In the Office, Little Critters Are Out to Get Ya!

By Seth Lewis, The Miami Herald

The cold and flu season is waning, but it’s not too late to be thinking about protecting yourself — and your office mates — against the onerous illnesses still going around.

"The biggest thing to do — and it’s not sexy — is wash your hands," said Allison Janse, co-author of The Germ Freak’s Guide to Outwitting Colds and Flu. "Pardon the pun, but, hands down, it’s the best thing you can do."

Janse, executive editor of HCI Books in Deerfield Beach, emphasizes that workers should begin with what they can control — their cubicle, their computer keyboard — and disinfect their work space, because it’s not nearly as clean as they think.

In terms of germs, eating at your desk, Janse says, is worse than eating off the toilet. Really.

But workers don’t have to go it alone in battling germs and viruses. Many employers, particularly airlines and grocery stores that are on the front lines of public exposure to germs, offer preventive measures, from flu shots to handy disinfectant.

With the lingering threat of an avian flu pandemic, some organizations have gone so far as to stock up on Tamiflu, an antiviral drug known to help against some types of bird flu. Virgin Atlantic Airways purchased 10,000 Tamiflu doses — to the chagrin of health officials who worry about shortages — and the Professional Flight Attendants Association reportedly may recommend that its members carry the drug.

Yet those are the exceptions. Most firms take a more practical approach to protecting employees — and customers.

WIPING DOWN

Publix Super Markets, for instance, has begun providing disinfectant wipes so shoppers can wipe down their carts, which otherwise are pressure-washed every few months. In general, shopping cart handles are among the dirtiest public surfaces, according to University of Arizona researchers, who found cart handles that tested positive for salmonella and E. coli, among other things.

"Grocery stores are high-traffic areas, and we want to keep things clean so our customers feel comfortable and safe," Publix spokeswoman Anne Hendricks said, noting that cashiers often spray checkout counters with disinfectant. "Anything to safeguard our customers."

JUST STAY HOME

At the office, the best way to safeguard workers isn’t more wipes or flu shots — it’s simply keeping the sick employees away from their healthy colleagues, health experts say.

This problem of "presenteeism" — people showing up to work sick and spreading their viruses — costs an estimated $150 billion annually. In response, some employers are trying to take away the stigma of calling in sick.

"What we’re stressing is that once a person starts feeling sick, to stay home," said Edhelene Rico, epidemiologist for the Office of Epidemiology and Disease Control in the Miami-Dade County Health Department.

Rico and her colleagues practice what they preach: Supervisors at the public health office are instructed to encourage employees to go home if they show up with signs of illness.

"If they come to work with these symptoms [coughing, sneezing, etc.], they’re going to be involved in meetings and interaction — and within three feet of talking to someone, you can easily spread a virus," Rico said. "If you lose two or three of your staff, that can be critical. Better to lose one person than two or three."

Said author Janse: "If you’re sick, try to see if you can stay home and work remotely if you only have a cold. More employers are open to that these days, with laptops and BlackBerrys so prevalent."

OUTWITTING GERMS

Meanwhile, fighting germs at work can mean thinking counterintuitively about them, remembering that your personal work space is probably far dirtier than, say, the restroom down the hall.

Janse, who gets her authority as a self-described Certified Germ Freak Mom (of 3-year-old twins), points to some startling numbers. Her co-author, Charles "Dr. Germ" Gerba, who studied microbiology at the University of Miami and is a professor at the University of Arizona, tested workplaces and came up with a top five list of dirtiest things:

1. The phone (with 25,000 germs per square inch)

2. The desktop (20,000)

3. The computer keyboard (3,000)

4. and 5. (tie) The water fountain handle and microwave door handle (1,000 each).

And the toilet seat? A mere 49 germs per square inch.

"Fact is, cleaning crews disinfect those every day, so they’re actually pretty clean," Janse said.

So how best to keep your personal space — and yourself — clean at the office? Janse suggests a few simple things:

– Wash your hands the right way (that is, scrubbing with soap for at least 15 seconds), but use a towel when touching the faucet knob, the dirtiest thing in a public restroom.

– Practice respiratory etiquette. Sit away from the group in a meeting, close your office door and tell people up front that you’re feeling sick.

– Wipe down your desktop, phone and computer keyboard with disinfectant wipes, which can eliminate 99 percent of germs.

"If everyone in your office is hacking," Janse said, "it’s worth a minute to wipe down your personal space."