→ I have more questions about my job and H1N1
Preparing for the H1N1 and Seasonal Flu in the Workplace
1. I have a student in my class whose child has been diagnosed with the swine flu. What should I do?
Per the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) current guidelines, employees or students who are well but who have an ill family member or roommate at home with novel H1N1 flu can go to work as usual. These employees/students should monitor their health every day, notify their supervisor/professor and stay home if they become ill. Employees who are pregnant or have a chronic health condition such as diabetes, heart disease, asthma, or emphysema should call their health care provider for advice. Additional workplace guidelines can be found here.
2. I am a faculty member. If I get sick or my child gets sick with the flu, who do I call?
Faculty should report to their department chair or to the person named by the Dean for their college as early as possible when they will miss a class due to their own or their family member’s illness.
3. As a supervisor, what should I do when someone that reports to me calls in sick and thinks they have the flu?
Please remind your employees to call and speak directly with you if at all possible within the first hour of the work day to report that they are sick or that they are staying home because of a sick child, spouse or parent. Employees should communicate with their supervisors regularly while they are absent due to the flu. Staff or faculty employees should contact the Office of Human Resources to file for FMLA if they will be absent for more than five consecutive days for their own or their family member’s illness (for FMLA, a family member is defined as a spouse, dependent child, or parent). Additional information and forms can be found on the Human Resources Web site at www.belmont.edu/hr. For additional information about sick leave, staff employees should see the Staff Handbook.
During this flu season and until further notice, supervisors of staff and faculty should notify Human Resources to provide information about their employees who are out with flu-related absences so the numbers can be tracked. All HIPAA privacy guidelines will be met.
4. If I get the flu, when can I return to work?
Per the current CDC guidelines, if you have symptoms of influenza-like illness, stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone except to get medical care or for other necessities (your fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine). Keep away from others as much as possible. This is to keep from making others sick.
5. When will the regular and the H1N1 flu vaccine become available? Can I get “flu shots” from Student Health Services?
Student Health Services will communicate to the campus more information about the “flu shot” availability and the schedule for when employees can get the vaccine injections. It is expected that the seasonal flu vaccine will be available on Sept. 2 and the H1N1 flu vaccine will be available later in the fall. However, Student Health Services does not accept insurance. The seasonal flu vaccine will cost students, faculty and staff $16 if given at Health Services, while the cost of the H1N1 vaccine is to be determined upon availability.
6. Will our health insurance pay for the flu vaccines?
Yes, vaccinations are covered when you go to an in-network provider. The coverage is slightly different depending on if you have the regular PPO or the High Deductible Plan. You can find out more detailed information about your plan and your claims information by logging into myuhc.com. Please keep in mind, as stated in No. 5, Health Services does not accept insurance, but the seasonal flu shot can be received there for $16 for students, faculty and staff.
7. Where can I find out more information about the H1N1 flu?
Two sites with additional information about the H1N1 flu are: