As a valued member of the Nelud family, I appreciate the trust you place in us to keep you safe and informed about current events. In the current environment, it’s important for all of us to work smarter and more consciously. That’s why I want to personally update you on the situation with COVID-19 (the coronavirus). There is no higher priority than the Safety of each Nelbud Employee and that of our Customers. Please do not panic. According to the most recent information from the CDC, for most people, the immediate risk of being exposed to the virus that causes COVID-19 is thought to be low.
We are monitoring the Coronavirus through the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), government agencies, and internal teams to stay on top of this evolving situation.
The Coronavirus, otherwise known by its technical name COVID-19, has become a concern for all of us. Though the chance right now that any of us will contract this illness remains extremely low, it is important that Nelbud remains prepared and, that it communicates effectively with both our team members and our customers. All concerned parties should know of our policy and, our strategic response plan if the risk of illness becomes greater.
While not minimizing that the spread of the virus is real, we believe it is important to rely on our leaders and their experts for reliable information relative to: what the virus is, what is its severity as it stands today, our risk in contracting the virus and, how we can each do our part to keep ourselves and others healthy and safe.
Therefore, the following information has been taken directly from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) with what they know as of 3/9/2020:
What is the virus?
The CDC has described the virus as a respiratory disease that was first detected in China (which has over 80,000 of the 111,542+ reported cases) and has now spread to 50 locations including the US. While there have been over 3,884 deaths related to the virus worldwide, 3,120 of those have been in China. As of 3/9/2020 there have been 11 reported deaths in the US.
Where is it spreading and how?
While the number of new cases in China is slowing, cases outside of China are increasing at a faster rate with reported cases in the US on the rise daily.
The spread of the virus is like any other, in that it spreads from person to person in close contact when an infected person coughs or sneezes into the air releasing the virus as air droplets that can then be inhaled into the lungs. Infection is also possible by touching a surface that is contaminated by the virus and then touching your eyes, mouth or nose.
No different than most viruses, symptoms begin 2-14 days after exposure and are similar to the flu (fever, aches, and cough). It is important to note that those who have died from the virus were older and had preexisting underlying medical conditions.
What is my risk of contracting the virus?
According to the CDC, while the fact that this disease caused illness resulting in death is concerning, for the general American public, who are unlikely to be exposed to this virus at this time, the immediate health risks are low.
What can we do to keep ourselves and our families healthy?
- First and foremost, DON’T PANIC and be aware! Most of what we can and will do is no different than what we are / should be doing on a daily basis:
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- Wash your hands often using soap and water for at least 20 seconds
- Wash / sanitize your hands before eating
- Avoid touching your mouth, nose or eyes
- Avoid contact with people who are sick
- Stay home if you are sick
- Cover your mouth when you sneeze / cough
- Keep your surroundings clean and sanitize/disinfect often
- If you experience fever, get to your doctor immediately.
- All Nelbud Employees shall ensure they have completed the appropriate Safety Training on Nelbud University, including but not limited to First Aid, Blood Borne Pathogens, Incident Reporting, etc.
- All Nelbud Employees are highly encouraged to seek medical assistance at the first signs of illness; healthy Employees are encouraged to get the appropriate immunizations to ensure they remain healthy.
Avoid countries that have been deemed “High Risk” by the CDC Currently those countries are China, South Korea, Iran, & Italy. These countries are deemed either “at-risk” or labeled as those to “avoid” traveling to altogether.
We expect that more information on the virus will be released in the coming weeks, with additional recommendations and protocols around how organizations should respond. In the meantime, in order to do what we can to keep our team members healthy, we have put the following policies in place.
- If you are traveling out of the country PLEASE check to see if the area in which you are visiting is labeled as a risk.
- In the event that someone is visiting a country labeled as such, upon return that individual will be asked to work remotely for at least two weeks. This will help to ensure that if exposure did occur, that we limit contact with others. Please make your direct supervisor and Human Resources aware if/when you are traveling outside the US.
It goes without saying that your safety, the safety of your family, and the safety of the entire Nelbud Team is our number one priority. We will continue to update you on the situation as we know more.
Additional resources can be found at the following websites:
