Emergency Management – What you need to know

In a world of COVID-19, it’s important that we follow the correct processes in order to keep everyone safe. This week many of our calls have included questions around Emergency management, your Emergency Plan and how to manage emergency situations in a COVID19 environment.

What if I suspect a case of COVID-19?

If you suspect someone in the workplace is showing signs of COVID-19 it is important that this is reported to the Site Manager immediately.

The Site Manager must notify the Ministry of Health (MoH) and shut the site for a minimum of 3 days or longer, this is specified directly by MoH.  An investigation will then be carried out by MoH, who will provide you with extra guidance in this area.

Following the investigation, contract tracing will be carried out by the MoH. They will ask for your induction records to identify who has been in contact with the person. This will have been completed as part of your HazardCo inductions. 

It is the responsibility of the Site Manager to contact all workers and contractors that may have been exposed. Those people will be required to stay at home and self-isolate until the case and contacts are confirmed by the MoH.

Prior to re-opening, the site must have a full sanitising clean completed and approval to open direct from the MoH.

For more information around managing a suspected case of COVID-19, take a look at the resources below. You can reach MoH on 0800 358 5453 if you have any concerns. 

MoH guidelines

What do I do in an emergency?

In case of an emergency, it’s important you still have a workplace Emergency plan. However due to COVID-19, you will need to adapt the plan to ensure that physical distancing is maintained. 

An example of this is if there was a fire, the priority would be to safely exit the workplace to avoid injury, however, once all evacuated physical distancing is re-established. This might mean that your assembly areas may need to change to maintain a 2m distance.