HOW SAFE IS YOUR HOTEL? How SAFE is your hotel? Most deluxe hotels or beach resort managers and owners feel certain that his/her hotel is very safe indeed. However, don't get too smug, because accidents do happen, no matter what precautions you take – just like at home! A Scenario: There you are, making the rounds one afternoon and checking on everything. You decide to have your daily meal, enter a restaurant, and notice a boisterous group having a rowdy good time. Suddenly, the ‘joker' of the group chokes on a piece of toast because his tipsy wife walks right through a glass door. Don't panic! Call an ambulance while you have some hefty guy grasp the choking man (from behind), put a fist to his stomach (under the ribs in the center) then heave upwards several times, till the air propels the congested bread outwards. Someone else checks on his wife and the seriousness of the cuts from the glass, removes carefully all glass particles, and lightly bandages the cuts to reduce bleeding. Morale: be sure your glass windows or doors are distinguishable! If they are not already etched or fumé, then place stickers - (hotel baggage stickers) - in the center of each glass window, partition, and door. FIRE: How safe are you in case of a sudden fire? Do you have smoke detectors in all your halls, corridors, rooms, Guest Outlets and Executive Rooms, as well as employees' offices? SMOKE DETECTORS: Are the smoke detectors really functioning? FIRE EXTINGUISHERS: Have you tested them lately? And, are your fire extinguishers working? ACCESSIBLE WATER SUPPLY: Is there a nearby and ready functioning water supply? Does your hotel have a water supply, for fire emergencies, and can the water reach all angles and places, top to bottom? Does your fire extinguishing system require regular hoses, as from the Fire Department, but are the hoses dried up, crackling at any crease, or filled with punctures? TRAINED EMPLOYEES: Do your employees know how to use the Fire Extinguishers? Have you trained them, or trained a group from each department on how to use the fire extinguishers? 1st, 2nd, 3rd BURN DEGREES: Do all personnel have full knowledge on how to use the fire extinguishers, and what to do in case of 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree burns? BASIC FIRST AID KNOWLEDGE: Do all your employees have basic First Aid knowledge? For example, what would YOU do if you saw a Guest choking on a piece of meat? Are you trained to cope? If your employees can help themselves, they will be more capable in assisting their colleagues, as well as the Guests. SAFE DEPOSIT BOXES; SAFES: Aside from the physical well being of each guest, all guests should have their own safe deposit boxes, free of charge, at the Front Office, where they are made aware of upon arrival. Your Guests should be informed of their safes in order to put their valuables and important documents, such as gold, jewelry, money, credit cards and passports. However, to safeguard your own hotel's honesty, you must also inform your guests that anything valuable, which eventually is either lost or stolen on the beach or in their rooms, is partially their responsibility; they have safe deposit boxes for the purpose of avoiding loss or theft, but did not use it and did not follow your hotel's Safety Precaution Rules. WHEN GUESTS LOSE THINGS, OR STEAL FROM OTHERS: On the other hand, sometimes Guests may misplace their possessions, forget them on the beach or while shopping, or even (rarely) steal from each other. FEELING SECURE AND SAFE: Conveying to your Guests the sense of safety and security is half the job. But do they feel as secure and sure as you do? BEHAVIOUR OF EMPLOYEES: Little things, irrelevant to security, can make your Guests feel more at ease. Example: Managers should advise their waiters not to hover in little groups and grumble or mumble about their personal problems to each other in the restaurants, cafeterias or coffee shops in front of the Guests; a Guest may feel that they are “plotting” something. APPEARANCE OF MALE EMPOYEES: Defining a young man's features is also more reassuring to your Guests. A neat and clean-shaven face is more likely to make the Guests feel safe and at ease (especially in Housekeeping and Room Service); besides looking less tough and ‘macho'. PRIVACY: Adverse effect: While trying to make your guests feel safe, let them be aware that they are watched over and protected – without letting them actually witness anyone in uniform hovering around them and impeding on their privacy. Furthermore, never let your hotels' guests see guns or holsters; it will give an adverse effect. HYGIENE: You may be the manager/owner of a Deluxe city hotel, or a 5-Stars Beach Resort, with several outlets (restaurants) boasting of magnificent décor, sumptuous buffets, gourmet menus – but somehow your Guests end up having serious stomach disorders, diarrhea, or even food poisoning. No matter how experienced, ‘Continental', or excellent your Executive Chef, Chefs and other Cooks are – if they do not know the basics of hygiene, then they know nothing! At all times, wear rubber or disposable cellophane gloves while cooking or handling food. This is mandatory to avoid possible diseases or microbes being transferred. Big hotel kitchens should be treated as hospitals … no outside personnel should walk in and out of it, like a bus station (as a short cut) – apart from the F & B Staff only. And remember, whether you are 5-Stars or 2-Stars, serve Salmon Fumé or Felafil, a clean kitchen and tasty food will get you Repeat Guests – as well as a good reputation. WATER TANKS & FILTERS: Check the water tanks and water filters, making sure that they are always clean and the filters replaced by new ones, constantly. Analyse your water at a well-known chemist or laboratory on a regular basis. DOCTORS; EMERGENCIES: O.K., so some Guest(s) went and ate outside of your premises, and got sick anyhow. Not your fault, naturally, but you are still responsible. Do you have an emergency First Aid Kit stashed away with the Personnel Department? Does your Hotel have access to a good Doctor, a live-in (resident) Doctor, on a 24-hours availability? What about a hotel Clinic? Are the telephone numbers ready with the Operators of the nearest Hospital and Decompression Units for diving-related emergencies? LIFEGUARDS: Speaking about diving, do you have Lifeguards at your swimming pools or the hotel's beach? POOL CHECK: Swimming pools should be regularly cleaned and the chloroform checked and analyzed, to avoid skin diseases and contamination. Underwater spotlights should be very carefully checked, to avoid electric shocks. BEACH CHECK; DEBRIS IN SAND: Sand on the beaches should be raked (combed) daily and smoothed out, not only to make the beach look neat and pretty, but mainly as a necessary means to rake out the debris or sharp objects which may injure the feet. HANDICAPPED GUESTS: As for your handicapped Guests, hopefully all hotels have smooth wheelchair ramps, apart from the actual wheelchairs. One or 2 wheelchairs for emergencies are expected, including spare crutches or ‘walkers'. ELEVATORS (LIFTS): Wheelchairs should be easily accessible to stairs and elevators, or, makeshift wooden ramps can be built over parts of the steps, and the freight elevators can be used instead, especially in emergencies. Also, are the inside elevator alarms and intercoms functioning? EMERGENCY EXIT DOORS: More than one key personnel must have access to the keys of the Exit doors. Access to the emergency exit should be completely forbidden for everybody, except for the cleaners to clean, and a manager, to see if there are any problems that didn't exist before. DIAGRAMS, DRAWINGS: A drawing should be affixed on both sides of each exit door, indicatiing its purpose. MAPS, LEAFLETS: Each Guestroom must have a brochure with all the emergency telephone hotel numbers, in more than one language, and diagrams or maps of the emergency Exit doors or/and Exit windows, as in trains or buses. BOMB ALERTS - TERRORISM: It is preferable if you get a specialized government or army officer to train managers on what to do if they get bomb threats. Afterwards, the trained managers can train their employees. EVACUATIONS: It is preferable if you get a specialized government or army officer to train managers on what to do if they get bomb threats. Afterwards, the trained managers can train their employees. (Same as above.) However, management must train their staff on how to evacuate the premises in the proper way, without causing panic and chaos. A monthly drill for emergency evacuation is advised. This can extend and include an intensive briefing with the Key Personnel on all aspects of Industrial Safety, Training, Precautions and other drills, just mentioned above. FEMALE DRESS CODE: Let the Guest Relations personnel advise your female Guests not to walk around in the streets, construction sites, or remote areas, without proper clothes. It would be wiser to confine their swimming outfits to the swimming pools and beach areas only. WEATHER: Last, but not least, concerns our summer climate. Egypt does not have distinctive 'four seasons'. It is quite unpredictable and deceptive to foreigners. Therefore, make sure the Guests (i.e. Hotel's paying clientele) are instructed on how to avoid sunstrokes, instead of getting suntans, which they strive for. YOUR WELCOME NOTE: Optional: Welcome Note from General Manager and/or Resort's Physician The Guests should receive a nice printed letter from the Hotel's Doctor (or General Manager) with related information to their health, diving precautions, sun lotions and blockers, hats, feet protection, coral reefs instructions, water consumption, air-conditioning, electricity voltage. _______________ BRIEFLY and IN CONCLUSION: 12 Tips: From a survey of several successful thriving Hotels and Beach Resorts in Egypt, twelve basic tips have been compiled that will ensure your continued safety: ONE: Check validity of all fire detectors, and fire extinguishing functions on a regular basis. TWO: Arrange routine emergency training sessions for personnel in all departments, in what to do and how to assist guests, and escapes & exits. THREE: Organize regular training on basic First Aid to all personnel. FOUR: Distribute flyers to all guests, at all times, related to safety measures, emergency exits, and doctors & personnel contacts during any crisis. FIVE: Show clearly where all emergency exits and emergency lifts or stairways are, by placing arrows on walls and on night lamps. A leaflet map would be a good idea to give to your guests. SIX: Make sure your glass windows, doors, balconies and/or partitions are discernible – to avoid walking through them. SEVEN: Check the cleanliness, sterilization and hygiene of the kitchen areas. Make sure they are always devoid of insects, flies and rodents. Instruct your cooks, chefs & waiters on the importance of wearing gloves when handling food. And, implement this! EIGHT: Check you water tanks, and pool water, to avoid contamination or skin and stomach disorders. NINE: Be sure your pool, beach and play areas are safe for children, as well as for adults. Check the sand for harmful debris or sharp articles that may cause injury. TEN: If you do not have lifeguards, then personnel from the Animation or Recreation groups should be fully trained as lifeguards, and to be on duty constantly. ELEVEN: Be sure to let any handicapped guest feel safe and at home with you, by providing spare wheelchairs or crutches. TWELVE: Security personnel should be stationed at all exits and entrances of the hotel or beach resort, and on the lookout from beach, sea, or street access. They should be courteous, alert, and equipped with mobile phones for speedy contact. Your ultimate goal is to have your Guests enjoy themselves, feel safe, relaxed, happy, remain healthy throughout their stay – and come again. By implementing all the above safety measures, you will become a truly safe haven – and a “home away from home.” ~~~~~~~~ Created, taught, written by Hoda Nassef
