. Just like the coronavirus has had a lasting impact on the personal habits of many Americans, it will also have a direct influence on the way employees work moving forward and the regulations set in place by employers to reduce transmission risks among employees. According to CNBC, among the changes that will be made by employers in the workplace will include stricter cleaning and disinfecting practices in the building on surfaces, personal items, and other shared surfaces in the workplace, added air filtration for pathogen mitigation in the indoor environment, new strategic office design layouts and spacing between employees, and lastly proper education to employees on transmission risks and how they can work to stop the spread of viruses and bacteria in their workplace.

Below we will discuss a more in-depth step by step guide breaking down these key areas of improvement and provision in the workplace to ultimately help reduce the transmission risks among the valued employees in the workplace.

1. Properly Cleaning and Disinfecting

Disinfection and routine cleanings within a workplace are necessary standards that these indoor spaces will need to undergo daily as businesses begin to return to work. Some workplaces contain shared workstations or close cubical-style layouts that allow for a hotbed of disease transmission to form which will require proper disinfection practices on these desks and areas where high traffic is constantly at in the workplace – such as breakrooms, shared desks, bathrooms, etc. As we move forward and begin to reopen workplaces slowly throughout the United States, many of these shared spaces and items will be restricted for safety reason, as well as close design layouts in an office are redesigned, many of these transmission risks will be minimized, however, this will not reduce the need for disinfection and proper cleaning in the workplace.

The CDC suggests to perform routine environmental cleaning by disinfecting all frequently touched surfaces, such as workstations, countertops, handrails, and doorknobs. In addition, many workplaces are also increasingly looking into disinfecting UV lights to add into this indoor space, which can clean not only equipment like keyboards but also the entire air space when integrated into various air purification equipment.

2. Increase Air Filtration Throughout Workplace

The spread of pathogens between humans, especially in a workplace, falls into direct or indirect contact; through airborne transmission, contaminated object and surface contact, and food and drinking water contamination. These three routes of indirect spread in a workplace are often the result of contamination by the spray of droplets during coughing and sneezing, which can facilitate the spread of an infectious disease. Aerosolized droplets from humans’ range in size from .6 microns to over 1000 microns, collected from research published in the Characterizations of Particle Size Distribution of the Droplets Exhaled by Sneeze publication. Thus, the threat of exposure to an airborne pathogen to employees, especially in certain industries, can be potentially significant in some cases.

As we discussed previously, Ultraviolet light (UV light) is a known method for the inactivation or reduction in viability of pathogens, according to the CDC’s Infection Control Guidelines. However, the correct wavelength and control measures must be considered to avoid damage to the skin and eyes, as many UV light wavelengths can produce dangerous wavelengths that will ultimately produce ozone – a dangerous byproduct – within the indoor air space, reported by the American Cancer Society. Many air purification devices contain these UV lights to enable the capability to deactivate these airborne pathogens within the air purification system, but unfortunately a vast majority of these UV lights used in air purifiers fall within these hazardous wavelength production ranges which allow for the creation of ozone byproducts in the air.

The EnviroKlenz UV System solves the dosage problems by placing the UV-C light before the HEPA filter which captures biological contaminants 0.3 microns and larger. The droplet size from coughing or sneezing humans is very broad, and a HEPA filter can capture the bulk of that particulate matter range. Integrating UV lamps within the air purification device allows for continual bathing of the collection site of the HEPA filter, which allows for the items collected on the surface of the HEPA filter to get a lengthened or even infinite residence time. In the EnviroKlenz Mobile Air System with UV lights, the pathogens are exposed to the UV-C light as long as the unit and its lights remain on in the air purification system.

This means that even though the UV lamp is relatively low intensity, given the airflow of the unit (approximately 80-250 cfm), the UV-C dosage required for destruction is created for the trapped pathogen because it will continue to be exposed to the UV-C radiation regardless of how quickly air is passing through the unit.

3. Strategic Office Redesign & Spacing

Employees have adapted to distance working conditions, better known as working remote, and although many businesses are able to have their employees operate from these safe distances there are downsides to these work conditions such as the difficulty in employee collaboration. Now, as many workplaces start to prepare for the return of employees back to the office-setting, strategic adjustments to the workplace will be critical to reduce the possibility of transmission risks between their workers – especially when it comes to the office layout and design. Traditionally, many office layouts consisted of close-together, adjoining cubicles that placed employees relatively close to one another to allow for collaboration between workers. However, these open floor plans with interactive designs may soon be a thing of the past.

According to National Geographic, most companies are starting to think about how they might change their corporate workspace layout, as experts have expanded further on how open flood plans could be redone with better consideration for personal space and stricter cleaning schedules, as we discussed previously. Ultimately, both the design and layout of the workplace, as well as dramatic shifts in the office line will be necessary to reduce transmission risks among employees.

4. Educate Employees About Reducing Transmission Threats

Lastly, educating employees about the different risks and threats of transmission among employees will be a vital component to maintaining a safe, healthy environment with fewer exposure risks. Among employers the information and regulations that are set force in the office will help to steer the environment in a safer path – especially when it comes to strong enforcements against employees coming to work sick. These rules will make it clear that any employee who has symptoms should notify their supervisor and stay home, as well as abide by the CDCs recommended steps. Additionally, employees who are well but have a sick family member at home should also alert their supervisors and remain at home to protect the risks of a COVID-19 transmission outbreak in the workplace.

Other educational information to employees such as the steps they should take to protect themselves both at work and at home will be necessary, particularly for those individuals with serious chronic medical conditions that are of higher risk for infection. These practices that employees should follow in the workplace includes social distancing, frequent washing of the hands and avoid touching your face during the day. The CDC suggests that employers provide education and training materials in an easy to understand format and in appropriate language for all employees to comprehend.

Overall, the business world as we knew it pre-COVID-19 will be far different moving forward. As businesses try to adapt to these changing regulations in the workplace, Americans face the challenges ahead of re-integrating back into the workplace in a safe manner to avoid potentially drastic transmission levels to occur in the indoor workplace moving forward.

Article Sources:

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Coronavirus Disease 2019 – Social Distancing (link)
  2. Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA): Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19 (link)
  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): What You Should Know About COVID-19 to Protect Yourself and Others (link)
  4. John Hopkins Medicine: What is Coronavirus? (link)
  5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Coronavirus Disease 2019- Cases in the US (link)
  6. WebMD: How Long Does the Coronavirus Live on Surfaces? (link)
  7. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Coronavirus Disease 2019 – Guidance for Businesses & Employers (link)
  8. CNBC: How Your Company Office Could Change in the Post-Coronavirus Era (link)
  9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Coronavirus Disease 2019 – Small Businesses (link)
  10. Journal of the Royal Society Interface: Characterizations of Particle Size Distribution of the Droplets Exhaled by Sneeze (link)
  11. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Infection Control -Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities (2008) (link)
  12. American Cancer Society: Ultraviolet (UV) Radiation (link)
  13. National Geographic: Goodbye to Open Office Spaces? How Experts Are Rethinking the Workplace (link)

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“Any information that is provided on this website is not for the use by any commercial or personal entity without expressed written consent of the blog author. The material and statements illustrated within this blog are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases or medical conditions. Nor does the author in any way guarantee or validate the validity, totality, or efficacy of any claims and will therefore not be held responsible for the content of any claims. Always consult your medical physician for any specific medical advice or recommendations.”

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