H1N1 Past Peak…For Now

The World Health Organization announced last month that the second wave of the H1N1 (swine) flu pandemic had abated slightly after reaching its height in the United States in November.  However, the organization warned of additional waves of the pandemic event and claimed that the event will likely linger through 2010 and perhaps 2011.

A characteristic of most pandemic events is that they come in waves.  The United States have already seen two waves of the H1N1 outbreak, the first coming in April through early June, and the second taking place as autumn arrived.  Viruses typically mutate over time, such as the Tamiflu-resistant strain that spread in small circles this fall, but they typically do not change so dramatically that someone who has already had the virus or a vaccine would become ill again.  Once the majority of the general population has developed an immunity toward the virus (through infection or immunization), the virus typically returns to patterns similar to the seasonal flu.

Effective pandemic planning strategies take into account additional waves of pandemic outbreak.  Many measures taken by organizations in response to the last two waves of 2009 H1N1 have readied businesses for an additional wave of H1N1 or an appropriate response to the feared H5N1 (avian) flu virus, which has not been widespread, but is feared to be more virulent.

GraVoc Associates, Inc., based in Peabody, MA, is dedicated to providing customers with solutions in the fields of information security, information systems, and professional services.  Serving Greater Boston, New England, and beyond since 1994, GraVoc offers pandemic planning services to ensure that your organization is prepared to respond to widespread illness, supply chain interruptions due to a pandemic event, and widespread employee absenteeism.  For more information about GraVoc, please visit GraVoc.com.  For previous blog posts on H1N1 on the GraVoc News Blog, please click here.

Government Provides Pandemic Guidance

While there is little new to report on the H1N1 (swine flu) pandemic, other than the fact that flu season is coming soon, the vaccine will be released shortly, the flu as it currently stands is not as deadly as it was initially projected to be, and the 2009 H1N1 is now the dominant human flu on the planet, the United States government has a slew of resources available for businesses to plan for widespread employee absence, slowdowns in the supply chain, and public fear about the spread of illness.  Highlights include the following:

• Supply Chain Planning:  Banks may have to wait longer for cash shipments.  Manufacturers may have to wait longer to receive raw materials.  Vendors and service providers may have slower customer service as their employees may be out sick.  Businesses must plan accordingly for this as well as planning for the absenteeism of their own employees.
• Absenteeism Threshold:  How many people can your business afford to lose to absenteeism at the same time before business operations are adversely affected?  If the number of absent employees exceeds this number, does the company have plans to adjust accordingly?  Are there policies and technologies in place so that absent employees (if they are not sick themselves but are caring for a sick family member) can work from home?
• Sick Time Policies:  Has your HR department considered revising policies regarding sick time so that sick employees are not showing up to work and spreading the disease just because they have a limited number of sick days?  Businesses must take the health of other employees into account, as well as the probability that employees may have to care for children who are home from school as a result of a school closure or a child becoming ill.
• Extended Hours:  Social distancing will be a technique used to prevent the spread of the flu.  Many companies will stagger their hours of operation so that employees will have less contact with other employees, decreasing the probability that a virus will be spread.
• Screening:  Companies should consider whether employees will be asked if they have had symptoms of the flu (i.e. fever, headache, sore throat) in the last day, and whether they should be mandated to leave the workplace if they have.

More advice from the United States Government, including a useful pandemic planning checklist, are available here.

GraVoc Associates, Inc, based in Peabody, MA, are celebrating fifteen years of serving customers in many industries in the practices of information security, information systems, and professional services.  Encompassed in the information security field is business continuity and pandemic event planning, and GraVoc has many years’ experience helping businesses plan for a disaster or a pandemic event.  With the onset of the swine flu pandemic in April, the GraVoc News Blog has provided additional guidance and updates regarding how to plan so that business operations are not interrupted.  For more information about GraVoc’s business continuity services, as well as its other products and services, please visit www.gravoc.com. 

Phase 6

Today it was announced that the World Health Organization (WHO) has assessed the current swine flu (H1N1 virus) situation and confirmed that it is the first full-blown pandemic in 41 years. The WHO has declared a pandemic Phase 6 for the first time since the advent of the alert system.

Now is a reasonable and prudent time for your business to evaluate its pandemic plans to ensure that operations will be able to continue as normally as possible in the case of a widespread pandemic. Organizations must plan to cope with public fear, people exercising social distancing instead of interacting in a normal face-to-face marketplace, and, perhaps most importantly, widespread absenteeism and illness.

It has been speculated that in the height of a pandemic event’s severity, up to 40% of employees at an organization may be absent due to illness, their family’s illnesses, or children staying home from school or day care as a result of social distancing measures. This does not only significantly impair your business internally, but vendors and service providers may also be working at 60% capacity. As Phase 6 is declared, your organization must ask itself what needs to be done?

It is also worth considering how public demand for goods and services may change upon the onset of a pandemic event. Many of GraVoc’s information security customers work in the banking industry, and it is safe to say that in times of public fear, members and customers may want to carry cash at a higher rate.

Other items to consider as pandemic fears escalate can be found in past posts on the GraVoc News Blog by clicking here.

GraVoc Associates, Inc, based in Peabody, MA, is celebrating fifteen years of business serving greater Boston, New England, and beyond in the fields of information security, information systems, and technological and professional services. One of the services offered by GraVoc’s information security practice is helping organizations design business continuity plans so that a business can continue operations in the event of a disaster. Pandemic planning is a keystone element of business continuity planning. If you believe your business needs planning or training on how to cope with the onset of a pandemic, please feel free to explore the GraVoc.com website or to call GraVoc’s offices at 978-538-9055.

If It Blows Over…

The latest reports of the swine flu outbreak indicate that the virus is not as bad as first feared, and it is starting to wane in its epicenter of Mexico.  Of course, this is very good news, but it is important to note that the world is certainly not “out of the woods.”  The WHO has not downgraded the alert phase from 5, and it is unlikely they will do so anytime soon.

This is partially because historically, many flu pandemics do indeed start in the spring, then wane, but come back even stronger during the traditional flu season that starts around December.  The H1N1 virus may follow that trend.  Luckily, that gives scientists time to develop a vaccine for the virus so that the impact of it will more closely resemble the impact of the seasonal flu instead of a catastrophic event.  It also gives businesses that may have been panicking about swine flu more time to plan for a pandemic event.

If the crisis does indeed blow over, it serves as a very relevant wake-up call.  If you saw your business start to panic due to lack of preparedness for a pandemic, GraVoc continues to be here to help.

GraVoc Associates, based just outside of Boston in Peabody, Massachusetts, is celebrating fifteen years of business in information security, information systems, and technology and professional services.  With years of experience in business continuity and pandemic event planning, GraVoc is committed to minimizing the impact of any flu outbreak on its clients’ business operations.  For more information, please visit the new GraVoc.com or call the GraVoc offices at 978-538-9055.

CNN: Companies Preparing For Worst

There is a useful article available currently on CNN.com regarding some of the largest companies in the country preparing for the worst by starting to implement their pandemic contingency plans.  This is a good sign, as these businesses represent a significant portion of the economy.  A disruption in business operations for firms and institutions of all sizes significantly decreases the affected business’s income.  Therefore, it is important for businesses of all sizes to begin instituting pandemic plans similar to the ones being activated by these large companies.

The article relies on analysis by the Gartner research firm, including vice president Ken McGee.  From the article:

For companies that already have contingency plans in place, he says that they need to halt all other activities and direct all their resources to activating their plans. He suggests testing home networks of critical employees to make sure they are working. He also suggests talking with vendors to see their level of preparedness.

"This is not a snow day," he said. "Companies need to review their plans and find their weaknesses and gaps readiness. And then they need to fill them immediately."

For companies that do not have a plan in place already, McGee says they need to be aware of hotspots where the virus is already infecting people, and they should be preparing to set up home networks and possibly shut down their offices in those regions.

The CNN article also refers to the blog of Gartner analyst Nick Jones, where Jones outlines how companies must consider exploiting technology to minimize business disruption while keeping employees safe from a pandemic.  Thanks to technology like telecommuting/remote access from employees’ homes, wireless broadband, and high-capacity mobile devices, it is certainly possible to keep people working while closing an office location.  It is, however, essential that your organization would not be technologically overwhelmed by a significant increase of telecommuting.

GraVoc Associates, based in Peabody, MA, is willing to help your business design contingency plans for pandemic events and other disasters that put business continuity in jeopardy.  As GraVoc celebrates fifteen years of business in greater Boston, the GraVoc information security team has many years’ experience in business continuity and pandemic planning.  Please don’t hesitate to browse past posts regarding the swine flu outbreak in the GraVoc news blog.  For more information about the company, please visit the website at www.gravoc.com.  Also feel free to call GraVoc at 978-538-9055 if you need assistance in planning and preparing for a pandemic.

Swine Flu Update – April 29

For the first time since the advent of the rating system, the World Health Organization (WHO) has raised the pandemic alert phase to Phase 5.

According to the WHO, Phase 5 is characterized by “widespread human infection” and is described as a “strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalize the organization, communication, and implementation of the planned mitigation measures is short.”

With worldwide travel significantly more common than it was in 1968, the date of the last worldwide influenza pandemic, this pandemic may spread across the globe more quickly than ever before.  However, as the WHO’s director-general pointed out, the world is more prepared for a flu pandemic than ever before due to medical technology and rapid electronic communication so that more information is readily available about the pandemic situation.

In the last two days, GraVoc has made an attempt to reach out to customers and the public to alert them about taking appropriate measures in accordance to pandemic event response policies.  With the alert level raised to Phase 5, the urgency of pandemic planning becomes more critical.

Organizations must plan very quickly how to cope with public fear, how to assist customers prevent the spread of influenza by offering services and products in locations, and means of communication without face-to-face contact.  Plans should be in place for communication with public officials, service providers, the media, employees, and customers so that business can continue interrupted despite a crisis that could result in a significant economic impact.

Furthermore, organizations should be in the process of finalizing their pandemic response plans, because the threats are no longer theoretical, but very real.  Avenues should be in place for immediate activation of a pandemic response procedure, and organizations should consider the costs and benefits of whether the procedures should indeed be activated.

GraVoc Associates, Inc, based in Peabody, MA, has substantial experience in helping organizations design business continuity and pandemic event response planning.  In this time of crisis, we are frequently updating the GraVoc News Blog (http://gravoc.blogspot.com) as we aim to help.  If you would like further assistance in preventing business disruption in the event of a disaster or a pandemic event, we strongly encourage you to contact GraVoc’s information security team at 978-538-9055.  We are committed to helping our customers’ bottom lines, and making sure businesses continue their processes as normally as possible is a crucial part of enhancing long-term profitability.

Swine Flu Blog

Regina Phelps of Emergency Management and Safety Solutions, has set up a blog specifically addressing the current swine flu crisis and how companies should plan accordingly to maintain business continuity.

The blog is available at http://emssolutionsinc.wordpress.com.

Swine Flu Update – April 28

In an emergency meeting Monday, the World Health Organization upgraded the influenza pandemic alert phase to a Phase 4.  Phase 4 is defined as a phase of sustained human-to-human transmission that can cause “community-level outbreaks,” so after the last few days, this came as no surprise.  Though a full-blown pandemic is not yet inevitable, the upgrade from Phase 3 to Phase 4 represents a significantly heightened likelihood of such an event.

As addressed in emails to be sent out to GraVoc business continuity and information security customers, it is recommended that organizations such as banks and credit unions start taking significant precautions immediately in response to the upgrade from Phase 3 to Phase 4.  As many cases of the pandemic event have already taken place in North America and specifically the United States, taking the following actions is a high priority:

• Amid employees’ pandemic fears, your organization should take appropriate measures to cope with employee absenteeism, such as considering a skeleton crew roster and changes to telecommuting and sick leave policy.
• Provide customers and employees with flu prevention/hygiene-related products in each location.
• Consider the consequences of public panic, such as increased demand for products and services and potential interrupted service from vendors, and make plans accordingly.
• Review plans and procedures for closing a location should the pandemic event strike the workplace.
• Remain aware of the current developments of swine flu through news sources or other organizations.
• Inform customers about ways they can conduct business with the organization electronically.

For more information or advice on how to maintain business continuity, please do not hesitate to contact the GraVoc Associates Information Security team at 978-538-9055.  GraVoc, based in Peabody, MA is celebrating fifteen years of business in the Boston area, and has many years’ experience helping clients design business continuity plans and pandemic event policies that have gained the strong approval of regulatory agencies such as the FDIC and NCUA.  For more information on the company, please visit www.gravoc.com, and for continued updates on the swine flu situation with specific attention to business continuity efforts, please consult the GraVoc News Blog at http://gravoc.blogspot.com.

Swine Flu and Business Continuity

In the wake of the swine flu outbreak in the Mexico City area and the scattered cases of human swine flu infections in the United States, pandemic fears are certainly on the forefront of many people’s minds.

While the World Health Organization (WHO) has called this a “public health emergency of national concern,” they have not yet upgraded the situation from Pandemic Phase 3.  The definition of each phase is available here.

This news is extremely relevant to many GraVoc business continuity clients.  In a response to a FFIEC guideline from December 2007, GraVoc developed a pandemic event policy to add to business continuity plans.  Many bank and credit union clients have engaged GraVoc for pandemic planning procedures, and these efforts have gained approval from our clients’ regulatory examiners, including the NCUA and FDIC.

Pandemic readiness involves an organization taking the proper precautions to make sure that business can continue as close as possible to normal, likely through the use of telecommunication.  The pandemic procedures prepare organizations for responding to public fear, preventing the spread of illness throughout the workplace, and coping with widespread employee absenteeism.

It is also notable to add that the WHO commended the efforts of the last five years by the world community regarding pandemic preparedness in response to the potential of an avian flu outbreak.  According to the WHO’s Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the world is “much, much better prepared than we've ever been” for a pandemic event.

GraVoc Associates, Inc, based outside of Boston in Peabody, MA, is strongly committed to its business continuity customers, and looks to ensure that business continuity efforts continue to work for the client beyond the point of sale.  For existing clients and new clients alike, we strongly urge you to contact us at 978-538-9055 if you need any assistance with business continuity and pandemic planning efforts.