An EHSQ solution can help companies manage not only the current pandemic, but also future health crises.
As COVID-19 has spread around the world, pandemic control and contingency planning has received a different focus. In determining the best approach to limiting the impact of COVID-19 on your organization, there are many considerations to take into account. This work may seem overwhelming; but, the Enablon environmental, health, safety, security and quality(EHSQ) management software solutions that Laragon implements can help you better protect your business continuity and make your planning effort more effective.
For example:
- Capture reliable information on COVID-19 cases in a centralized manner.
- Ensure that the right people are notified at all times.
- Track confirmed and unconfirmed cases of contagion within your company
- See its geographic distribution
- Monitor the evolution of each case
- And much more…
Let’s take a look at some key areas where Enablon software can help your organization strengthen its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Exposure detection and control
Some companies may allow or encourage their workers to telecommute, but for many organizations telecommuting is not an option. How a company monitors the health and safety of its workers can be critical to maintaining its operations during this pandemic.
It is practically impossible to verify that no employee is affected before entering his or her job. In addition, checking the health of each employee when they arrive at work can be time consuming and increase the risk of exposure to others.
Enablon software provides automated solutions to this challenge. It allows companies to use advanced logic to register workers in Similar Exposure Groups (SEGs) based on their potential risk of exposure. The software can be configured to send health monitoring assessments directly to workers so they can complete their own questionnaires quickly and easily using a tablet or cell phone. Responses are automatically captured by the software and high-risk workers can be directed to “self-isolate” (stay home and avoid contact with others), identified for more frequent surveillance, or directed for additional testing. Also, a series of checklists can reinforce worker training and help further reduce the risk of infection.
The software allows you to analyze GES-linked data to help identify patterns related to spread and transmission rates, information that can be used to further control the spread of COVID-19 in your workplace. This type of analysis is virtually impossible with a spreadsheet.
Sanitation and hygiene processes
It has been proven that the COVID-19 virus can survive on some surfaces for days, so organizations need to review their current hygiene protocols. How often are surfaces disinfected? The answer to that question can help limit the spread of the virus in your workplace.
Enablon software can automate the tracking and auditing of recurring cleaning and maintenance tasks, allowing the Human Resources department to more easily monitor these processes. This automation can also allow companies to monitor whether these processes have helped reduce infection rates.
These solutions also offer analytics and reporting capabilities to help increase accountability in the completion of required tasks. One example is, PPE usage audits, to help curb the spread of COVID-19 and help identify opportunities for improvement within your existing processes, apart from further reducing COVID-19 exposure in the workplace. The flexibility these solutions provide to identify, analyze and take corrective action is not something that can be achieved with a spreadsheet or emails.
Management of employee absences
The medical community and many government agencies advise anyone showing symptoms of COVID-19 or who may have been exposed to the virus to “self-isolate” and avoid contact with others until they have been cleared of the virus. This strict orientation can lead to a higher number of absences from work.
This makes absence tracking even more important. With Enablon, companies can keep better control of their employees’ absences and return-to-work schedules. This automated tracking will help associate absences with potential workplace exposure.
The software also helps reduce the time companies spend managing work-related illnesses by automatically filling out forms required by federal or local government agencies. This helps to quickly ensure compliance with the appropriate regulations, allowing more time to focus on COVID-19 impact management.
Contractor management
Beyond their own workers, companies should also consider the role that contractors could play in the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. While you cannot always prevent contractors from entering your work environment, there are steps you can take to limit the potential spread of COVID-19.
This starts with evaluating ways your company can incorporate hands-on health screenings into your contractor prequalification process. This will help your company ensure that people who show symptoms of COVID-19 or who may have been exposed to the virus are identified early and prevented from entering the workplace.
In addition, these solutions allow contractors to use their mobile devices to “check in” when they arrive on the job. Companies can then keep track of and validate individuals in the workplace and act quickly if an individual is not on a list of authorized workers. For companies that use paper-based systems to carry this information, such actions can be very difficult or even impossible.
Travel Authorization
Travel is an essential part of business and as business travel gradually resumes in the normalization phase, keeping your workers safe will be a necessity. Automatically monitoring, evaluating and approving your workers’ travel using Enablon software can help reduce the chance of someone putting themselves in harm’s way.
In addition, this automated solution can help share travel warnings and restrictions within a dashboard titled “Standing News,” so your workers always have the latest information to keep them safe. If your company has an immunization program the software automatically links your authorization process to that program, helping to ensure that your workers have the proper vaccinations before receiving permission to travel. In addition, these checks can be performed well in advance to avoid last-minute problems.
Conclusion
The COVID-19 pandemic will have long-lasting effects. That is why it is critically important for companies to take steps now to manage the impacts of COVID-19 on their workers and their operations, and to think beyond the current situation and consider the long-term needs and future risks to their business. Other virus outbreaks have spread around the world in the past and any future outbreaks could present risks similar to those of COVID-19. These risk mitigation solutions will help companies manage not only the current pandemic but also future virus outbreaks.
