Production areas, factories, workshops, especially weaving workshops with lack of ventilation and large and small workshops with counters in rows, as well as crowded workplaces, industrial areas stand out as places where protective measures should be strictly taken in terms of preventing transmission of coronavirus. In order to prevent transmission and protect employees from this virus, it should be ensured all employees are both informed about the disease and ways of protection and protected with the measures to be taken. At this point, trainings conducted with the condition of social distancing, distance trainings, trainings conducted over very common images and warning images should be combined with protective measures to be taken. It should be ensured those who have fever, cough, shortness of breath and similar complaints do not come to work and apply to health institutions. If there are employees with suspected disease or coronavirus (+) or who are hospitalized with early diagnosis, it is required to identify other employees who contacted such person, take contact details of persons who contact the infected employee and act according to instructions of Provincial/ District Directorate of Health. It is also required to prevent possible transmissions by ensuring those with suspected disease who are directed to health institutions wear surgical mask.
THIS DISEASE IS TRANSMITTED THROUGH RESPIRATORY TRACT AND CONTAMINATED HANDS.
Bearing in mind that viruses disseminate by coughing, sneezing, speaking and laughing, it should be reminded both with images and audits that mouth should be covered with a tissue, tissue should be put into a closed bag and these bags should be collected in medical waste containers. In such cases, viruses disseminate through the environment hang in the air like dust particles. People are infected as a result of inhalation of these virus droplets in the air. Therefore, it is required to ventilate workplaces frequently and send viruses away from the environment.
HANDS AND COMMONLY-USED AREAS AND ITEMS GIVE RISE TO TRANSMISSION OF CORONAVIRUSES
Infected hands are the most important facilitators of transmission of disease. Hands may be infected by contacting patients directly and touching on the contaminated surfaces. Virus may come into human bodies by touching mouth or eyes. It is strictly required to ventilate all areas regularly and clean toilets, door handles, stair rails, work tables and all working equipment’s frequently and thoroughly. It is important to clean cafeteria, door handles and stair rails frequently during meal hours. Alcohol-based disinfectants should be placed in all sections of the enterprise as much as possible. Employees should necessarily wash their hands before meal and alcohol-based disinfectants should be placed at the entrance and in convenient parts of cafeteria. Cafeteria should be consistently ventilated during and after meal. Employees should follow social distancing rule with 1.5 meters of distance while taking their foods and seating at tables and should seat as opposite and corner wise. In cafeteria, ladles, tongs and other similar tools that are mutually used for service should be abandoned. Tools like forks, spoons, knives, etc. should be prepared and served for each employee separately. It is specially important for the personnel who serves meal to follow hygiene rules strictly. If cafeteria cannot be ventilated well and it is not possible to adjust seats in adequate distance, lunch box distribution should be applied during this period of control program.
REQUIREMENTS IN BUS SERVİCES FOR THE PERSONNEL
It is important to ensure employees with high risk of contact like bus drivers, cafeteria personnel, cleaning personnel, etc. are given trainings about ways of transmission of and protection from the disease and hygiene rules in terms of control of pandemic and prevention of transmission. Vehicles should be disinfected before each drive and measures should be taken with surgical masks that bus driver and all passengers will put on. Buses should contain adequate number of alcohol-based disinfectants and a hygienic environment should be ensured. I, as the on-site physician of HAUS, provided our employees working in Aydın factory with trainings about COVID-19 information, protection and hygiene in open environment and depending on weather conditions, in closed environment with physical distance. İstanbul team also was given these trainings through teleconference method. As HAUS, we have taken and applied necessary measures with the importance we give for our employees. We are trying to get over this pandemic period as safely as possible. We wish this period will end both in our country and in the world as soon as possible and start the “new normal” order safely and healthily.
Neriman KARAGÖZ / On-Site Physician