Covid-19 Prevention and Control Guide in Industrial Establishments

Foreword

We are strongly combating the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19), which emerged in Wuhan, China, and has affected the world, on all platforms. We took the necessary measures before the outbreak reached Turkey; we acted by carefully examining every request and suggestion. Thanks to the health system we built in 18 years under the leadership of our President and our healthcare personnel who work day and night, Turkey has been one of the most successful countries in this global shock.

Undoubtedly, the success in this process is the result of common sense and coordinated work; concrete and dynamic policies we implemented in every field from health to education, security to transportation. As the Ministry of Industry and Technology, from the first day of the pandemic, we prioritized people and labor in every step we took. We consulted with sector councils operating on all fronts of production, organized industrial zones, and chambers of industry; preventing any grievances. Along with the measures taken, we implemented many facilitating applications.

While our Ministry and its affiliated institutions mobilized all resources and opportunities in the fight against Covid-19, the Turkish Standards Institute (TSE) opened all related standards to companies free of charge. Additionally, TSE prepared the Covid-19 Hygiene, Infection Prevention and Control Guide, which includes hygiene practices and control recommendations aimed at protecting employees, visitors, suppliers, maintenance personnel, etc., to inform and raise awareness.

This guide will not only guide companies in fighting the pandemic but will also serve as a guide for producing according to the “reliable, unaffected by the pandemic, and hygienic production” standards needed in the post-pandemic period. I especially congratulate all my colleagues who contributed to the preparation of such a useful guide and wish them success in their future work.

Mustafa VARANK
Minister of Industry and Technology

Contents

  • Foreword
  • Contents
  • 1. Introduction
    • 1.1. Scope and Purpose
  • 2. Transmission Characteristics of Pandemic COVID-19
    • 2.1. Transmission Routes
    • 2.2. Incubation and Infection Period
    • 2.3. Transmission Precautions
  • 3. Prevention and Control Measures
    • 3.1. Preparation
    • 3.2. Standard Infection Control Precautions (SICP) Infection Prevention and Control Action Planning
    • 3.3. Transmission-Based Precautions (TBP) Planning
    • 3.4. Procedures for Individuals Showing COVID-19 Symptoms or Confirmed Cases
    • 3.5. Evacuation/Transfer of Suspected COVID-19 Cases
    • 3.6. Unaffected Employees
    • 3.7. Contact Tracing/Surveillance
    • 3.8. Contractors, External Service/Providers, Product and Service Suppliers
  • 4. Application-Oriented Measures
    • 4.1. Physical Distance
    • 4.2. Hand Hygiene
    • 4.3. Respiratory Hygiene and Cough/Sneeze Etiquette
  • 5. Training
  • 6. Waste Management
  • 7. Social and Shared Use Areas
    • 7.1. Facility Entrance, Security, Reception
    • 7.2. Waiting Room/Lobby
    • 7.3. Restaurant, Cafeteria
    • 7.4. Production Areas
    • 7.5. Offices
    • 7.6. Meeting Rooms
    • 7.7. Infirmary/Health Units
    • 7.8. Prayer Room/Mosque
    • 7.9. Elevators
    • 7.10. Travel Rules
    • 7.11. Company Passenger Vehicles
    • 7.12. Employee Shuttles
    • 7.13. Toilets and Washbasins
    • 7.14. Employee Changing Rooms and Showers
    • 7.15. Guesthouse/Dormitory
    • 7.16. Daycare/Baby Care and Nursing Rooms
    • 7.17. Safe Laundry Management (Laundry)
    • 7.18. Leadership and Leading by Example
  • 8. Cleaning
    • 8.1. General Principles
    • 8.2. Cleaning and Sanitation Materials and Tools
    • 8.3. Clean
    • 8.4. Disinfect
    • 8.5. Soft Surfaces
    • 8.6. Electronic Devices
    • 8.7. While Cleaning
    • 8.8. Additional Measures (Including Hands)
    • 8.9. Cleaning of Offices
  • 9. Occupational Health and Safety Equipment
    • 9.1. Masks
    • 9.2. Personnel Clothing and Uniforms
    • 9.3. Disposable Gloves (or job-appropriate gloves)
    • 9.4. Eye Protection/Face Shield
  • References
  • Appendices
    • Appendix 1 - Best Practice: Washing Hands with Water and Soap
    • Appendix 2 - Best Practice: Cleaning Hands with Antiseptic
    • Appendix 3 - Best Practices: Social and Shared Use Areas
    • Appendix 4 - Best Practices: Food and Beverages
    • Appendix 5 - Best Practices: Cleaning Services
    • Appendix 6 - Best Practices: Infrastructure

Abbreviations

  • AOP: Aerosol generating procedures
  • TBP: Transmission-based precautions
  • COVID 19: COV: Corona Virus, I: Infectious, D: Disease combined to form COVID. Since this disease was first detected in December 2019, 19 was added at the end.
  • FFP: Filtering facepiece
  • PPE: Personal protective equipment
  • SICP: Standard infection control precautions

WARNING: Any data and information contained in this guide should not be used as an alternative to guidelines, recommendations, and practices determined/approved by the National Authority (Ministry of Health/Scientific Committees etc.) and/or infection control committees.

1. Introduction

This guide primarily addresses COVID-19, which is transmitted by droplets or contact, in industrial establishments;

  • employees,
  • visitors,
  • suppliers,
  • maintenance personnel, etc., to protect and be protected, including hygiene practices, transmission prevention, and control recommendations.

It is based on the best evidence obtained from previous pandemic periods such as influenza, SARS, and MERS and focuses only on infection prevention and control aspects of diseases transmitted by droplets and contact, considering preparation, implementation, and other measures. The infection prevention and control recommendations in this guide are accepted as good practice in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Note 1: As new evidence emerges about COVID-19, further updates may be made to this guide.

1.1. Scope and Purpose

This guide provides information on infection prevention and control procedures to inform and give recommendations to industrial establishments for COVID-19. Hygiene, infection prevention, and control principles can also be adapted and used for other collective living spaces. This guide was prepared by the Turkish Standards Institute.

This guide aims to provide a consistent and flexible approach nationwide. However, application may vary depending on the sector in which the business operates, applicable legislation, number of employees, structure, operational activities, etc. Similarly, the Hygiene, Infection Prevention and Control Action Plan(s) to be created by the business are prepared considering the sector, legislation, number of employees, structure, operational activities, and other relevant factors.

2. Transmission Characteristics of Pandemic COVID-19

The novel coronavirus is a very new virus type as of its detection date. Research on this virus continues worldwide, and new information and findings regarding its transmission, spread, prevention, and treatment are constantly being obtained. The information about the novel coronavirus in this guide is current as of the publication date of the guide; relevant institutions should monitor new developments and update practices accordingly.

2.1. Transmission Routes

The transmission characteristics of COVID-19 are based on the assumption that they are similar to the 2003 SARS-CoV outbreak. The initial phylogenetic and immunological similarities between COVID-19 and SARS-CoV provide an opportunity to estimate epidemiological features.

It is believed that COVID-19 transmission mainly occurs through respiratory droplets generated by coughing and sneezing and contact with contaminated surfaces. Additionally, transmission occurs when other individuals touch droplets expelled by infected persons through coughing or sneezing with their hands and then touch their mouth, nose, or eye mucosa.

2.2. Incubation and Infection Period

Evaluation of clinical and epidemiological features of SARS-CoV-2 cases shows that individuals can be contagious from 1 day, rarely 2 days, before symptom onset. However, in most cases, individuals are considered contagious while symptomatic, and contagiousness depends on the stage of the disease and severity of symptoms.

In mild cases, the average duration from symptom onset to clinical recovery is approximately 2 weeks, while for severe or critical cases, it is accepted as 3-6 weeks. Case reports indicating contagiousness during the asymptomatic period show that a patient can shed the virus before symptoms begin. International data indicate that infectivity significantly decreases 7 days after symptom onset.

2.3. Transmission Precautions

  • Contact precautions: Used to prevent and control infection transmission through direct or indirect contact with the patient. Contact is the most common route of infection transmission.
  • Droplet precautions: Used to prevent and control infection transmission through respiratory droplets (>5μm) directly from an individual's respiratory tract to another individual's conjunctiva or mucosal surface at short distances. Droplets penetrate above the alveolar level of the respiratory system. The maximum distance for droplet cross-transmission is not precisely defined but is often reported in medical literature as approximately 1.8 meters (6 feet) around the infected individual.
  • Airborne (aerosol) precautions (respiratory precautions): Used to prevent and control infection transmission through aerosols (≤5μm) from an individual's respiratory tract to another individual's conjunctiva or mucosal surface without close contact. Aerosols penetrate to the alveolar level of the respiratory system. Precautions are applied to prevent infection transmission via particles smaller than or equal to 5μm through aerosols from the respiratory tract of an infected individual to the mucosal surfaces of a healthy person. Especially in closed environments, being in the same space even without close contact increases the risk of infection transmission.

The COVID-19 virus transmits directly to an individual's mucosal surface, eye (conjunctiva), or environmental surfaces via respiratory droplets during coughing, sneezing, etc., of an infected person. Both droplet and contact precautions are necessary to interrupt COVID-19 transmission; if an aerosol-generating procedure (AOP) is performed, aerosol precautions are also required in addition to contact precautions.

In the laundry, all items, clothes, and sheets belonging to individuals identified as patients should be considered contaminated (these can be placed in dissolvable bags and put into the machine; washing at least at 60 degrees is required)...