INFECTIOUS DISEASE POLICY, UPDATED 1/14/2021:
Habitat for Humanity of Kansas City (HFHKC) is committed to providing critical information about the nature and spread of infectious diseases, including symptoms and signs to watch for, and the required steps to be taken in the event of an illness or outbreak. The following guidelines have been established to address the current COVID-19 pandemic and should be followed at all HFHKC work locations by employees, volunteers, and Habitat homeowners.
Know the Symptoms of COVID-19
● Coughing, fever, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing.
● Early symptoms may include chills, body aches, sore throat, headache, diarrhea, nausea/vomiting and runny nose. If you develop a fever and symptoms of respiratory illness, DO NOT GO TO WORK OR VOLUNTEER and call your health-care provider immediately. Do the same thing if you come into close contact with someone showing these symptoms.
Site Supervisors: COVID-19 Site Safety
● All site supervisors and ANY staff member interacting with volunteers are required to self-screen each day prior to reporting to the warehouse to ensure they are not exhibiting symptoms. This includes forehead temp check and answering the following basic questions:
o Have you been running a temperature of 100.4 Fahrenheit (medication free) or greater?
o Have you had a cough, fever, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing in the last couple of days?
o Have you been in contact with anyone with COVID-19 within the past three weeks?
o Have you been out of the country in the past three weeks?
● Anyone showing any of the symptoms will be asked to leave the construction site and return home; this includes volunteers, staff members and sub-contractors.
● HFHKC will provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to volunteers assigned to each site. This includes facemasks, disposable gloves, eye protection and hard hats. Hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies and disinfectants will also be provided. The site supervisor is responsible for distributing the PPE.
● Site supervisors will conduct safety meetings (“toolbox talks”) each morning. They will instruct volunteers to wear PPE and to maintain a distance 6 feet apart and will point out locations of hand sanitizer and cleaning and disinfecting supplies for tools.
● Access to the work trailer will be limited to site supervisors only. Limited Crew Leads and Village volunteers will be allowed access with fresh disposable gloves.
● Trash and recycling receptacles will be on each construction site and emptied daily.
● Portable toilets will be stocked with disinfecting wipes, hand sanitizer and cleaned twice a week. Site supervisors will be required to clean and sanitize the toilets at the beginning of each day.
● Frequently wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. When soap and running water are unavailable, use an alcohol-based hand rub with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands that are visibly soiled.
● Tools and equipment must be cleaned and disinfected at the end of each workday, and in between uses, with products that meet the EPA’s criteria for use against SARS-CoV-2, the cause of COVID-19, and are appropriate for the surface.
● Sharing tools should be avoided, but if it cannot, disinfect before and after each use.
● Volunteers should place tools in the labeled bin when they are through using them at the end of each day.
● The site supervisor will then disinfect the tools and place them in the van/trailer.
● Disinfect shared surfaces (door handles, machinery controls, etc.) a minimum of three times per day – morning, after lunch and at the end of the day.
● Disinfect hardhats and safety glasses and replace them in designated bags at the end of each day.
● Failure to follow these guidelines will result in corrective action per the employee handbook.
Volunteers – COVID-19 Construction Site Safety
● To allow time for site preparation, the construction sites will open to specified volunteers at 8 am, site supervisors will pre-screen them, then they will be allowed to help prep the site for daily tasks. The volunteer day is 8:30 am to 3:00 pm. Volunteers are asked to remain in their vehicles until a site supervisor approaches them to take their temperature. If you arrive early to the site, please do not go to the construction site.
● Waiver form, infectious disease policy, and consent for minors (if applicable) must be signed ONLINE prior to volunteering.
● You must register online in advance to volunteer on a HFHKC construction site. If you have not registered online prior to the volunteer day, you will be asked to leave the construction site.
● When arriving at the construction site, volunteers will be pre-screened to ensure they are not exhibiting symptoms. If the answer to any of the pre-screening questions is “yes,” the volunteer will be asked to leave per recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Prescreening as follows:
● A site supervisor will greet you at your car and scan your forehead to take your temperature. Anyone registering a temperature over the CDC-recommended 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (medication free) will be asked to return home and only come back to volunteer after having gone 72 hours (3 full days) without a fever.
● Site supervisors will then ask each volunteer the following questions regarding exhibiting symptoms and exposure risk:
o Have you been running a temperature?
o Have you had a cough, fever, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing in the last couple of days?
o Have you been in contact with anyone with COVID-19?
o Have you been out of the country in the past three weeks?
● Once your temperature is checked and the screening questions are complete, you will be allowed to go to the construction site. There will be designated markers for you to stand at. Do not leave your marker.
● You will be asked to sign off for clearance of screening. A paper form will be signed by each volunteer. Site supervisors will then send this to the volunteer team to document your clearance. • The site supervisor will distribute PPE. Please do not touch anything; allow the supervisor to distribute.
● The site supervisor will go over safety procedures, logistics and tasks for the day.
● All volunteers must wear a facemask, eye protection, hardhats (if applicable) and gloves (if work permits) while working on an HFHKC construction site. Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own PPE. Volunteers bringing their own PPE will need to acknowledge this during pre-screening. PPE will be distributed by the site supervisor to those that do not provide their own.
● Volunteers and construction staff are required to distance themselves 6 feet apart. A 6 ft. marker will be onsite each day to provide a visual of what 6 ft. is.
● Volunteers need to bring their own water, lunch and snacks for the day.
● No more than 8 volunteers will be allowed on a construction site at one time. If you are part of a group with more than 8 people, HFHKC will split your group between two sites prior to your volunteer date.
● Volunteers having lunch on the construction site should continue to maintain a distance of 6 ft. of separation onsite. Do not touch other volunteer lunches or trash.
● Please toss any trash items, lunch containers, etc. in trash receptacle.
● Wipe down and disinfect tools prior to each volunteer use to prevent the spread of infectious disease. Disinfectant spray and wipes will be provided by HFHKC.
● Specified volunteers may be asked by the site supervisor to help disinfect tools and place them in the rear of vans, or in job site trailers. Specified volunteers MUST wear disposable gloves to perform this task and should be limited in the number of volunteers performing the task (limit to two per site).
● If a volunteer shows symptoms of COVID-19 after their volunteer date, HFHKC will follow the CDC recommended steps to ensure the safety of volunteers. Those potentially infected will be notified as stated in HFHKC’s infectious disease policy.
ReStore Volunteer Procedures
HFHKC ReStore is doing everything we can to slow the spread of COVID-19. We have taken additional measures to keep our employees, volunteers, and customers safe, including the following sanitation policies, which are effective immediately for volunteers.
● HFHKC ReStores will provide protective equipment (PPE) to volunteers in each store location. This includes hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies and disinfectants.
● Limit close interactions by keeping the social distancing rules of 6 feet.
● When arriving at a ReStore, volunteers will be pre-screened to ensure they are not exhibiting symptoms by one of the managers on duty. This will include basic questions and forehead temperature check. Any individual who is running a temperature of 100.4 degrees or above will be sent home as stated in the HFHKC infectious disease policy.
● All volunteers must wear a face mask and gloves while working in the store. We encourage volunteers to provide their own PPE (mask and gloves), if possible.
o If HFHKC ReStore has provided a cloth mask or gloves(reusable) please place them in the used PPE container at the end of your shift. The ReStore staff will be responsible for washing them to reuse. • At the beginning of the volunteer shift, after everyone has checked in, the manager on duty will have a brief orientation regarding HFHKC, housekeeping, ReStore safety and COVID-19 safety guidelines (review the CDC “Stop the spread of germs” document).
o Please wash your hands immediately upon entering or reentering the store.
o Avoid touching eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
o Wipe down or spray any hard-surfaced inventory with disinfectant before handling.
Volunteer Tests Positive for COVID-19
A volunteer who tests positive for COVID-19 may not return to volunteer for 14 days and must be symptom free for the final 72 hours. They may return to volunteering after that time with clearance from their doctor.
Volunteer Has Close Contact with an Individual Who Has Tested Positive for COVID-19 Volunteers who have come into close contact with an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19 (HFHKC staff member, volunteer or otherwise) will be directed to self-quarantine for 10 days from the last date of close contact with that individual and may not return to volunteer during this time. They must be symptom free for the full 10 days and remain symptom free on day 7 through 10 in order to volunteer. Close contact is defined as six (6) feet for 15 minutes or longer.
If the Affiliate learns that a volunteer has tested positive, the Affiliate will conduct contact tracing to determine (HFHKC staff member, volunteer or otherwise) who may have had close contact with the confirmed positive volunteer in the prior 14 days and direct those individuals who have had close contact with the confirmed positive volunteer to self-quarantine for 14 days from the last date of close contact with that employee/volunteer. The Affiliate will also notify any subcontractors, vendors/suppliers or visitors who may have had close contact with an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19. If a volunteer learns that they have come into close contact with a confirmed-positive individual outside of the workplace, they must alert a Habitat KC staff member and follow protocols listed above.
● Those who test positive for COVID-19 may not volunteer for Habitat KC or be on Habitat KC property for 14 days. Prior to returning, any such individuals must be symptom free for the final 72 hours (days 12-14) and have a clearance from their doctor.
● Those who have been exposed to COVID-19 and do not get tested must self-quarantine for 10 days with no symptoms for the full 10 days. To return to Habitat, they must remain symptom free for 72 hours prior to volunteering (days 8 through 10).
● Those who decide to get tested and receive a negative COVID-19 test result may return to volunteering with Habitat in 7 days (antibody tests are not acceptable for this purpose).
All volunteers are required to adhere to this policy, including any volunteers who have been vaccinated or who tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies but negative for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
COVID-19 Symptoms
You are asked not to volunteer if you are experiencing any of the following symptoms: ○ Anyone registering a temperature over the CDC-recommended 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit will be asked to return home and only come back to volunteer after having gone 72 hours (3 full days) without a fever.
● Cough
● Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
● Chills
● Muscle pain
● Sore throat
● New loss of taste or smell
