Two weeks into Louisiana’s Phase One partial reopening of the economy, many companies are still adjusting to a “new normal” office environment that in some respects may last for quite some time. While some businesses who can are continuing remote work for all or almost all employees, still others have begun the process of reestablishing office occupancy to the maximum level allowed under Phase One (25 percent).
As offices transition in this way, BRAC investors are focusing squarely on safeguarding the health not only of their own employees, but also those who visit their offices. One key component for doing so, as advised by state and federal health officials, is utilizing a daily screening process. The question for many is: how? Or more to the point: how to do it in a way that’s both thorough but not unduly burdensome?
Understanding that there’s no one-size-fits all solution for every work environment, what follows are recommendations for procedures to adopt to make the process both easier and effective, including a sample screening tool, which are based on BRAC’s own early office reopening experience and, more importantly, advice we’ve received from our healthcare partners.
Practical Considerations
For BRAC, as both the lead economic development agency for the Capital Region and an investor-driven organization, it’s important to create for visitors a welcoming office space, while also setting clear expectations for safety – and we start, simply enough, by having a sign posted on the front door expressing just that. Then, just inside the lobby, we’ve placed a podium, equipped with disposable face masks and hand sanitizer, where visitors are required to stop and fill out the screening questionnaire. On the flip side, any BRAC employee greeting visitors in the lobby is required to wear a mask and take visitors’ temperatures using a laser thermometer while also maintaining social distance.
The important thing is that this process be followed every time a visitor enters the office, and at the start of every day an employee reports for work at the office.
To make the process even more user-friendly for employees, BRAC has established on online version of the survey, housed on our internal employee web portal, and encourages employees to fill it out before they even leave home and head toward the office. While the background “logic tree” of the survey is somewhat sophisticated, the user experience is quick and easy, lasting no more than about 20 seconds.
Again, these recommendations are not intended as hard and fast rules for every office, each of which will have its own unique circumstances and needs, and they also come with a cautionary call for common sense – for example, we know that, by itself, detection of an elevated temperature will not help identify those who are COVID positive but asymptomatic.
Taken as a whole, however, we hope this information proves useful for helping to get the Baton Rouge area’s office-based businesses back to work.
Sample employee and visitor screening tool
Name: Date:
If temperature is above 100.3°F or 38°C, person will not be admitted to the building.
- Have you been diagnosed with COVID-19?
- Yes
- Have the following conditions been met?
- No fever for at least 72 hours without the use of fever reducing medication. AND
- Improvement in other symptoms (cough, shortness of breath). AND
- At least 7 days have passed since your symptoms first appeared. OR
- Two negative COVID-19 PCR tests in a row
- Yes, go to the next question.
- No … Person not admitted to the building.
- Have the following conditions been met?
- No, go to next question.
- Yes
- Do you live with a person who has been diagnosed with COVID-19?
- Yes
- Have the following conditions been met?
- Has it been more than 14 days since all of the following are true for the person with Covid-19?
- Resolution of fever for at least 72 hours without the use of fever reducing medication. AND
- Improvement in other symptoms (cough, shortness of breath). AND
- At least 7 days have passed since your symptoms first appeared. OR
- Two negative COVID-19 PCR tests in a row.
- No … Person not admitted to the building.
- Yes, go to the next question.
- Have the following conditions been met?
- No, go to next question.
- Yes
- Have you been exposed to a person with a fever in the last 14 days?
- Yes
- Was a definitive diagnosis of something other than Covid-19 made by a healthcare professional?
- No … Person not admitted to the building.
- Yes, go to the next question.
- Was a definitive diagnosis of something other than Covid-19 made by a healthcare professional?
- No, go to next question.
- Yes
- Have you been exposed to a person known to have COVID-19 within the last 14 days?
- Yes
- Has it been more than 14 days since this exposure?
- No … Person not admitted to the building.
- Yes, go to the next question.
- Has it been more than 14 days since this exposure?
- No, go to next question.
- Yes
- Are you currently ill with any of the following symptoms: cough, shortness of breath, or two of the following: fever, chills, shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell?
- Yes. Person not admitted to the building.
- No. Go to the next question.
- Are you familiar with the provisions for employee safety at this work location?
- Yes. Person admitted to the building.
- No. Person admitted after explanation of provisions: Social distancing from others, wearing face coverings or PPE, hand washing, etc.
Michael DiResto
As Executive Vice President, Michael oversees the execution of BRAC’s strategic plan as well as management of the organization’s operations and administration.