Communication Tools About Flu for Businesses - Flu Season is Starting. Get Ready Now!

February 17, 2009 1:00 PM ET

• Coordinate efforts with your local health department before distributing this letter or e-mail communication to ensure that all information is timely, relevant, and accurate.
• Visit the Flu.gov website to download and customize a Microsoft Word version of this letter and to view more flu information to share with employees.
• Consider customizing by using your business stationery or e-mail template, inserting a name and contact information of someone employees can reach for flu questions, adding the signature line of the owner, president, etc.

Flu Season is Starting. Get Ready Now!

The flu season is starting and will last through the fall and winter. More than one kind of flu virus will be spreading this season, including seasonal flu and the 2009 H1N1 flu. If you get the flu, you can get sick and can spread the flu to others at home, at work, and in the community. Symptoms of flu include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and tiredness. Some people may also have vomiting and diarrhea. People may be infected with the flu, including 2009 H1N1 flu and have respiratory symptoms with a fever.

We are asking that you plan to stay home if you are sick until at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit or 37.8 degrees Celsius) or signs of a fever (have chills, feel very warm, have a flushed appearance, or are sweating). This should be determined without the use of fever-reducing medicines (any medicine that contains ibuprofen or acetaminophen).

Also remember to cover your coughs and sneezes and wash your hands often with soap and water. Use an alcohol-based hand rub if soap and water are not available. If a severe flu outbreak hits our community, we will take additional steps to avoid spreading the flu virus in the workplace.

You need to prepare as well.

• Review our pandemic flu response plan. [provide information on how/where to do this]
• Get the vaccine for seasonal flu and 2009 H1N1 flu [insert information about vaccination clinics at the workplace or other ways your business can support getting vaccinated for seasonal flu]
• Get the 2009 H1N1 flu vaccine, if you are at higher risk for 2009 H1N1 flu complications. People at higher risk for 2009 H1N1 flu complications include pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions (such as asthma, heart disease, or diabetes). See CDC's information about primary target groups for vaccination.
• Make plans to care for sick household members or for children if schools dismiss students or early childhood programs close.
• Be prepared in case you get sick and need to stay home. Have the following items on hand: a supply of fever-reducing medicines that contain acetaminophen or ibuprofen, alcohol-based hand rubs, tissues, and other items that may be useful and help avoid the need to make trips out in public while you are sick.
• Learn about the flu and what you can do. To find out more about preparing for the flu, go to Flu.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636).

If you have any questions about policies or action steps we can take, please contact [insert name and contact information here].

By working together, we can protect our workforce while having a productive fall and winter.