CE NEWS

 Table of Contents

• Preparing for the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Epidemic and Public Emergency Template for Libraries
• National Library of Medicine Webinar: Pandemic! NLM Resources for Librarians  
• National Library of Medicine-Pacific Northwest Region
• March Library Training Calendar

Preparing for the COVID-19 Pandemic

The World Health Organization recently published Getting your Workplace Ready for COVID-19 (Coronavirus) with recommendations for actions that can be implement now to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.  

The following guidelines are directly from the Getting your Workplace Ready for COVID-19.  Library directors spend a few minutes reviewing these guidelines and then schedule time to share the information with your library staff and volunteers. Create an action plan for how your library will implement these guidelines. 

In January 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of a new coronavirus disease in Hubei Province, China to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. WHO stated there is a high risk of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spreading to other countries around the world.

WHO and public health authorities around the world are taking action to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. However, long term success cannot be taken for granted. All sections of our society – including businesses and employers – must play a role if we are to stop the spread of this disease.

How COVID-19 spreads

When someone who has COVID-19 coughs or exhales they release droplets of infected fluid. Most of these droplets fall on nearby surfaces and objects - such as desks, tables or telephones. People could catch COVID-19 by touching contaminated surfaces or objects – and then touching their eyes, nose or mouth. If they are standing within one meter of a person with COVID-19 they can catch it by breathing in droplets coughed out or exhaled by them. In other words, COVID-19 spreads in a similar way to flu. Most persons infected with COVID-19 experience mild symptoms and recover. However, some go on to experience more serious illness and may require hospital care. Risk of serious illness rises with age: people over 40 seem to be more vulnerable than those under 40. People with weakened immune systems and people with conditions such as diabetes, heart and lung disease are also more vulnerable to serious illness. 

Simple ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in your workplace 

The low-cost measures below will help prevent the spread of infections in your workplace, such as colds, flu and stomach bugs, and protect your customers, contractors and employees. 

Employers should start doing these things now, even if COVID-19 has not arrived in the communities where they operate. They can already reduce working days lost due to illness and stop or slow the spread of COVID-19 if it arrives at one of your workplaces.

Make sure your workplaces are clean and hygienic

• Surfaces (e.g. desks and tables) and objects (e.g. telephones, keyboards) need to be wiped with disinfectant regularly. Why? Because contamination on surfaces touched by employees and customers is one of the main ways that COVID-19 spreads
• Promote regular and thorough hand-washing by employees, contractors and customers. Put sanitizing hand rub dispensers in prominent places around the workplace. Make sure these dispensers are regularly refilled. Display posters promoting hand-washing available from the World Health Organization.
• Combine this with other communication measures such as offering guidance from occupational health and safety officers, briefings at meetings and information on the intranet to promote hand-washing
• Make sure that staff, contractors and customers have access to places where they can wash their hands with soap and water.  Why? Because washing kills the virus on your hands and prevents the spread of COVID-19.

Promote good respiratory hygiene in the workplace

• Display posters promoting respiratory hygiene. Combine this with other communication measures such as offering guidance from occupational health and safety officers, briefing at meetings and information on the intranet etc.
• Ensure that face masks1 and / or paper tissues are available at your workplaces, for those who develop a runny nose or cough at work, along with closed bins for hygienically disposing of them. Why? Because good respiratory hygiene prevents the spread of COVID-19
• Advise employees and contractors to consult national travel advice, such as the CDC’s Travel Health before going on business trips.
• Brief your employees, contractors and customers that if COVID-19 starts spreading in your community anyone with even a mild cough or low-grade fever between 98.7°F and 100.4°F to stay at home. They should also stay home (or work from home) if they have had to take simple medications, such as acetaminophen, ibuprofen or aspirin, which may mask symptoms of infection

Additional information on the Coronavirus may be found from the Disaster Information Management Research Center.

Up-to-date information on where COVID-19 is spreading.

John Hopkins Interactive Coronavirus COVID-19 map

General health information about the Coronavirus.

Epidemic and Public Emergency Template

Libraries looking for a template on how to respond to the COVID-19 epidemic can thank the Missouri State Library for sharing their Epidemic and Public Emergency Template, which has excellent recommendations public libraries may want to follow. The template was created by Michael Davis, Director of Camden County Library in Missouri and is  based on CDC guidelines for businesses with concepts added from other materials produced by libraries.  Libraries in Alaska are free to use and revise the Public Library Epidemic and Public Emergency template.

Epidemic and Public Emergency Policy

The purpose of this policy is to establish formal guidelines for operations during an extended epidemic or other emergency. The library should plan for numerous staff being unable to report for work during an epidemic or other health emergency. In addition, the library will be required to follow orders of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services to help slow the spread of illness. This may include the closing of the library and/or all library branches, or other reductions in service. The library will attempt to keep core services of the library operational in case of reduced staff and reduced hours of operation.

Levels of operation

1. Business as usual.

During the period prior to the arrival of an epidemic or other health emergency, the library director shall monitor the situation and prepare stockpiles of supplies to reduce the likelihood of staff becoming infected and train staff on preventive measures to reduce the spread of infections.

The CDC always recommends everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses, including:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.

2. Notification of infections in the area.

When the library director has been notified by public health officials, either directly or by broadcast media, that the illness has arrived in your area the following precautions will be taken:

• Staff with compromising preconditions will be required to contact their healthcare provider for guidance on work attendance and/or protective procedures.
• Staff will be encouraged to wear protective face masks, gloves, and eye protection when working with patrons and returned items. Hand washing for 20 seconds with hot water and soap is required immediately after removing gloves and before removing face masks and eye protection.
• Books and other items returned will be wiped down with appropriate antiseptic wipes before being re-shelved.
• Programs involving groups of people will be canceled. This includes outside groups renting meeting rooms.
• Staff who are able to work from home will be encouraged to telecommute.
• Hours of operation may be reduced by the library director if illness lowers the number of staff able to work at the front desk.
• Normal sick leave policy will be in force.