Fort Wayne and Allen County governments are doing all they can to protect their workers and prevent the spread of the H1N1 flu in the City-County building. But in the event of an outbreak, a policy is in place to continue providing operations and essential services for residents.
Department heads are updated almost daily with the latest H1N1 information, and employees are encouraged to follow the same protocol as county residents for vaccinations, hygiene habits and prevention steps, Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health spokesman John Silcox said.
But sometimes this is not enough, as a state report released Wednesday said influenza activity - almost all of it H1N1 - remains at a historic high.
A policy called Continuity of Government Planning (COG) was created last summer to handle emergencies that could have a direct impact on government operations. Emergencies could range from snow and ice storms to power outages. In these times, it could be swine flu.
The policy empowers department and division leaders to have foresight to make decisions about their specific operations if they are lacking essential personnel. Departments cooperated with the Fort Wayne-Allen County Office of Homeland Security by filling out planning documents, job descriptions and surveys.
“They're identifying individually and collectively which functions need to be done and who needs to do it,” local Homeland Security Director Bernie Beier said. “We pull the data together, look at it across the lines and look at who's important.
“If the department has 30 percent absenteeism, then this process helps (department heads) to make a decision.”
The COG asks four questions:
♦What essential services does a specific division or department of government perform?
♦Which service can be temporarily suspended in the event of a hazard?
♦What resources or equipment are needed to perform functions?
♦What people are needed to perform functions?
“We're giving leaders the tools to make good decisions,” Beier said. “If four of 10 people are out, what's not going to get done today? That's already been thought of and already outlined.”
Certain departments play a more prominent role in government's functionality. Beier said the department pecking order follows the budgets - public safety (police, fire, EMS) first, followed by public works (electricity, water) and then everything else.
But what if the H1N1 flu infects a specific department harder than any other?
And what if that department is pivotal to government functionality?
For example, what if the 9-1-1 call center, confined in the City-County building basement, is affected? Germs are likely to spread easier with three shifts of specially trained employees sharing telephones and computers.
Beier said about 100 backup dispatchers were trained this year at the Public Safety Academy, thanks to a federal grant. They're working in other area communities, but can be brought in to assist the Fort Wayne and Allen County call center assuming their own community government is not impacted by an illness. There is a backup 9-1-1 call center at the academy, too, if a total shutdown of the regular communication hub is necessary.
Beier said there isn't an exact plan for all the “what-ifs,” but is confident in the COG's structure.
Silcox said the health department sends H1N1 announcements almost daily to city and county leaders and information disseminators to spread the word to government employees. He said his office is open to inquiries from government workers, too.
“There haven't been times when we specifically say we should only get this (information) to (government) employees,” he said. “Most messages we put out at this point are for the public at large.”
