Dubai Municipality has defined preventive controls and procedures to deal with workers of food establishments, who are proven to have "Covid-19", including the isolation of contacts in the workplace and residence, to prevent the spread of infection, and the implementation of cleansing operations to ensure the safety of the institution and its employees.
According to the temporary guide for food establishments in Dubai, which was recently issued by Dubai Municipality, if the employee is found to have a “Covid-19”, the Health Authority and the response team of the Municipality’s Food Safety Department should be contacted directly to follow the necessary precautions.
The person in charge of managing the place should keep the sick employee away from work, and other employees to prevent the transmission of infection, search for an isolated, well-ventilated office space with doors that can be closed, and make arrangements to move the employee out of the work area, taking care to avoid mixing it with other employees, and avoid touching people Surfaces and objects, and ensure that the mouth and nose are covered with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. If they do not have tissues, they should cough and sneeze inside the elbow. If they need to go to the bathroom while waiting for medical assistance, they should use a separate bathroom, if available.
The municipality stressed the need to close the access roads to the non-food areas that the employee was in contact with, follow the cleaning and disinfection protocols, and contact directly the cleaning and disinfection companies specially approved by the municipality to clear the buildings where there were confirmed injuries.
The surfaces that the affected employee has touched must also be cleaned, including surfaces and objects clearly contaminated with body fluids (respiratory secretions), and areas that are highly susceptible to pollution, such as toilets, door handles, and phones.
Surface disinfectants should be used, at the recommended concentration, for cleaning purposes.
Staff should also wash their hands for 20 seconds with soap and water, after any contact with a person with symptoms consistent with coronavirus infection.
The municipality requested that any other employee who was in contact with the sick person at work be identified and required to remain in the home quarantine for 14 days (starting from the last day of mixing with the patient). It will be necessary to notify all contacts of the affected employee with taking preventive measures, to reduce the risk of spreading the infection.
Employees who did not mix with the original situation should continue to take the usual precautions and attend work as usual.
The municipality said that organizing employees in small teams, or working groups, would help reduce the disruptions in the workforce if an employee reported symptoms of "Covid-19".
The dwelling
The municipality has put in place several procedures, if the employee has a "Covid-19", during his stay in a residence provided by the employer, the most prominent of which is to inform the health authorities, and follow their instructions. Transferring any person at the place of residence can be considered as mixing with the injured employee, and asking him to move to the quarantine, for a period of 14 days, and the start of the cleaning and disinfection protocol at the place of residence, once the patient is transferred to the hospital.