Pandemic Influenza Guidance for Corporations

Abstract

The purpose of this guidance document is to assist members of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM), and the organizations for which they work, in managing the impact of a pandemic of influenza or other contagious respiratory disease on patients, employees, and business. This guidance document outlines actions to take before and during an influenza pandemic on the basis of two main strategies: (1) reducing the spread of the virus within facilities; and (2) providing medical care and medical surveillance to client/patient populations. Facilities in which ACOEM members serve include government agencies and the military, universities, and corporations, which generally have multiple locations/sites and their own medical staff, with members responsible for medical care and disease control. This guidance is for organizations with outpatient occupational medicine services, to be used as appropriate. Medical centers should also use guidance that addresses additional employee and external patient care needs.1–3 The ACOEM fully supports implementation of occupational influenza programs that conform with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with other guidance from the US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations and guidance.