Thread by @hmns

THREAD

This is a statement regarding HMNS and the recent 2/24-3/9 trip to Egypt

A trip to see Egypt’s famed museums and ancient sites was planned 12-18 months ago by the museum through Joy Travel International. The trip had 35 travelers; this group included 2 HMNS staffers.

The safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers is always our first priority. There has been NO contact between any of the travelers and any HMNS facility.

We have prohibited all staff and volunteers who traveled to Egypt from coming to the museum for 14 days immediately upon return from their trip.

Upon learning about the confirmed COVID-19 cases linked to Egypt in the Houston area last week, we immediately contacted our travelers and provided information via email about the virus and precautions to take from local, state, national and international organizations.

We proactively contacted the @HoustonTX authorities at that time. We were put in touch with Dr. David Persse of @HoustonHealth, who asked travelers to self-quarantine when they arrived home from Egypt and to notify us and the City if they made any stops on the way to their homes.

Dr. Persse: “Corporations are implementing quarantine recommendations to their employees who return from trips abroad. We hope we don’t have virus spreading in the Houston community. The best way to keep the virus contained is for travelers to quarantine at home for two weeks..."

"I applaud HMNS and all others who take this stance. It is difficult on the employer and the employee but these are difficult times that need extraordinary efforts.”

- We continue to touch base with the travelers daily and have asked them to monitor for symptoms and keep us informed of any concerns.

- We continue to be in touch with city officials and will follow their guidance.

While there has been no contact between this specific group and museum facilities, we implemented the following heightened health and safety protocols in response to general concerns regarding Covid-19 last week:

-- increased hand sanitation stations throughout the facility

-- improved bathroom signage regarding proper hand washing

-- continued regularly disinfecting high traffic areas of the museum

-- advised our staff as to proper respiratory etiquette and advised them to stay home if sick

-- cancelled all staff travel for the month of March; we will continue to monitor developments in making decisions regarding staff travel for future months

-- asked all staff and volunteers to report personal travel; anyone traveling internationally will work from home for 14 days following their return and report any symptoms to the museum and health officials

@threadreaderapp UNROLL

We appreciate everyone's support. For further updates visit our website at hmns.org and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.