October 27, 2009 - Special Alert for Nonprofits

This Special Alert is being sent to you by the National Council of Nonprofits in a continuing effort to ensure nonprofit leaders have the information needed to prepare for the challenges posed by the H1N1 Flu. President Obama recently declared a national emergency because,"the rapid increase in illness across the Nation may overburden health care resources." The emergency declaration will provide healthcare facilities more flexibility in providing treatment. This declaration also signals that extra precautions should be taken by nonprofits.

To help nonprofits be prepared for the flu, the National Council of Nonprofits has created an on-line H1N1 Preparedness Toolkit. It offers, in a single mouse click, up-to-date and practical information on issues relating to the H1N1 flu for use with board members, employees, and volunteers. We encourage you to foward this newsletter and subscribe to receive future updates on this and other topics critical to the operations of nonprofit organizations.

What Nonprofits Need to Know About H1N1 Preparedness to Protect:

• Your employees and volunteers

• Your clients/consumers

• Your community

   

As expected, the H1N1 virus has caused widespread illness in many communities. During the early weeks of October, 46 states reported significant flu activity. The World Health Organization (WHO) identified H1N1 as a pandemic in June 2009. Since then, President Obama has declared the H1N1 flu a national emergency. To date, WHO has identified over 1,000 confirmed deaths from H1N1 flu in the United States. While these numbers alone are not cause for panic, they evidence the very serious nature of the H1N1 flu and the fact that all nonprofits should take steps to protect their own employees and volunteers, as well as the communities they serve.

The H1N1 virus has already hit communities hard and many nonprofits are feeling the strain. In particular, schools and nonprofits providing residential services, child care, elder care and health services are typically most impacted. The National Council of Nonprofits encourages all nonprofit boards and staff leaders to recognize that they need to take proactive steps to make plans and communicate those plans among employees and volunteers to ensure the continuity of the nonprofit's business operations because a widespread flu outbreak could have a serious impact on mission fulfillment.

To help you, the National Council has prepared an on-line resource to provide your organization, employees, and volunteers a portal to up-to-date information on the flu. The National Council's H1N1 Preparedness Toolkit includes links to sample communications for staff and volunteers, easily downloadable posters and fact sheets in multiple languages, training tools, policy language, and up-to-date information to help your nonprofit take an informed leadership role in educating employees, volunteers, and clients this flu season.

Announcing... The H1N1 Preparedness Toolkit

The National Council's website offers:

1. The H1N1 Preparedness Toolkit: Include a link from your organization's website to the toolkit to provide the most up-to-date information on all things relating to the flu.

2. A letter to employees and volunteers that can be customized to inform employees and volunteers about the flu and urge them to stay home if they are experiencing flu symptoms.

3. Sample policies (contained in the Toolkit) for your organization to customize and adopt that address workplace issues impacted by severe flu outbreaks.

4. Four NEWLY ADDED resouces! 

• Factsheet and flier for parents: Seasonal and H1N1 Flu Guide for Parents

• Factsheet and flier for employees: What you should know about antiviral drugs

• Podcast: "Take 3 Actions to Fight Flu"

• Faith-Based & Community Organizations Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Checklist (Spanish version)  Identifies specific actions for community organizations to take to prepare for a pandemic.

What should your nonprofit be doing NOW to be prepared?

In addition to taking a look at the preparedness tools in the H1N1 Preparedness Toolkit, here are critical issues for your organization to consider right now:

• How will your organization maintain regular business operations if many key employees are home with the flu or taking care of family members with the flu?

• Do you have workplace policies in place to address telecommuting, leaves of absence and sick leave, confidentiality of medical information and flu prevention?

• Perhaps your sick leave policies allow your employees to stay home from work when they are ill - but what if your employees are needed to provide care for immediate family members? If an employee stays home to be a caregiver, will their absence be covered by sick leave? Covered by family leave?

• Does your organization's health insurance plan cover vaccinations or over-the-counter flu medications for your employees?

• In addition to urging sick employees/volunteers to stay home, what else can your organization do to reduce the risk of the flu spreading? Some employers are pointing out to their employees and volunteers where there are opportunities for vaccinations at local health clinics or through health insurance providers. 

• If you have policies and procedures in place, have you communicated them clearly to all of your employees and volunteers?

• In the event employees or volunteers become seriously ill at work, do you have emergency contact information so their family or loved ones can be contacted?

Sample e-Mail

• The CDC has prepared a sample e-mail you can send to your employees and members to help them be prepared for the flu.

All workplaces should be taking the following steps to prevent flu transmission:

1. Educate employees about the flu, its severity, and simple ways they can protect themselves from illness, as well as protect their family and co-workers as well as the nonprofits' clients/consumers.

2. Establish a policy that employees who are experiencing flu symptoms should stay home!

3. Encourage employees to wash hands often or use alcohol-based hand cleansers, especially after coughing or sneezing, and cover their mouths and noses with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. Strategic tissue box placement is key!

4. Establish new cleaning routines to reduce the risk of transmission such as regular cleaning of surfaces like door handles, vehicle steering-wheels, and highly-trafficked spots around the office and in all work areas.

Most experts agree that the single most important step to take is to ensure that employees stay home if they experience flu symptoms!

A word from the National Council: Although the World Health Organization has declared a pandemic, people should not panic. The H1N1 flu virus is not abnormally strong; rather, because it is a new strain of flu (you will see it referred to as "novel") people have not been exposed to it and have no immunity against it. Because our bodies are weaker, we need to rely more on our minds to fight this strain of the flu.

• For more information on products for treating flu symptoms, see the FDA's H1N1 Flu News page

• For the most comprehensive and up to date information: Visit Flu.gov

Questions? Contact the CDC 24 Hours/day 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636)

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The National Council of Nonprofits is the network of state and regional nonprofit associations serving more than 20,000 member organizations. By linking local nonprofit organizations across the nation through state associations, the National Council helps small and midsize nonprofits manage and lead more effectively, collaborate and exchange solutions, engage in critical policy issues affecting the sector, and achieve greater impact in their communities.