Ebola at the Workplace: Some Helpful Guidances and Resources from OSHA and Others

October 17, 2014

Resource: Blog Industry: Industrial

Tags: Online Training

By now, you’re no doubt aware that the Ebola epidemic has spread past Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, and a small number of other west-African nations and has reached nations in other continents, including the United States.

Given that, it’s a good idea to learn more about the Ebola virus and have a plan at your workplace in case the virus continues to spread.

OSHA Resources about Ebola

In response to recent events, OSHA’s created a Safety and Health Topic website that provides a lot of helpful information about Ebola, including some aspects specifically related to the workplace. We recommend checking it out.

There are a large number of helpful resources on that OSHA site, but a few we found especially interesting are:

• Cleaning and Decontamination of Ebola on Surfaces in non-laboratory Settings
• Ebola Hazard Recognition
• OSHA Standards Related to Ebola
• OSHA’s Protecting Workers During a Pandemic Fact Sheet (this is not specific to Ebola but is still helpful)

Additional General Resources about Ebola

You may also want to check out some of these resources:

General Ebola and/or Ebola and the Workplace Resources

• CDC Website about Ebola
• Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)Website on Emerging Infectious Diseases (including Ebola)
• NIOSH Website on Ebola Virus Disease
• World Health Organization (WHO) Website about Ebola
• New York Times article about avoiding “Ebola hysteria”

Ebola Resources for Health Care Workers

• Guidance on Personal Protective Equipment To Be Used by Healthcare Workers During Management of Patients with Ebola Virus Disease in U.S. Hospitals, Including Procedures for Putting On (Donning) and Removing (Doffing)
• Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee from CDC and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
• Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Hospitalized Patients with Known or Suspected Ebola Virus Disease in U.S. Hospitals from CDC and HHS
• Safe Management of Patients with Ebola Virus Disease in U.S. Hospitals from CDC and HHS

Ebola Resources for Emergency Responders

• Interim Guidance for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems and 9-1-1 Public Safety Answering Points for Management Patients with Known or Suspected Ebola Virus Disease in the United States from CDC and HHS

Ebola Resources for Airline Employees

• Interim Guidance about Ebola Infection for Airline Crews, Cleaning Personnel, and Cargo Personnel from CDC and HHS
• Infection Control Guidelines for Cabin Crew Members on Commercial Aircraft from CDC and HHS
• Guidance for Airlines on Reporting Onboard Deaths or Illnesses to CDC from CDC and HHS
• Guidance on Air Medical Transport for Patients with Ebola Virus Disease from CDC and HHS
• Interim Guidance for Environmental Infection Control in Hospitals for Ebola Virus from CDC and HHS
• Guidance for Managing Ill Onboard Patients from International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)

Ebola Resources for Mortuary and Death Care Workers

• Guidance for Safe Handling of Human Remains of Ebola Patients in U. S. Hospitals and Mortuaries from CDC and HHS

Ebola Resources for Lab Workers

• Interim Guidance for Specimen Collection, Transport, Testing, and Submission for Persons Under Investigation for Ebola Virus Disease in the United States from CDC and HHS
• Interim Laboratory Guidelines for Handling/Testing Specimens from Cases or Suspected Cases of Hemorrhagic Fever Virus (HFV) from American Society for Microbiology
• Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL) 5th Edition from CDC and HHS
• Biosafety Laboratory Competency Guidelines from CDC and HHS (appearing in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report)