When Ebola Came Knocking... | symplr

Training, CG Environmental, EbolaWe couldn’t believe it. We were warned we might get the call but I don’t think any of us believed it would happen. And then it did. The phone rang, we answered it, and the only word we remember hearing… Ebola. Dallas County and Homeland Security were asking us, Cleaning Guys, if we were willing to join the fight against Ebola.

Without hesitation, the answer was a resounding yes. We knew we were ready for this. Our guys are trained to handle everything. On many occasions we have put that training to the test in situations that could turn deadly in a second. But, if we’re being completely honest, this was different. This situation, Ebola, was going to put us on the global stage. And where we go, so go our families. The health and safety of our employees and their loved ones never came into question. Their well-being is part of what drove Cleaning Guys to take on Ebola – we knew we could keep everyone safe. What we couldn’t train for was the emotional impact it would have on our families, especially the kids. Some of our kids were singled out at school, one being asked to leave for a 21-day quarantine though this was never enforced. Others were not allowed to even be around friends because their parents worked for Cleaning Guys. Extended family members suddenly canceled plans. We kept wondering, “How could people think we would do anything to put our own families in danger, let alone everyone else?” We knew we did what had to be done to keep our families and community safe.

We read and reread the current published PPE donning and doffing guidelines. The rigorous training and critical thinking of our guys kicked in and, fearing inadequacies in those guidelines, we decided to go above and beyond what was suggested. From the moment we got the call that told us it was time to fight Ebola, to the moment our caravan rolled out, our guys mapped out the Cleaning Guys’ methods of Donning and Doffing. These are the methods that would, and did, keep our guys, our families, and our community Ebola-free.

We've partnered with symplr as one of the only companies in the US with hands-on experience of Ebola infection containment, to deliver a comprehensive training and credentialing program for your facilities.

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