Emergency Planning Solutions pandemic and public health subject matter experts stand ready to support your emergency planning efforts to protect your business, students and others as the nation deals with communicable disease outbreaks.  Chances are your pandemic/POD plan could use some updating.  That’s where Emergency Planning Solutions can help! We will aid in providing action steps for you and your business or school. We can assist in determining steps that you can take today to protect your employees and students and help ensure your future.

Are you doing all you should to protect your business or school?

Here are a few questions to ask yourself immediately:

• Have your considered revising your sick leave or remote work policy?
• Have you discussed with public health on how you can provide vaccinations for your employees or students (i.e. a POD plan)?
• Have you considered how to provide for physical distancing for your employees, students and/or customers?
• How about your supply chain? Can you survive if you can’t get the materials you need?
• Have you developed policies around facial coverings, hand hygiene, physical distancing and cleaning?

If you answered “no” to any of these questions, it is crucial to address these topics for your business or school to survive a pandemic outbreak!

What are Open/Closed PODs and what are the benefits?
“POD” is short for “point of dispensing”

POD is a term used in public health to identify locations where medications or vaccines may be quickly dispensed in the event of an emergency. An Open POD is a location where anyone from the general public may come to receive medications or vaccines to protect against a specific attack. A Closed POD is a facility that is open only to a limited number of people, such as a company’s or school’s employees, students and their dependents. By establishing a series of Closed PODs throughout your county, the Department of Health is better able to focus its staff efforts on operating Open PODs for residents not otherwise covered. By operating a Closed POD, you can typically get the medication or vaccine out faster to your employees, students and their dependents. Emergency Planning Solutions can write a Closed POD plan for you and work with your local health department to put it into action.

Benefits for your business or school

The Closed POD program is the best way to protect your workforce or students in the time of a life-threatening emergency. Your employees, students and their families will not be required to stand in long lines at public distribution sites. They will know that in case of an attack or outbreak, they merely need to come to your site to protect themselves and their entire family. It is an excellent benefit for a business or school to provide at virtually no cost. For businesses and schools, this offers an excellent business continuity advantage as well.