As anyone who’s been paying attention to the news is aware, health officials in many countries, including Canada, are worried about an outbreak of H1N1 Swine Flu worldwide. This past week, the World Health Organization raised the virus’ threat level to a five on a preparedness scale, with 6 being a full-blown global pandemic.

While the jury is out regarding the actual threat of the illness to the world population, the WHO warns that this particular flu strain is very contagious, and that we have no immunity. The illness causes fever, coughs, body aches and respiratory problems. A large scale spread of the virus could have a major impact on workplaces all over Canada. But there are actually steps workers and their supervisors can take to minimize the threat to your workplace and your company’s productivity. If all workers take these steps, it should minimize the impact on your workplace, as well as many others.

· If you think you’ve been exposed to the virus, make sure you get immediate medical assistance.

· Wash your hands as often as possible with soap and warm water. If soap and water are not readily available on a particular job, wash your hands frequently with an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

· Keep your hands away from your nose and mouth, and if you must sneeze or cough, do so into your sleeve, in order to avoid spreading germs to your hands.

· Practice social distancing, maintaining at least three feet of distance from others, whether or not you think they may have been exposed to the virus.

· Advise supervisors if you have been exposed to someone with the flu, or if you experience flu-like symptoms.

Supervisors should develop a plan of action, in order to ensure the safety of other workers and the public at large in the event of an outbreak. They should also encourage an increase in the frequency of cleaning and personal hygiene activities within the workplace, and should be proactive in distributing personal wellness information as it becomes available.

Taking a few simple, positive precaution could go a long way toward minimizing the impact of this potentially costly epidemic, should it get to that point. It could save everyone a lot of time, money and productivity.