In this Covid-19 era, event planners need to be hyper-aware of health and safety concerns of hybrid and in-person events.  As a result, event planners (and their teams) will need to be at the forefront of developing, monitoring, and enforcing health and safety compliance protocols and procedures to protect staff, vendors and attendees.

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DUTY OF CARE (DOC)

Creating a Duty of Care Mission (DOC) is the first step in the process of ensuring that your guests are attending a healthy and safe event.   A DOC is a company’s obligation to protect its employees, travelers, and meeting participants from risks. These risks can be related to injury, sickness, safety, security, health, or travel. 

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Why is a DOC important?

In this era of the Covid pandemic, a DOC is more important than ever.  Having a clear, concise directive on how to respond to health concerns on-site will allow your team to make informed decision on the safety of their guests and the handling of potentially hazardous situations.  In addition, a written statement of the “rules of engagement” makes it clear to staff, vendors and guests that you – the event planner – are committed to their safety and health.

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Elements that should be included in a DOC:

1.  Opening Statement – This short paragraph should explain to the guest that their safety is your number 1 concern.  It should include contact numbers and emails of your Covid Officers, who will be responsible for monitoring and enforcing the DOC during your event.

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2.  Rules of Engagement – This is the heart of the matter.  As you begin to formulate your rules it is a good idea to reach out to partners and vendors to see if they already have a DOC in place. The rules should include:

• Instructions on how registration will take place (staggered registration times, lanyards and tags mailed prior to event)

• Information regarding on-site medical procedures (daily temp checks, hand sanitizing stations)

• Social distancing arrangements (look for floor decals and signage, staggered break times, food and beverage set-ups, staggered bathroom breaks). 

• Reporting Instructions – if you see something, say something.  Let guests know where they can contact a Covid Officer to report all health and safety concerns. 

• List of PPE to be provided – Let your guests know what you and the venue will be providing with regard to Personal Protective Equipment. 

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3.  Personal Commitment Paragraph – This final paragraph should ask the guest to agree to abide by the rules set out above.  It should include a place for signature (and printed name) and date, and a copy should be kept by the conference organizer in case of any breach of protocols.

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Secure a Covid Officer

It’s not enough to have a written statement of the health and safety rules for your event.  You need to have staffing in place to ensure that all rules are being followed.  This is where the Covid Officer comes in. 

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Communication is Key

Now that the DOC is complete it is imperative to communicate this information to all stakeholders.  You cannot expect a guest to comply without having been given the information ahead of time. 

Steps for Communication:

1. Send out DOC with registration confirmation. 

2. Hold safety/health briefings with all sponsors/vendors/staff. Train early and train often! 

3. Place a copy of the DOC in all welcome bags

4. Provide a pocket-sized, laminated copy of the DOC for all vendors and staff to use on-site.

5. Post the DOC on the event website

 

Conclusion

As you look forward to your hybrid or in-person events in 2021 and beyond, know that a DOC will give you a road map for addressing any health and safety issues that might arise.  Having your rules of engagement in written form and communicated to all stakeholders will put you on the path to a safe and successful event.