Flu season a time to assess your processes

Across the nation we are entering the cold and flu season. Last flu season, typically during the fall and winter months, had the highest death toll of flurelated deaths in the past 40 years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) placed the number at approximately 80,000 in the United States. According to the CDC, annual flu-related deaths have ranged from 12,000 to 56,000.

You probably have seen the recent commercials from various organizations offering flu vaccines. Additionally, there have been clinics at work locations and health departments that are offering flu vaccines.

To vaccine or not vaccine, that is the question. The bad news is that the vaccine is not a 100 percent guarantee. This is because it takes typically more than a year to develop and distribute the flu vaccine. The flu virus is not static, in the sense that it evolves from year to year. Therefore, the vaccine usually is not an exact template of the current flu.

The good news is that even without a 100 percent match, those who receive the vaccine will receive some benefits from the vaccine even if they become infected by the flu. Additionally, since we have different exposures and sensitivities to the flu virus, it just might provide enough protection for you to not get the flu. My contacts in the medical and health care fields all recommend getting the flu vaccine.

As I have mentioned before, the flu season is one that requires management concern and action. The concern comes in the form of being informed about the exposure to your environment, your team and your customers. Some larger organizations offer the flu vaccine onsite to provide incentive for their team members to get the vaccine. Also some organizations have placed hand sanitizers in critical locations around the physical plant. Have you been to a hospital lately? The hand sanitizers are almost everywhere.

Management might also want to become more aware of exposures to business operations as a result of one of two key members being out or at less than 100 percent capacity. This could be accomplished by a readiness question to all new and existing project leaders. A question like, “If X person or Y person was out for a week during period A, how would that impact your completion date? Also, what is your plan to cover this exposure?”

Depending on the size of your organization and human resource processes, you could provide an incentive for the team to be particularity mindful of their health and the health of their team members. You could establish a reward or contest of some type — a dinner, gift bag selection, time off from work, etc. might be fun and make the work environment healthier during the flu season and therefore more productive.