In only a few short weeks, the emergence of the novel coronavirus disease, COVID-19, has created an unprecedented impact on the way we live and work. As the virus emerged, our social life was impacted badly.

While many organizations are moving to remote work, some companies work with proprietary systems or with sensitive materials that require employees, or shifts of workers, to be on-premises to get their job done well. As champions of a great work experience, we want to help everyone stay healthy in the office while sharing common workspaces.

We believe workplace wellbeing extends not just to cleaning and disinfecting the office, but to good communication and signage strategies, and healthy office culture for COVID and beyond. We hope these tips for office safety will provide both knowledge and peace of mind as we navigate this critical public health issue.

•       Regular cleaning guidance from the management or HR
•       Air quality and ventilation systems
•       Social distancing in the office
•       Communication and signage

 

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PROPER CLEANING GUIDANCE BY MANAGEMENT

While the spread of the virus might feel unavoidable, the fact is that good cleaning and disinfection routines can greatly reduce or eliminate the risk of a viral count of COVID-19 on surfaces and objects in the office. As employers, it’s all of our duty to maintain a clean environment and make sure every person feels safe coming in every day. 

Few key points you should know before you begin:

• Use disposable gloves, gowns, a mask (like a cloth face covering) for cleaning and disinfection. Carefully remove and throw them away immediately after disinfection and trash disposal.
• Always clean before beginning disinfection. Cleaning with a detergent or soap and water solution removes particles that can carry risk of COVID-19 on surfaces. This reduces the viral load before disinfection begins, which helps the disinfectant to be more effective in killing the remaining virus.
• If using disinfecting wipes (such as Clorox or Lysol wipes) remember that to properly disinfect, you should clean only one item at a time, using enough wipes to ensure the surface stays wet for 4 minutes.
• Remember to never mix cleaning products together.
• Clean and disinfect high-touch surfaces daily in common areas (e.g. tables, hard-backed chairs, doorknobs, light switches, phone receivers and keypads, remotes, handles, touchscreens, desks, toilets, sinks, elevator and elevator buttons, etc).
• Clean and disinfect shared electronics and equipment, digital signage, and touch-screen kiosks.

AIR QUALITY AND VENTILATION SYSTEMS

Offices are home to many sources of air contamination, including volatile organic compounds (from cleaning agents, furniture, and other materials), and bacteria, mold, and viruses. Poor ventilation exacerbates the presence of these contaminants.

To maintain healthy indoor environments as you phase employees back into the office, facilities need to concentrate on plumbing, ventilation, and filtration systems that filter, dilute, and remove pathogens.

Using our own experience at Enviroverks, we suggest the following air quality interventions:

• Address indoor air quality issues perceived and actual-in existing buildings
• Conduct air quality assessments, testing, design and provide engineering guidance to improve ventilation effectiveness of existing HVAC systems, support long-term air-quality monitoring, and create air-quality awareness
• Adapt controls and sequencing to accommodate and monitor additional filtration needs, and additional criteria concerning recirculated air systems
• Develop messaging and education for building occupants-dashboards, apps, situational cues-to reduce concerns regarding potential pathogen transmission

SOCIAL DISTANCING MEASURES IN THE OFFICE

For companies who require on-premise employees, social distancing in the office is required from the start, not just once offices begin to fully reopen. Getting in the habit early will give time to test what method works best for you and your team before everyone comes back to the office.

 

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Methods to consider for physical distancing: 

1. Limit who comes into the office and when with flexible hours and staggered shifts
2. Use a social distancing desk tool to make it map out what a socially distanced floor plan looks like using only desks 6ft or more apart. Assign or allow people to book their own desks based on what’s available. Determine capacity based on physical distancing accordingly.
3. Either prohibit or keep visitors to a minimum unless absolutely necessary. Prohibit personal packages delivered to the office. For snacks and coffee, and locker use, limit some, if not all, within the office to decrease the number of shared surfaces.
4. Update office design with partitions between desks and social spaces, revised seating arrangements, and directional signage like floor markers for one-way hallways and staircases. 
5. Maintain virtual meetings in the office: Repurpose every conference room into a personal office and/or storage area in the early stages of COVID-6.
6. Touchless entry: Using an access control system, every in-office employee can badge into the building using their phones.

 COMMUNICATION AND SIGNAGE ON COVID-19 IN THE WORKPLACE

They say sunshine is the best disinfectant; in this case, good communication is one of your first and best defences against the physical and emotional aspects of navigating coronavirus. Be prepared to reassure and support employees who may be going through a range of emotions and personal challenges as a result of the virus and containment efforts:

• Provide clear, concise and well-worded updates that are relevant to your location, industry, and current work culture. Communicate in a timely, calm manner.
• Offer channels for support and two-way communication. Create a space for your staff to reach out with their concerns and needs; where possible, make accommodations for specific needs that arise.
• Provide signage around the office that will keep everyone mindful of safety: good respiratory hygiene, cleaning recommendations, social distancing, and symptom checks.

In the event that you need to coordinate some of your company to work from home while others from the office, or eventually, everyone working from home, here are some tips on how to manage that transition:

• Continue to provide clear, concise and well-worded updates that are relevant to your location, industry, current work culture, and overall state of the pandemic. Communicate in a timely, calm manner.
• Make sure technology is consistent across the entire company including communication, video conferencing, project management, and collaboration tools.
• Continue to clean all spaces in the office, shared or not, and push everyone to wipe down their desks and equipment as soon as they’re done for the day. This is especially important if people are sharing spaces and if teams switch off working in the office.
• Provide hand sanitiser and personal protective equipment (PPE) across the office building and make sure everyone knows where to find both in order to mitigate the risk of spreading germs.
• Keep team communication consistent. It’s easy for team collaboration to decrease without face-to-face interaction making it that much more critical that communication is prioritized with daily or weekly posts, emails, and video calls. With that being said, be mindful of how much time you’re taking out of the workday to check-in through video calls.
• Don’t forget to value social and recharge interactions, beyond just “work talk”. Encourage digital get-togethers in the form of team lunches, happy hours, and group downtime via video calls when needed.
• Check-in with your team early and often to gauge what’s working and where people need extra support.
• Promote a work-life balance for everyone, especially working parents. Social distancing requires lots of downtime at home which can result in an unclear blend of work and non-work activities.

Home is Where the heart is.

HealthWay Air Purifiers are promoted on The Star Special, Sunday 23 May 2021 HOME & LIVING. In this article, we have seen an easy way to reduce the risk of airborne transmission of covid-19.

And as it illustrated, we want to make your home a snug and cosy place to unwind with friends and family. You and your loved ones are deserved to enjoy cleaner and healthier air.

Almost anything we do, every product we use and everywhere we go, leads to us polluting the environment in one way or another. Driving pollutes the air, sending waste to landfills pollutes the air and land, and growing food using fertilizers and pesticides poisons groundwater as well as surrounding bodies of water.

 

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One of the easiest ways of cutting back on pollution is recycling. Recycling converts waste materials into new materials and objects. It is the third component of the ‘Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle Waste hierarchy and is a vital part of cleaning the environment. This article looks into how recycling could help reduce pollution.

How Does Recycling Help Reduce Pollution?

1. An overall reduction in pollution levels

According to research by the University of Central Oklahoma, recycling paper cuts down on air pollution by 73% and water pollution by 35%. Recycling steel reduces 97% of the mining waste produced through the manufacture of virgin resources, and cuts back 86% and 76% on air pollution and water pollution, respectively. Additionally, using recycled glass decreases mining wastes by 80% and air pollution by 20%.

2. It protects ecosystems

Recycling reduces the need to grow, harvest and extract raw materials from the earth for additional products. This, therefore, lessens the harmful disruption and damage done to the natural world. It means fewer forests will be cut down, wild animals will be less harmed or displaced, no more diversion of rivers and as such, less pollution of the soil, water and air. Also, if more plastics are recycled, less of them will find their way into the ocean waters, damaging marine life

3. It saves energy

Making products from recycled materials requires less energy as compared to making them using raw materials. The huge difference in energy means less pollution. For instance, producing new Aluminum from old products like recycled cans and foil uses 95% less energy than making it from scratch. The figure is 70% with regards to steel. Saving on energy means fewer strains on the power grid, which means less carbon is emitted at the power plant as a result of drawing too much energy

4. It reduces the demand for more raw materials

As already mentioned, recycling reduces the need to grow, harvest and extract raw materials from the earth for additional products. As such, if more is recycled, the raw materials from which these products are extracted will not be touched in quite a while.

This is what it means for a reduction in the demand for more raw materials. When these raw materials, such as forests are hunted, the vulnerable people living next to them also suffer, not forgetting the corresponding river systems.

5. It is better at it than collecting waste

Landfills might be able to accommodate a lot of waste that has been thrown away there. They might also eliminate a lot of waste than a recycling company can when recycling waste. However, recycling means a new product is arrived at from the waste of another.

Landfills, before they help a product decompose, might take a very long time. At the same time, they will allow leaching which will contaminate or pollute bodies of water. It also results in the production of harmful gases like methane, polluting the air. All this is avoided if you decide to recycle.

6. It conserves natural resources

The point of avoiding pollution is to preserve natural resources. Recycling is a wonderful tool that will make new products, and at the same time avoid pollution, by conserving natural resources. For instance, recycling paper and wood saves trees and forests.

Recycling plastic means creating less new plastic which is beneficial for the environment, especially because plastics are made from hydrocarbons, which terribly pollute the environment. Recycling metals could also result in less need for the risky, expensive and damaging mining and extraction of new metal ores.

 

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Who Contributes to The Pollution The Most?

1. Industrial plants and manufacturing activities

Emissions from these plants have to be the biggest culprits of polluting the environment. Industries such as tanneries, lead smelting, mining and ore processing, and chemical and product manufacturing are giant pollutants. The majority process raw materials to get the final product, through the use of toxic chemicals that contain toxic elements like cadmium, lead, chromium and mercury.

When these pollutants end up in underground waters and the soil, they contaminate the water we drink and the food we eat. The by-products of these production processes include harmful gases, like carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide, that have a greenhouse effect.

Additionally, they pollute the air and could contribute to poor visibility. Some of these gases are also harmful if inhaled and could also produce acid rain, which affects everything it touches, including marine wildlife.

2. Fossil fuel combustion

Combusting fossil fuels is the major reason as to why we have smog clouds and bad air quality in urban areas. Such combustion is done in power plants that use fossil fuels to generate heat and emissions from cars and other vehicles. The result is carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, lead, dust particles and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which when released into the air, create smog clouds.

Motor vehicles are responsible for about 75% of carbon monoxide pollution in the US, with the transportation industry causing 14% of greenhouse gas emissions globally. Low-income countries also burn charcoal and wood, resulting in carbon monoxides and dioxides, and dust particles.

3. Agriculture

This is another significant contributor to pollution in the world. Crop cultivation requires the use of pesticides and fertilizers that slowly poison the soil. They also sip underground and poison groundwater reservoirs and rivers. Livestock cultivation also requires heavily on scarce water resources, could result in overgrazing and is the reason why most forests are being cut down.

Raising them also results in air pollution. For instance, raising cattle for food emits 5% of all greenhouse gas emissions as they release massive amounts of methane into the atmosphere. Cattle are the animal species responsible for the most emissions, representing about 65% of the livestock sector’s emissions

4. Humans

How can we forget the impact that humans have on the environment? Humans, in their exploration, have come up with all these technologies, that although benefit us, are taking a toll on the environment. Let us not forget about landfills, where we really love to deposit any trash we have. Landfills grow bigger daily and more waste is buried underground.

Although landfills are supposed to aid trash in decomposing, the truth is not all trash decomposes by itself even for a couple of centuries, like plastics. Landfills emit methane as a by-product of the decomposition process, which is a greenhouse gas, about 30 times more potent than carbon dioxide when it comes to trapping heat. Decomposing waste could also leach into groundwater streams and contaminate fresh and drinkable water.

There’s still a lot to learn about the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). We do know that there are some precautions that we can take to help slow the spread of the disease. Here are the top 10 ways you can help reduce the spread of COVID-19:

1. Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds after any activity.

This includes blowing your nose, coughing, etc. Always wash your hands before eating or cooking.

 

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2. Wear a mask (disposable or cloth mask).

A cloth face covering may not protect the wearer, but it may keep the wearer from spreading the virus to others. To reduce the spread of COVID-19, CDC recommends that people wear cloth face coverings in public settings when around people outside of their household, especially when other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain. 

 

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3. Maintain social distancing. Work from home if possible and avoid large gatherings, public spaces and public transportation.

Keep three to six feet between yourself and others. Avoid social touching, this includes shaking hands, kissing or hugging, instead try a hand wave or a smile.

 

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4. Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth.

Be mindful to keep your hands away from any location on your face where a virus could enter your body.

5. Clean “high-touch” surfaces regularly.

It’s still unknown if COVID-19 can spread from hard surfaces to people or how long it may live outside the human body. Take extra caution and clean high-touch surfaces like tables, doorknobs, light switches, desks, toilets, faucets, and sinks with household disinfectants that are appropriate for the surface.

 

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6. Stop sharing

Even though you may usually steal a bite from your kid’s plate or share a dessert with a friend or spouse, now is the time to be selfish with your food. Don’t share any common kitchen objects such as dishes, drinking glasses, utensils, cups, and, of course, food with anyone—even the people in your home. Also be sure to wash any kitchen items thoroughly after use with hot water and soap, or put them in the dishwasher.

7. If you think you have symptoms of COVID-19:

Learn more about when to seek care and options for speaking with a caregiver. People who are mildly ill with COVID-19 are able to recover at home. Do not leave, except to get medical care.

 

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8. Avoid any unnecessary travel.

While you may be tempted to visit your grandkids or family, don’t travel during this time because it may expose you to someone who may be infected.

9. Prepare for your needs in case you’ll need to stay home for an extended period.

Make sure you have enough groceries, household items and medications (including over-the-counter medicines) on hand, and that you know how to order more either online or by making a phone call.

10. Have a plan if you get sick.

Talk to friends and family about who can help you if you get sick. Plan who could cook and deliver meals, run errands and even take care of you.

Extra precautions for high-risk patients

Individuals who are at a higher risk of getting COVID-19 are recommended to take extra precautions to stay safe. This includes individuals who:

• Are over the age of 60
• Have heart disease
• Have diabetes
• Have lung disease, including asthma
• Are taking immunosuppressive drugs

If you’re at a higher risk of contracting COVID-19, do not travel. Traveling may expose you to someone who may be infected. Make sure you have a plan if you get sick. Talk to your friends and family or you can sign-up for a mobile or online meal delivery service.

Lastly, another way you can help reduce the spread is by educating others. Share this article with your family and friends so they can also help prevent the people they love from getting sick.

Children and young people should understand basic age-appropriate coronavirus (COVID-19) information, including its symptoms, complications, how it is transmitted, and how to prevent transmission.

Get information about COVID-19 from reliable sources of information such as UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the Ministry of Health and the Government website dedicated to COVID-19.

Follow our advice:

• In a situation like this, it is normal to feel sad, worried, confused, scared or angry. You should know that you are not alone and should talk to someone you trust, such as a parent or a trusted adult so that you can protect yourself and your health.
• Ask questions, educate yourself and listen to information from reliable sources.
• Wash your hands frequently, always with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
• Remember not to touch your face.
• Do not share cups, food or drinks with others.
• Do not stigmatize and exclude your peers and do not tease anyone that they are ill; remember that the virus does not know about geographical boundaries, ethnicity, age, ability or gender.
• Tell your parents, another family member or whomever that is taking care of you if you are feeling sick and ask to stay home.
• Be aware of false information and misconceptions, whether transmitted verbally or online.
• Take a break from watching, reading, or listening to the news, including social networks. Listening about the spread of the viral infection multiple times throughout the day can be disturbing.
• Take care of your body. Take a deep breath, stretch out or meditate. Try to eat healthy, balanced meals, exercise regularly, sleep a lot, and avoid harmful substances.
• Have some time for relaxing. Try to combine things you have to do with activities you enjoy.

 Don’t forget:

• People with the virus circulating in the population and transmit it to others, often without knowing that they may be symptom-free or only have mild symptoms. That is why it is important to accept the call to stay home in order to avoid transmission and to go into quarantine if symptoms appear.

Recommendations for parents of adolescents

Children and adolescents often react in the same way as the adults around them. When adults deal with an unpleasant topic, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, with calm and confidence, they are providing them with the best support.

Parents can provide more stable support for others around them, especially for children, if they are better prepared. Not all adolescents respond to stress in the same way. Some common changes you should pay attention to:

• Excessive worrying or sadness
• Unhealthy eating or sleeping habits
• Irritability and inappropriate behaviours
• Avoiding school-related obligations
• Attention and concentration difficulties
• Avoiding activities he/she used to enjoy in the past
• Unexplained headaches or body aches
• Alcohol, tobacco or substance abuse

 There are many things you can do to support them:

• Take some time to talk to your child about the COVID-19 pandemic. Answer their questions and share facts about COVID-19 in a way that your child can understand.
• Convince your child that they are safe. Let them know that it’s okay if they feel upset. Share with them how you cope with your own stress.
• Limit your family’s exposure to news, including social media. Children can misinterpret what they hear and may be scared of something they do not understand.
• Try to maintain regular routines. Make a schedule of work activities and relaxing or fun activities.
• Be a role model. Rest, sleep, exercise and eat well. Connect with friends and family members.

 Don’t forget:

• Explain to them that by protecting their own health, they are also protecting the health of everyone around them.

What is the novel coronavirus?

To put it simply, this virus is an extremely small yet dangerous one that recently caused a global pandemic as it can cause many respiratory problems that transmit through airborne particles. This doesn’t mean it stays in the air though, as it is transmitted through the air via sneezing and coughing, much like the normal flu that we are used to seeing.  

Due to its small size of 0.06 to 0.14 microns no filter is able to be 100% effective, but there is a big difference between having a good filter and a bad one, as it is still able to greatly reduce the risk of contracting the coronavirus. Many overlook the importance of a good filter and having good and clean indoor air quality especially during this time of crisis. Excluding the novel coronavirus, a good filter and ventilation system can also reduce risks from influenza, rhinovirus, tuberculosis and SARS, all of which are deadly viruses in their own right.

Improve the indoor air quality in your home and work environments

With the mutation of the coronavirus, many people who are infected with it could also possibly be asymptomatic and unknowingly spread the virus to friends and family by simply just talking or breathing, that risk that can be reduced simply by having a cleaner and healthier indoor air. In addition to that, the effects of bad indoor air quality, besides some respiratory diseases, heart disease and cancer, can be severely damaging to one’s health or even fatal. It is essential to try to improve the indoor air quality in your home and work environments even if symptoms are not noticeable.

Are air purifiers really enough to reduce the risk of viruses in the air? Though air purifiers have been proven to be useful and improve air quality, it typically is unable to manage large spaces by itself, the volume of air would be overwhelming for a singular air purifier. Due to this, a MVAC air filter unit being used alongside an air purifier of good quality would be the overall best solution for improving indoor air quality, be it at home or at work.

How do you improve your air quality at home or at work? Are you breathing clean, healthy air? Don’t forget to read our other article about the risk of public transportation [link].

Public Transport

The coronavirus pandemic continues to affect our day to day lives, and public transport is no exception. Many countries around the world have advised against, and some restricted travel. What about public transport to help us go around? Are they still safe to use as countries around the world slowly start to open up once again?

Many public transport companies have put measures into place to stop the spread of coronaviruses, such as masks being essential in taxis and enforcing social distancing on trains and buses. Many airlines around the world have also been suspending, consolidating or rescheduling flights and some airports have been shut. Governments have advised people to avoid non-essential international travel and encouraged citizens to return to their respective countries as soon as possible, provided with at least 14-days quarantine to monitor symptoms and reduce risks of infection. 

Coronavirus is an Airborne Virus

Coronavirus is an airborne virus, meaning that it is easy to contract and could be anywhere where there is even one that is infected with the virus, making public transport options very risky even with measures put into place. This is even more so when one uses services such as Uber and Grab, where social distancing is not possible due to the small space of a car, and therefore the only way to minimize the risk of taking taxis and cabs are to practice regular hygiene practices, stock up some hand sanitisers, anti-microbial wet tissues or wind down the window screens if necessary.

With the many factors that have to be taken into consideration about the risk of taking public transportations during this pandemic, we should simply stick to the usual advice of being clean, washing our hands, cleaning surfaces or not touching them, maintaining social distancing and even disinfecting the area if there is a risk of coronavirus being contracted by a family member or friend. It must be also taken into consideration that each trip made must be truly essential and if a bike or a personal means of transport can be used, that will take priority over public transport.

Do you still take and use public transport? What are your concerns on using them during this pandemic?