The Safety Dance: Navigating Health and Safety for Events in a COVID World

As the U.S. reopens, we’re exploring how to prepare for the health and safety challenges the meetings and events industry will face in response to COVID-19. COVID-19 is presenting risks directly related to medical health, and it’s our duty to stay informed about the latest health and safety guidelines and best practices recommended by the CDC. It’s clear that health and safety will be the top priority for our industry moving forward, and we’re eager to share information and resources as we plan for the future.

In the past, health and safety concerns in the meeting and event industry typically centered around extreme weather, evacuation plans, medical emergencies or unfortunate instances of terrorism. Now, we need to familiarize ourselves with new playbooks that include education about issues specific to COVID-19, including social distancing, cleanliness and disinfection, masks, PPE and up-to-date information from medical organizations consulting our industry.  

Meetings and events are meant to bring people together to form lasting relationships through shared authentic experiences. In recent months, we’ve leveraged technology to remain connected, but eventually we will begin to meet face-to-face again.

We recognize that our industry has changed significantly in a short period of time and that meetings and events will operate differently than they have in the past. For this reason, communication is going to be key to event planning and execution. The recent period of change has led to uncertainty. It’s completely understandable that people will have differing views about when and how to meet and interact safely.

We should plan for a range of responses to reopening and be prepared to serve everyone at their respective comfort levels. Our willingness to openly communicate about how we will make accommodations to ensure that everyone feels safe and included will be at the core of meetings and events in the future. We seek to be inclusive to all attendees and make sure that we are managing the culture of our events to embrace everyone.

COVID-19 led to abrupt changes, but it’s time to learn and recuperate

Back in March, as COVID-19 spread throughout the United States, all meetings and gatherings were abruptly canceled or put on hold for the foreseeable future. We’ve endured months of unpredictability. As we transition to a new normal, we’re beginning to understand how the meetings and events industry must prioritize health and safety to recuperate.

Hotels and venues have announced detailed programs to spearhead updated Health and Safety guidelines. These programs will continue to be updated as more information about COVID-19 becomes available. In May, the Four Seasons partnered with Johns Hopkins Medicine International to enhance health and safety programs at Four Seasons properties worldwide.

The Lead With Care program establishes that the Four Seasons is adopting best practices for health and safety under the guidance of medical experts and hospitality service providers, like Ecolab. This program is designed to ensure guests, employees and residents feel comfort and confidence in the Four Seasons commitment to stringent Health and Safety guidelines. 

Similarly, AXA and Accor recently launched a strategic partnership that will help provide medical support to guests at Accor’s hotel properties worldwide. Guests will have access to medical care through AXA’s network of telemedicine and teleconsultation health providers.

The emphasis on health and safety from trusted hotels and venues is a signal that the meeting and event industry will have support and resources to draw from as meetings and events reemerge.

Meeting and event industry health and safety resources

Like their hotels and venue partners, meeting and event industry organizations have also been rolling out initiatives to tackle health and safety concerns. As new information regarding COVID-19 becomes available, meeting and event industry professionals can access these resources as they navigate evolving government guidelines and establish new health and safety best practices. What’s more, these resources can be used to inform, educate and increase communication between stakeholders.

The PSAV MeetSAFE playbook is a resource for the live event industry, meeting planners and event industry professionals to reference. The playbook contains detailed information about government guidelines and how to ensure safe meeting practices through each phase of reopening.  

EIC APEX has formed a Business Recovery Task Force comprised of industry leaders focused on how to safely reconvene meetings and events. This program is meant to support the events industry ecosystem and will provide resources and frameworks for approaching new and rigorous Health and Safety standards in the events industry.

AHLA’s Stay Safe program is an industry-wide movement that includes all major U.S. hotel brands and numerous hospitality associations in the U.S. and Canada. These organizations have signed on to adhere to the Stay Safe initiative which, in conjunction with medical experts, has provided hotels with coronavirus safety guidelines and enhanced hotel cleaning practices and protocols for reducing person-to-person contact.

Revive + Innovate: Health & Safety Virtual Event

The hotel industry and the meeting and event industry are to be commended for their ongoing commitment to regaining the trust of weary travelers and customers by focusing on health and safety first. We want to reassure our customers and clients that we have done our due diligence within the meeting and event industry before we begin to meet again.

Additionally, we need to create inclusive experiences that make everyone feel safe. This requires that we change to the ways we communicate with our attendees. When live events start again, we need to meet people where they are, with empathy and understanding.

During our upcoming Health and Safety webinar, our goal is to discuss how we can incorporate updated health and safety guidelines and procedures to reassure our customers and attendees that their well-being and comfort are our number one priority.

As event professionals, we are inviting others to trust in our industry, and we want to assure our business communities that we will do everything we can to uphold the highest standard of care. As an industry, we need to make changes to how we hold meetings and events. It’s a big undertaking, but together we can tackle these challenges.

Here are some of the Health and Safety topics we’re looking forward to exploring:

• How will we approach communication and information sharing with different stakeholders?
• How will the culture of meetings and events change and how can we provide inclusion for it all?
• What should our main transportation concerns?
• Considering the lack of data we hold, how will hotel sourcing and contracting change?
• What new positions might come out of these guidelines?
• How might all of these changes help to evolve the meetings and events industry?
• How will these health guidelines impact risk management onsite?

We look forward to your input as we navigate this phase of COVID-19 response together. Please register for the Safety Dance webinar below and learn more about the Revive + Innovate series here.