If you own a hotel, BnB, or another type of lodging establishment, you may have probably closed your property temporarily, disinfected the common and private areas, and implemented strict policies regarding social distancing and respiratory etiquette.
As of writing, the hotel industry has established an action plan on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in their premises. The question is, are you sure that your hotel is 100% ready for managing cases and mitigating the impact should a guest or worker present symptoms?
To begin with, here’s a handy guide on how to handle COVID-19 cases in your hotel property.
1. Assess the symptoms of the patient
The common signs and symptoms indicative of COVID-19 include fever, tiredness, persistent dry cough, nasal congestion, difficulty breathing, runny nose, sore throat, aches and pains, and diarrhea.
Next to having mandatory temperature checks, you may post signs at the entrance obliging members not to enter if they have symptoms of respiratory infection.
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2. Consult the local health department
If someone in your property presents COVID-19 symptoms, seek your local health authorities immediately, which have the jurisdiction to implement measures to control the spread. These include isolation and quarantine, and medical treatment.
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3. Keep the ill person in isolation
Let’s say someone in the building has symptoms of respiratory infection. Seeking medical help is obviously the first step to addressing this. But what if, for some reason, medical assistance is unavailable? What if it’s not possible to send them home either?
The key is to isolate the symptomatic person on a temporary basis until the intervention of local health authorities.
If the symptomatic person is not transferred to a medical center, make sure to cut their contact with other guests and/or staff immediately. Separate the person from the rest by at least 6 feet, and provide them with masks. Provide them with tissues and a biohazard disposal waste bag as well.
If possible, designate one hotel room and bathroom to be used solely by the sick person.
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4. Train the attending staff
When attending to a guest or staff who displays symptoms, always use additional protective equipment, including masks, gloves, eye protection, and gown. Make sure the staff member designated to attend to the symptomatic person is also sufficiently trained in infection prevention and control.
How to remove PPE carefully:
- Remove gloves and gown.
- Wash your hands with soap and water
- Remove your mask and eye protection.
- Wash your hands with soap and water
Lastly, throw away gloves and other disposable items in a biohazard bag or secured plastic bag, and wash your hands afterward.
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5. Practice respiratory hygiene
Next to mandatory social distancing, request everyone to observe respiratory etiquette at all times. This includes wearing face masks, covering the nose and mouth with a tissue when coughing and sneezing, and washing hands deliberately.
Install hand sanitizers in door openers and restrooms, and increase mandatory hand washing protocol to twice an hour.
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6. Do record-keeping
Obtain guest registration records. Monitor employee work assignments. Document key control procedures.
Effective record-keeping helps you with contact-tracing in the event someone tests positive with COVID-19 in your property. The records should be kept for a minimum of 90 days.
7. Identify and manage contacts
According to WHO, the identification of contacts should start immediately after a suspected case has been identified in the property.
People defined as “contacts” may include:
- Guest companions who had close contact with the suspected case
- Hotel staff members designated to look after the suspected case
- Other staff members who have had face-to-face contact (within one meter for more than 15 minutes) with a probable or confirmed case.
8. Increase sanitation in all of your premises
Now, more than ever is the time to make sure your hotel is the cleanest it’s ever been.
The cleaning and housekeeping staff should be provided with personal protective equipment, including disposable gloves, disposable gowns, closed shoes, face masks or face shield, and disposable aprons.
Clean high-touch spaces more frequently than usual. These include the front desk, tables in the lobby area, door handles, light switches, elevator buttons, water fountains, and vending machines.
Any surfaces that have become contaminated with respiratory secretions or other body fluids should be cleaned with a household disinfectant solution containing 0.1% sodium hypochlorite (that is, equivalent to 1000 ppm). These include the toilet, hand washing basins, and baths. Textiles, linens, and clothes should also be put in special, marked laundry bags and handled carefully.
Author Bio: Carmina Natividad is a savvy travel and lifestyle writer for Pembroke Hotel Kilkenny, a four-star boutique hotel in Kilkenny, offering exceptional accommodation and dining experiences in Ireland’s historic marble city. When she’s not taking vibrant street photos, you can find her writing articles about travel, food, and lifestyle.
