Business Continuity in Epidemic/Pandemic Conditions

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The April 2009 H1N1 influenza outbreak should serve as a much-needed wakeup call concerning the need for Business Continuity plans to address epidemics and pandemics. As the H1N1 flu outbreak was unfolding, Webtorials conducted a survey to determine both the extent to which organizations have a plan in place to address Business Continuity during a severe medical emergency and, if such a plan exists, the extent to which key business functions would survive.

The key findings showed that:
- The Business Continuity plans for medical epidemic/pandemic are either minimal or non-existent for over half of the respondents.
- The current economic conditions have resulted in a decrease in the ability to plan/implement/support Business Continuity in the event of an epidemic/pandemic.
- The current H1N1 outbreak will have a moderate impact on prompting companies to update/review their business continuity plans.

Business Continuity and disaster recovery are areas that are easily overlooked until the calamity strikes, and by then it’s too late.