Preparedness Checklist for your Agency/Business prepared by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care

Roles and Responsibilities for a Pandemic Influenza Business Continuity Plan	Check whether the action is addressed in the Plan	Document who is responsible for each action/decision making process 	
Business Continuity Plan			
Who has responsibility for activating the Business Continuity Plan for your organization and who is that person’s back up?			
Has your organization identified a process through which the decision will be made to activate and terminate the Plan?			
Do you have a communication strategy for reaching employees and business partners as a result of having to implement any section of the Business Continuity Plan?			
			
Planning 			
Who do you need input from both internally and externally to prepare and review a Business Continuity Plan for your agency/business?
•	Elected officials
•	Legal counsel
•	Community partners
•	Labour Unions and bargaining agents
			
Who is in charge in the event of a pandemic episode and are the roles of the various stakeholders clearly defined?  Who makes what decisions?  Who notifies the various stakeholders?			
Is the Pandemic Influenza Business Continuity Plan integrated with your emergency preparedness plan(s)?			
Who has responsibility for procurement matters, e.g., ordering resources and/or equipment during an emergency episode? 			
Who needs to approve the Business Continuity Plan?			
			
Testing of the Plan 			
How will you test and/or evaluate your Business Continuity Response Plan?			
How will you test your communication systems, e.g., fan-out? 			
			
Decision-making and Reporting			
Who will be in charge and make decisions within your agency/business concerning services during a pandemic/emergency episode?			
What will be the mechanism for regular reporting to your management staff/Boards/Government (whichever are appropriate for your organization) councils during a pandemic episode?

Is there a contact list of all internal and external client and partner agencies and stakeholders?			
Is there a contact list of all senior staff within your agency/business?			
If public transportation became a problem, can employees arrange alternate forms of transportation to work?			
If necessary, could staff live at the work location or alternative work location for some period of time?			
Have you prepared site-specific notification for office closures and contacts for the public/clients?			
			
Surveillance/Attendance			
Who in your organization has responsibility for collecting/managing information about staff absenteeism? Who is that person's back up?  			
Do you have data on the average number of staff absences due to illness and vacation at different times of the year (monthly rates)?			
Is there a mechanism within your agency/business to monitor and report increasing staff absenteeism due to illness to health authorities (e.g., Health and Safety Coordinator, Health Department)?
(An increase in staff absenteeism due to illness might be attributed to the spread of infections among co-workers suggesting an outbreak of disease.)			
			
Delivery of Essential Services to the Community 			
Does your agency/business have a responsibility for the provision of services to the community during an emergency?
•	Provision of food
•	Mass housing
•	Care for special needs people
•	Home care and child care			
Have these services been planned for should there be a staff reduction due to absence?			
Who has signing authority for expenditures during an emergency and who is that person's back up?			
Are there clearly stated policies and procedures that cover signing authority and acquisitions?			
What is the staff capacity of your agency/business and are there provisions to bring in additional staff and/or volunteers?			
Have alternative service providers been identified to assist with maintaining your essential services? What duties will they have and what additional training will they require? Have insurance coverage and union issues been addressed?			
What is the surge capacity of services delivered by your agency/business? 			
Has an inventory been prepared for specialized equipment/facilities that may be needed during a pandemic episode?
			
Is there a mechanism that will ensure that additional equipment, e.g., pagers, cell phones, refrigerators etc. can be obtained with minimum delay?			
Who has authority for ordering repair/replacement equipment and who is that person's back up?  			
			
Materials and Supplies			
Are you currently stocked with all necessary supplies for regular day-to-day functions?			
Does your agency/business have contact lists for all your suppliers and alternate suppliers?			
Does your agency/business have access to inventory (including serial numbers) of all computer equipment, printers, fax machines, photocopy machines in case repairs are needed?			
Does your agency/business have contact lists for all equipment repair persons?			
Who authorizes repairs and supply/equipment orders?  Are there other employees who can take over this responsibility in the event of an emergency?			
			
Training/Orientation			
What are the training needs pertaining to emergency and pandemic flu contingency plans for internal and external business partners/agencies? What additional training will be required?			
What orientation/education should be arranged for your employees to raise awareness about a pandemic flu emergency?			
Has staff been made aware of basic infection control guidelines to prevent the transmission of influenza? (e.g., handwashing procedures etc.)			
			
Delivery of Services			
Have services in your agency/business been prioritized to take into account minor to major staff absences due to illness?			
What is the role of your agency/business with respect to assisting with service demands in health care facilities (e.g., Hospitals, Long-term care facilities, Homes for the aged, Homes for special care) and has this plan been communicated to these facilities?			
Who will make decisions about reducing levels of service and/or cancelling services temporarily?			
Is there a pre-approval process in place for purchasing additional supplies?  If not, how long does it take for approval to be granted?			
How will reduction/temporary cancellation of regular services be communicated to local stakeholders, the public and business partners?
			
Does your plan identify the need to consult with the Medical Officer of Health prior to any major communication strategy about reducing service delivery due to staff absences relating to influenza? 			
Could any of the agency’s/business’s services be provided from another work location?			
Have sites providing vulnerable services (such as nursing homes, homes for the aged, homes for special care) been identified and has the inventory of such services been shared with appropriate service providers?
•	Patient transportation
•	Patient assessment services
•	Food services
•	Equipment supply services (i.e. oxygen equipment)			
Has your agency developed a list of skills and professional competencies of staff that are transferable to other business units, agency functions or for support to health care institutions in the community? 			
Have support services been planned for workers, such as transportation, day-care, meals and grief counselling?			
Do you have a plan to replenish depleted supplies? 			
			
Human Resources  			
Has your agency prepared an inventory of skills in the event that people from your agency/business are required to perform duties/functions in other business units/agencies to maintain essential services? 			

Have liability issues been addressed for volunteers and re-assigned staff members?			
Do you have a current list of staff complete with telephone numbers? Has someone been assigned responsibility to ensure that it remains current?			
Do you have a current list of recently retired staff (complete with telephone numbers) who may be contacted in the event of extreme staff shortages?			
Do relevant employees have access to a list of all employees and relevant stakeholders?			
Is there a copy of the Health and Safety manual on site in your agency/business?			
Who will be in charge of communicating to the employees in your agency?  Do you have a backup person(s) to take on this responsibility?			
Who will represent your agency/business on community emergency response team(s), if requested to participate, and are there back-ups to those persons?			
Who will be responsible for payment issues related to overtime and/or additional salary issues?  Are there staff designated as backup for these positions?			
In the event of a staff shortage, what roles/responsibilities could external contract workers and volunteers fill? What roles/responsibilities could co-workers fill?			
Who has the authority to hire contract/temporary workers and to take on volunteers?  Is there a backup person for this job?			
Does your agency/business have a system staff use to report absence due to illness and other reasons?  Is this information accessible on a daily basis? 			
			
Records and Record Keeping			
Has your agency/business developed appropriate records keeping procedures for items such as:
•	Staff absences
•	Vacation
•	Complaints and issues 			
Do you have a plan to record significant decisions that were made during a pandemic flu/emergency?			
Is regular reporting to Boards/government required? 			

Communication 			
In your organization, who has primary responsibility for communicating with the public/business partners/staff?			
Who is that person’s back up in the event that this person is sick with the flu?			
Are there people in your organization who have sole access to incoming information, e.g., business information, incidence reports, complaints etc., if so, have you arranged for designates to receive this information?			
Does your organization maintain a central inventory of passwords to office equipment and electronic files?  Is there a designate for the person who has responsibility for the inventory? 			
If your information technology person is ill, whom can you turn if you experience computer problems?			
How does your staff communicate with each other during office hours and after-office hours?  Is there an alternate form of communication they can rely on, e.g., cell phones, pagers etc?			
Who are your security contacts should there be a problem with physical access to your work location and is there a back up to your security contacts?			
If mail service is interrupted, are there critical items you need to receive or deliver that you will need alternative arrangements for?			
Does your organization send out time-sensitive letters or documents and is there a back-up system for these? 			
How are courier packages generally received and sent out?			
How will you send out public service announcements and news releases?  Do you have a process for consulting with the Health Department prior to any releases? 			
Will employees and the public be able to access a website or telephone number to get updates on service delivery news? 			
			
Recovery 			
What are the immediate lessons learned? 			
Who will have the authority to notify the various employees, clients, and stakeholders regarding reinstating services and finally return to full service? 			
Who will be responsible for evaluating your local response?			
What factors should be examined as part of the evaluation?			
Have any counselling needs for staff been provided for?