Swine flu and business continuity planning resources

It’s barely September, yet warnings about flu season — swine flu season, that is — are circulating fast and furious. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had a press conference this week, and swine flu is top of mind for many who do disaster recovery or business continuity for a living. As Linda Tucci’s story this week (“Tips for business continuity and contingency planning for swine flu”) notes, the pandemic is a risk less because of the H1N1 virus’ severity and more because of the volume of people who could potentially get it. Some workplaces could suffer absenteeism of 30% to 50% for some period of time, according to some scenarios.

To help you all prepare, then — for your IT contingency plans, for helping your organization with its business continuity plan for swine flu — we have compiled a list of resources. And for even more up-to-date information, you can follow the CDC on Twitter at http://twitter.com/CDCFlu.

Other resources include:

• The CDC’s H1N1 home page.
• The CDC’s H1N1 Flu Resources for Businesses and Employers.
• Flu.gov, a multi-agency site that bills itself as one-stop shopping for flu guidance.
• Guidance for Businesses and Employers to Plan and Respond to the 2009 – 2010 Influenza Season (PDF - 101 KB).
• Preparing for the Flu: A Communication Toolkit for Business and Employers.

Here’s hoping we all stay healthy.