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Legionella can make people sick and has been linked to dozens of deaths. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Legionella bacteria, which are generally found in freshwaters such as lakes and streams, can infiltrate food supply systems. water and colonize shower heads, sinks, water heaters, cooling towers and even fountains if they are not treated properly.
Legionella can make people sick and has been linked to dozens of deaths. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Legionella Bacteria, normally present in fresh water such as lakes and streams, can infiltrate water supply systems and colonize in shower heads, sinks, water heaters, cooling towers and even fountains if they are not treated properly.
Twelve guests recently contracted legionnaires' disease, a form of pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria, recently at a Sheraton hotel in Atlanta. One of the guests died later and 61 other "probable cases" were identified by the Ministry of Health of Georgia.
After three days of unsuccessful attempts to determine the source of the bacteria, the hotel management temporarily closed the entire hotel and transferred all guests to nearby hotels. An entire month followed the closure before the investigators determined the source. The contamination was resolved and the hotel finally reopened.
In the United States, 84 cases of Legionnaires' disease were reported in the first six months of 2019, eight of which resulted in death. These incidents occur not only in hotels, but also in hospitals, retirement homes, prisons and spas, among other public facilities.
Each public facility should have a legionella management plan that includes a risk badessment, appropriate maintenance of all water supply systems, sampling and water monitoring procedures, and tests performed. by a certified laboratory, mitigating problems, eliminating dead ends in water supply systems, a schedule of flushing water taps, record keeping and training.
Has your organization considered a legionellosis crisis? Have you included your service providers, laboratory testing providers, and city or state health authorities in your drills and drills?
Many facilities that use third-party service providers to collect, monitor, badyze, and treat water in their facilities do not have a comprehensive crisis management plan that includes internal maintenance personnel. Since a legionellosis attack will affect your reputation, not the service providers, it is a critical failure.
Crisis communication is an integral part of a crisis management plan. Lack of effective communication can create unnecessary fear and suspicion and permanently undermine the credibility of the organization. The main elements of a crisis communication plan are:
● Senior management commitment to implement a plan
● Definition of what constitutes a crisis
● Digital media monitoring 24/7
● Established communication channels to transmit information, in real time
● Training at all levels
● A recovery campaign to rebuild trust
Even the best-minded companies with crisis management plans in place may fail by failing to review their plans frequently or by not providing training at all levels and by strengthening through periodic crisis simulation exercises.
These precautionary measures represent a small price to pay for the immediate loss of estimated customers, the decline in the value of the stock, and costly lawsuits that can slow down the organization for months or even years.
Click HERE to download a CDC Legionella Toolkit.
Paul Frederick is director of Integrated crisis management solutions, an organization made up of security agents and communications professionals offering risk badessments, simplified emergency protocols, management training, customer / media relations and recovery programs.
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© 2019 Hotel Resource
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