12 Jul How To Safely Organize A Party During Covid

Life is finally returning to its new state of “normal,” and many corporate workers are starting to return to their offices to work in person. If you’ve returned to your office already, you may be starting to wonder if office events such as in-person meetings and even work parties are going to happen again anytime soon. Hopefully, you will soon be able to enjoy the same camaraderie with your coworkers that you once did before the pandemic began. Here are some tips to help you safely organize a party during Covid.

Offer hand sanitizing stations

One of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of any illness is frequent handwashing. Offering plenty of opportunities for employees to wash their hands is necessary to safely organize a party during Covid.

Strategically set up hand sanitizing stations in areas where they are needed most, such as at the entrance and exit points, where food and drinks are set up, and outside of the bathroom. You can also set up signs that encourage participants to clean their hands regularly to help prevent the spread of Covid.

Host your party outside

Proper ventilation is another effective way to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 since this virus primarily spreads through the air. If possible, host an outdoor party to help lower the chances of spreading Covid-19 during your gathering.

Being outside also gives employees more of an opportunity to socially distance themselves, as opposed to being congested in a small indoor space. If you’re unable to host your party outside, open doors and windows to help keep the space adequately ventilated.

Encourage guests to wear masks

If your party is taking place inside, it is helpful to ask participants to wear a mask when attending the party. Properly wearing a mask can help prevent respiratory droplets from landing on other people or on surfaces when infected individuals cough or sneeze.

Unfortunately, it often takes many days after contracting Covid for patients to start to show symptoms (if they show symptoms at all), so wearing masks can help prevent the spread of the disease from asymptomatic individuals.

Offer individually portioned food

Rather than offering a buffet or potluck with large platters of food for guests to serve to themselves, you should separate food into individually portioned servings. This way, very few people will touch each food item, reducing the spread of germs.

When preparing the food for your guests, be sure to practice proper hand hygiene and wear a mask. Make sure that anyone who is providing food for the event has been recently tested for Covid and is not currently suffering from any symptoms, no matter how minor.

Be mindful of your guestlist

Although you’ll likely want to include everyone in your work party, it is important that you try to keep the guest list as small as possible. By opting for a smaller gathering, you’re lessening the risk of disease because it will be easier for guests to keep their distance from one another—the fewer people, the fewer germs that are brought into the event.

Also, be mindful of any potential guests who are at higher risk, such as those with chronic health conditions or suppressed immune systems. Encourage these guests to take extra precautions and only attend if they feel comfortable.

Perform temperature checks at the door

By performing temperature checks before your event, you can keep track of employees’ health and be vigilant if any employees seem to be coming down with an illness.

Have a designated individual check everyone’s temperature upon arriving at work and keep a log of the results. When it comes time for the work event or party, you can also ask that the party guests’ temperatures be checked prior to attending.

Ask that employees get tested

Another surefire way to safely organize a party during Covid is to ask that employees get tested prior to attending the gathering. Many corporate offices are asking that employees get tested for Covid regularly to help prevent a Covid outbreak when easing back into in-person work. If your office already utilizes a testing service, making sure everyone has been tested prior to the party should be pretty simple.

If you haven’t set up onsite testing, it’s easy to do so. An on-site testing service such as Concierge MD provides testing for workplaces, individuals, large parties, and event venues. We will come directly to your workplace with all of the necessary supplies and paperwork, testing the group beforehand to help keep everyone safe. Ongoing Covid testing is an effective way to keep employees safe during the pandemic and to prevent the need to shut down your office due to an outbreak after your party.

Ways to safely organize a party during Covid

It’s a huge relief to know that we can finally get back to connecting and making memories with our coworkers. There’s no denying that building friendships within the workplace can improve the work environment as a whole, and having work parties and events is a great way to help these friendships develop. By taking a few simple safety precautions, you can still organize a fun and exciting work event without worrying about your employees’ safety.

With so many things to think about, it can feel overwhelming to safely organize a party during Covid at your workplace. Here is a straightforward safety checklist to provide you with all of the necessary information.

• Encourage guests to wear masks if your gathering will take place inside.
• Provide a wellness questionnaire for employees to fill out prior to attending and ask that anyone who is feeling ill, has traveled recently, or who has been exposed to anyone known to have Covid chooses not to attend the party.
• Offer a virtual option for those who cannot attend. Set up a laptop with a Zoom meeting so that sick or high-risk individuals don’t have to miss out entirely.
• Set up signs that encourage plenty of handwashing and offer additional safety tips.
• Always ensure adequate ventilation for indoor parties, or opt to host an outdoor party if possible.
• Use disposable cups and utensils for guests and ensure that food is prepared in a sanitary and safe fashion.
• Wipe down high-touch areas such as doorknobs and countertops frequently.
• Take into consideration the amount of Covid cases that your area is currently facing. If these numbers are high, you may want to postpone the gathering until the cases have lowered.
• Longer events pose a greater risk of spreading disease. Keep your work event short and sweet to help keep participants safe.

Example wellness questionnaire

By asking employees to regularly complete a wellness questionnaire, you can help ensure that no one is coming to your party while sick and that everyone is on the same page. Wellness questionnaires are a great way to keep everyone safe for day-to-day work, and this is also an ideal way to prevent the spread of illness during a work event or party.

Below, we’ve listed a few questions to ask all employees to ensure safety. You can print these questions out or send them out via email. Ask that all employees answer each question with a yes or no response.

• Has a medical provider recently recommended that you quarantine?
• In the past two weeks, have you been in contact with someone who was known to have Covid-19?
• In the past two weeks, have you traveled to an area known to have a high rate of Covid-19 cases?
• Have you recently been on an airplane or on a cruise?
• Are you currently suffering from a cough, shortness of breath, or difficulty breathing?
• In the last two days, have you had any two of the following symptoms?
  • Fever over 100.4
  • Chills
  • Muscle pain or soreness
  • Sore throat
  • Loss of taste or smell

If an employee answers yes to any of these questions, ask that they do not attend the party and instead get tested for Covid-19 as soon as possible. Follow the most recent CDC guidelines for quarantining and returning to work.

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