In the past, whenever there was even one case of COVID-19 positive patients, the entire building was closed. But now, the ministry of health has given some relaxation there.
In the new order, the ministry has stated that if there are one or two positive cases, the disinfection procedure will be limited to those places or areas visited by the patient in the past 48 hours.
Now, the ministry stated there is no need to close the entire office building/halt work in other areas of the office. It maintained, however, work can be resumed after disinfection as per laid down protocol.
In the case of a larger outbreak, the entire building will have to be closed for 48 hours despite thorough disinfection. “All the staff will work from home, till the building is adequately disinfected and is declared fit for re-occupation.”
Meanwhile, other measures have to be followed like: Physical distancing of at least one meter to be followed at all times; Use of face covers/masks to be mandatory; Practice frequent hand washing (for at least 40-60 seconds) even when hands are not visibly dirty and use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers (for at least 20 seconds); Respiratory etiquettes to be strictly followed; and Self-monitoring of health by all.
The ministry stated that any staff suffering from a flu-like illness should not attend office and seek medical advice from local health authorities.
