Charlottesville COVID-19 Management Team Council Work Session Timeline of Events March 11, 2020 – WHO declares COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic March 12, 2020 – VA State of Emergency – VA Gov EO #51 – City Manager declares local state of emergency March 13, 2020 – President declares National State of Emergency March 15, 2020 – Regional Emergency Operations Center opens March 16, 2020 – First case of COVID-19 reported in Charlottesville March 25, 2020 – City Continuity of Government Ordinance enacted *During the response phase (March-May) heavily focused on mitigation, protection of our personnel and transitioning service delivery models. *Now in the recovery phase though still maintaining our mitigation measures and posture. *Expectation among staff is to be creative, nimble, flexible and responsive. Still a degree of uncertainty in our world and we must be ready to adjust our policies, procedures and posture. Situation Update The City of Charlottesville is operating under a modified Phase 2, as directed by the City Manager. VA Governor amended Executive Order 72 for the 4th time (effective 4/1/21). • Core City Services are being performed • City Hall is partially open • Second reading of a proposal to repeal the City’s COVID ordinance on council agenda for tonight • Also on tonight’s agenda is a proposal of an update to the Continuity to Government Ordinance (6 mo. extension) • Albemarle County modified their local ordinance as well to align more with the State *An increase of 20,985 (in 2 weeks) *An increase of 943 (in 2 weeks) *Down from 6.4% (on 4-5) *Decrease from 11 (on 4-5) *Up from 2.5% on 4-5 *Trending up Up from 17.8% on 4-5 Regional Coordination March 15th 2020 – Regional Emergency Operations Center (REOC) opened at Zehmer Hall Unified Command – City, County, BRHD, UVA (+UVA Health for vaccine phase) *City staff assigned – Moffett, Dimock, Carpenter, Pollack, Thorne & Pelliccia (+ others at various times) May/June – REOC hybrid, then virtual with in-person as necessary *Public Safety/Law Enforcement focus in-person thru summer for protests & County statue removal (emergency within an emergency) 156 Persons staff or have staffed the virtual EOC (VEOCI), representing all local government partners such as the United Way 34 Regional Incident Action Plans (IAPs) & 107 Regional Situation Reports have been developed and released Regional EOC Highlights • Joint Information Center (JIC) • PPE acquisition & distribution – • Support BRHD COVID testing 25,000 mask/gown PPE per • Vulnerable population quarter to over 100 facilities in coordination feeding/housing the region (homeless, congregate care • Acquired facility & managed settings, ACRJ) donation center (STAB) • National Guard coordination • Fatality management planning (COVID testing, fit-testing, • Vaccine administration (mass vaccine admin) Vax, closed PODs) • Coordination with LTC/SNFs – • After Action Reviews mitigated outbreaks early • Tech support – phones for • Plan development support hotline, MDTs *Undeniably the most valuable outcome – Building relationships for future preparedness Regional EOC – Public Safety Efforts Regional EOC – Public Safety Efforts Regional EOC – Health & Human Services Efforts On-going Regional Coordination Current City Strategy & Tactics Command Emphasis/Objectives: Support Our Employees • Ensure Good Communication & Information Management • Vaccinations • Expand testing capabilities • Update policies/procedures • Prepare for staggered return to work Continue Regional Efforts to assist BRHD with Vaccinations Compliance & Enforcement of Governor’s Executive Orders & Local Ord. Compliance with VOSH, VDH & DOLI mandates *Prepare for Return to Work/Reconstitution Command Staff Highlights Legal – Internal (Davies) & External (Robertson) - Researched, reviewed, provided legal opinion for all workforce policies and procedures - Monitored State & Federal legal updates - Drafted, provided legal expertise on all ordinances Communications – (Wheeler & Team) - Adapted all public meetings to a virtual model - Produced and facilitated internal town hall meetings - Provided regional support for BRHD public meetings - Multi-media dissemination of critical info, internal & external Communications Operations Section Section Chief (Dimock) Deputy Chief/Field Ops Branch (Moffett) Employee Services Branch Leader (Valencia) Customer Services Branch Leader (Thorne) Infection Control Division (Johnson & Phillips) *Configuration of this section has evolved since March 2020 but always focused on people, both internally and externally. Initial focus on public safety & social/human services, maintaining essential services. Operations (People) Highlights • We have and continue to encourage working remotely for those that can. • Since last year, the City has had a contract and location for COVID testing of City employees who are experiencing symptoms, County joined in late fall. • Assigned one or more staff members within each department to serve as a Designated Infection Control Officer (DICO) which also required 4+ hours of training. • Worked with Logistics to maintain appropriate levels of Personnel Protection Equipment (PPE). • Masking policy throughout all stages • Reconfigured office spaces and common areas to maintain 6’ spacing where possible. • Flexible staffing - staggered shifts & cohorting to limit contact within the organization. • Implemented strict protocols on how/when to communicate with members of the public. • Issued weekly communication to all employees such as travel risk flyers, health screening requirements, testing availability, etc. • Encouraged vaccination of employees & facilitated scheduling of appointments Employee Vaccination Survey *Conducted an employee survey internally over the winter. The “no response” category was originally 407 in early March. We worked closely with department heads and DICOs to get responses from the “no response” employees *”Yes” increased from 613 initially Employee Vaccination Planning *Up from 635 on 4-5 1093 Total Employees: 65% Vaccinated – 15% Declined – 20% Unknown (not yet, undecided, onboarding, undisclosed, received elsewhere and not reported yet) *The data is only as good as the input, which is incomplete. Community Vaccination Planning Section Section Chiefs (Silman) Deputy Section Chief (Riddervold) IT Branch (Hawkes) Data Analysis/Situation Unit (Dean) *Major responsibilities include the development of Incident Action Plans (IAPs), meeting schedules, coordination of all team activities, provide situational awareness, information gathering & coordination, new technologies Examples: Researched & managed acquisition/implementation of new technology including temperature screening kiosks at several entrances to City facilities, Launched vaccination and risk assessment tracking tool. Planning (Process) Highlights Establishment/coordination of policies and procedures focused on protection of our workforce. All current policies are located on the City’s intranet website for staff access and consumption. Planning Section On-going Efforts Pending Objectives & Task Assignments Health Survey App Data Logistics Section Section Chief (Zavicar) Deputy Section Chief (Brown, T) Facility Modification Branch (Strother) Facility Preparedness Branch (Goddard & Estes) Supply Branch (McNannay) *Major responsibilities include research and development of all policies and new technologies related to physical infrastructure for all City government and school facilities as well as all modifications and maintenance to all adaptations made to facilities. Also acquisition and distribution of citywide PPE and cleaning supply cache. Logistics (Places) Highlights Mitigation efforts in City facilities and schools - - HVAC mitigation systems (filters, UV lights, Bi-polar ionization, etc.) - Nano-Septic Elevator button covers - Hand sanitizer stations - Hands free faucets - Restroom occupancy signs - Bottle filler water dispenser equipment at fountains - Various customized office modifications (plexiglass, signage, social distancing tents, etc.) - Placement of cleaning carts throughout City buildings for staff use - Implementation of HVAC and cleaning protocols to meet or exceed CDC recommendations - Regularly scheduled maintenance on the above measures Logistics (Places) Highlights - Procurement of professional cleaning of office spaces periodically, to include deep cleans after known positive cases. - Established/installed numerous types of signage across the city, from warning posters at City entrances to hand washing instructions in bathrooms to symptom awareness signage in hallways. - Evaluating meeting spaces and appropriate operational controls to ensure health and safety such as occupancy limits, seating restrictions, etc. - Many facilities remain closed to the public and have implemented new processes to conduct business and maintain services. FORTHCOMING – - Sanitizing dispensers in individual restroom stalls - Procurement of seats/chairs covers for public spaces to ensure social distancing - Additional office modifications, as needs arise or identified as COVID best management practices Signage Examples Finance & Admin Section Section Chief (Cullinan) Procurement Branch (Grooms) Risk Management (TBD) *Major responsibilities include establishment of cost tracking system for expenses related to COVID-19, management of state and federal reimbursement process as well as emergency procurement policies and procedures. Charlottesville COVID-19 Management Team Council Work Session Questions?