Concept of Operations 

A. Overview

1. Public Health will be the lead agency in coordinating the local health and medical response to a pandemic with State, Federal, and local agencies and officials.
2. Public Health’s response actions will emphasize disease surveillance and investigation, social distancing measures to reduce the spread of infection, and continually informing and educating the public about the pandemic, the public health response, and steps the public can take to reduce the risks of infection.
3. OTSD will maintain increased communications with the Sandy/CC EOC and Public Health and will implement those procedures that increase the health and safety of the school community.
4. OTSD will assume the following responsibilities:

1. Develop capabilities to implement non-medical measures to decrease the spread of disease throughout the school community.
2. Develop and implement pandemic preparedness activities and a business continuity plan aimed at maintaining the provision of educational services and limiting the spread of disease throughout the duration of a pandemic.
3. Communicate with and educate the school community about approved public health practices and what each person can do to prepare, respond, and minimize health risks.
4. Develop and implement educational support plans for students who are isolated or quarantined and coordinate these plans with the social support plans developed by Public Health and the EOC.
5. Develop a recovery plan that provides for education support and emotional support for staff and students.

5. Each OTSD school will assume the following responsibilities:
   1. Develop a response plan that will:
      1. Identify chain of command in case of illness with a minimum of two back ups.
      2. Review procedures for sending ill individuals home and make adjustments if necessary.
      3. Report the number of staff and students absent daily with pandemic flu to the district nurse. The nurse will report to Public Health.
      4. Document actions taken.
      5. Update staff and provide information on extent of infection at school site and potential changes that might take place at school.

B. Direction and Control

1. Public Health and all response partners will operate under the Incident Command System throughout the duration of the pandemic response.
2. Public Health may activate the Public Health Emergency Operations Center to coordinate the county-wide public health and medical response during a pandemic.
3. The Sandy/CC EOC may be activated during a pandemic to coordinate response.
4. OTSD will coordinate with Public Health and the Sandy/CC EOC to provide information to staff and students. OTSD will take appropriate measures including social distancing and increased respiratory hygiene in order to reduce transmission.

C. Communications

1. Communications with the public and health care providers will be one of the most critical strategies for containing the spread of the influenza and for managing the utilization of health care services. This plan’s communications goals are to:
   1. Provide accurate, consistent, and comprehensive information about pandemic influenza/virus including case definitions, treatment options, infection control measures, and reporting requirements.
   2. Instill and maintain public confidence in the schools and the County’s public health care systems and their ability to respond to and manage an influenza pandemic.
   3. Ensure an efficient mechanism for managing information between Public Health, partners and the schools.
   4. Contribute to maintaining order, minimizing public panic and fear, and facilitating public compliance by providing accurate, rapid, and complete information.
   5. Address rumors, inaccuracies, and misperceptions as quickly as possible, and prevent the stigmatization of affected groups.
2. Communications During Pandemic

1. OTSD will:
   1. Assess the information needs of the school community.
   2. Intensify public education efforts about influenza pandemics and steps that can be taken to reduce exposure to infection. Information may be disseminated via digital or print methods typically used by the district.
   3. Identify hard to reach families and ensure communications in the home language.
   4. Coordinate with Public Health to develop common health messages and education materials in English and Spanish. Coordinate with Public Health to ensure that bilingual staff can serve as information conduits to vulnerable school families and build sustainable preparedness capabilities.
   5. Develop template pandemic informational letters, including translations, for parents/guardians.
2. Public Health PIO will evaluate the need to establish a Joint Information Center in conjunction with appropriate health system and response partners. If school closures are considered, the OTSD PIO will work with the JIC.
3. Public Health PIO will develop a communications strategy including identifying appropriate community partners for reaching and educating diverse communities such as limited English speaking and homeless students and their families.
4. As the pandemic expands, the Public Health PIO will provide daily updates on the pandemic and will organize regular media briefings.
5. The Public Health PIO will keep the public informed about steps that should be taken to protect against infection, treatment options for individuals who are infected, the status of the spread of the outbreak in the community, and the disease control and containment strategies that are being implemented.
6. The OTSD PIO will disseminate alerts per JIC guidelines and as necessary. Pandemic letters will be disseminated to parent/guardians per JIC and OTSD communication strategy.

D. Mitigation

The OTSD pre-event mitigation activities include:

1. Planning, exercising, evaluating and revising the Pandemic Management Plan.
2. Training and equipping OTSD staff to assure competencies and capacities needed to respond to a pandemic outbreak.
3. Developing strategic partnerships with local community health care institutions and providers, and local, state and federal response agencies and their staff.
4. Educating schools and parents about an influenza/virus pandemic and recommend preparedness measures.
5. Informing and updating schools about the potential impacts of a pandemic on essential services and city, county, and school infrastructure. Reviewing and updating district-wide business continuity plans and assuring essential business functions are adequately staffed.
6. Ensuring adequate supplies and equipment that will be needed to respond to a pandemic.
7. Establishing ventilation standards to be used during the pandemic.

The OTSD event mitigation activities include:

8. Social/Physical Distancing: considerations could include closing schools; closing non-essential agency functions; implementing emergency staffing plans; adjusting classroom set-up/spacing of seats; creating stable cohort groups of students; increasing telecommuting, flex scheduling and other work options; restricting school visitors/volunteers; or closing all public assemblies or after school activities.
9. Face Coverings: implement face-covering protocols, as mandated or deemed necessary.
10. Screening: screen students and staff for symptoms; report to Public Health as required.
11. Isolation & quarantine: isolate ill or exposed persons until they are picked up/taken home. Isolation spaces identified at each school. Staff supervising isolation rooms will wear medical-grade face masks, gloves, and isolation gowns.

UPDATED: May 2022

To ensure the safety of our staff and students, OTSD has implemented a multi-layered approach to minimize the transmission of airborne pathogens that could potentially spread airborne illnesses.
Our Custodians clean surfaces frequently to reduce particles released in the air. An electrostatic sprayer is used frequently to sanitize touch-points throughout the buildings. Each classroom is supplied with a canister of disinfecting wipes to be used during classroom sessions in between Custodial routes.
Oregon Trail School District recognizes that proper air flow and filtration is important in preventing the spread of airborne illnesses.  
Per the CDC recommendations:

• Our ventilation systems are regularly serviced and meeting code requirements.
• Our HVAC systems are set to bring in as much outdoor air as the system will allow while minimizing excessive temperatures inside.
• We have increased the HVAC’s system’s total airflow to supply occupied spaces, exchanging the room’s air 3-5 times per hour where possible.
• Where applicable, we are running the HVAC system at maximum airflow for hours before and after the building is occupied.
• We have increased the level of air filtration as much as possible, with the highest level of MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value) rating air filter the system will allow. In stand-alone areas where it’s necessary to supplement insufficient airflow, we have brought in air purifiers in an effort to meet the standards noted above.
• We continue to evaluate our mitigation efforts and are ready to take reasonable action to improve air flow as needed.

Oregon Trail School District has implemented these mitigation measures according to OSHA guidelines and CDC recommendations and will continue to take regular precautions to keep our staff and students safe.