AP 7330 Communicable Disease - Employees
References:
None
This procedure applies to all Rogue Community College (RCC) District locations.
RCC utilizes the following procedures related to Employee Communicable Diseases.
Serious communicable diseases have the potential to affect everyone in the learning and working environment. This procedure is not designed to address routine communicable diseases (such as the common cold, or flu), but rather illnesses or diseases that have been identified as being more serious in nature. The College expects that employees will be sensitive to symptomology and utilize sound judgment in determining their level of illness, following guidelines provided by their health care providers and official public health information. RCC will follow current public health guidelines.
RCC does not discriminate against any job applicant or employee based on the individual having a communicable disease. Applicants and employees shall not be denied access to the workplace solely on the grounds that they have a communicable disease. The College reserves the right to exclude a person with a communicable disease from workplace facilities, programs and functions if the organization finds that, based on a medical determination, such restriction is necessary for the welfare of the person who has the communicable disease and/or the welfare of others within the workplace.
Employees who have, or suspect they have a communicable disease, should consult with their health care provider to receive reporting requirements. If instructed by their provider, the individual should immediately report the matter to the Chief Human Resources Officer or designee. The Chief Human Resources Officer or designee, in consultation with the Director of Risk Management, will work with the employee to determine steps necessary to protect the disclosing person and other members of the campus community.
As a general rule, individuals who are diagnosed with a communicable disease and who have been cleared by a health care provider not to be infectious to others, will be permitted to attend work and utilize college facilities in an unrestricted manner. Employees with a communicable disease will be allowed to work as long as they can maintain acceptable performance and do not pose a health threat to themselves or others.
Each case will be handled on an individual basis. The College’s decisions involving persons who have communicable diseases shall be based on current and well-informed medical judgments concerning the disease, the risks of transmitting the illness to others, the symptoms and special circumstances of each individual who has a communicable disease, and a careful weighing of the identified risks and the available alternative for responding to an employee with a communicable disease.
Each case shall be reevaluated at reasonable intervals, so long as the individual has a communicable disease and remains employed. Employees should disclose any changes to the status of their condition such as whether they should be in contact with others and if their current health status permits them to perform the essential functions of their job.
The College reserves the right to require a medical examination of an employee by a physician appointed by the College to determine fitness for duty and to ensure that the illness does not pose a direct threat to others.
An individual’s health condition is personal and confidential. Every effort will be made to ensure procedurally sufficient safeguards to maintain the personal confidence about persons who have communicable diseases. RCC will comply with all applicable statutes and regulations regarding the confidentiality of medical information. Information shall not be released without permission of the employee except as permitted by law.
In the event of a communicable disease at RCC, the college will work with the local health department and follow all local health department recommendations and regulations as applicable.
Employees in allied health programs are subject to additional requirements in the event of exposure to a communicable disease. These protocols are maintained at the departmental level.
Definitions:
“Communicable disease” means an illness caused by an infectious agent or its toxins that occurs through the direct or indirect transmission of the infectious agent or its products from an infected individual or via an animal, vector or the inanimate environment to a susceptible animal or human host.
Rescinds Procedure Number: None
Approved: September 23, 2021