While this flu season is expected to be very severe this year, there are several things you can do in the office to keep yourself, your office colleagues, or employees healthy this year. 

•  The old standby of washing your hands frequently (every time you blow your nose, sneeze or use the restroom at the minimum) still works.
• Disinfectant wipes should be supplied to employees to wipe down frequently touched or shared office items such as phones, copiers, keyboards, refrigerator handles, etc.
• Keep hand sanitizer at your desk and use throughout the day as extra precaution.

There are other, perhaps more aggressive measures that can be taken to ensure a healthy working environment for everyone. 

• Today, telecommuting is a reality and many jobs can be done from home.  Have your IT person set up remote access so employees are able to work from home.
• Establish an office policy on “preventative work from home days” such as an employee experiencing a fever, chills or a sore throat.  What would you rather have, someone working from home and keeping the rest of the employees healthy and productive or your entire staff out with flu and getting nothing done?
• Set up a flu clinic or encourage employees to get their annual flu shot.

Taking precautions is a very easy and inexpensive way to avoid major downtime in the office.  We encourage you to consider some or all of our suggestions to keep you and your employees healthy during the 2009-2010 flu season!