Local businesses aren't just relying on flu shots to protect their employees and customers, some say they are taking extra steps this flu season.
FOX 47 went to the administration office of Lansing's Head Start and to Impression Five Science Center.
Both businesses told us that flu season means they are wiping everything down multiple times throughout the day to try and reduce the number of germs and bacteria circulating.
These extra precautions are necessary because they're working with kids.
Teresa Spitzer, the health programs manager of Head Start said: "if we know there is an outbreak in the classroom we're doing it [disenfecting] more often, it is individualized if we have an outbreak of something."
With 1,700 children enrolled in the Head Start program, Spitzer said tables are some of the most important areas to wipe down, especially those used for eating.
"Fingers in the mouth, kids coughing and sneezing over surfaces," Spitzer listed as the key reasons for increased disinfection.
The Impression Five Science Center also sees its share of kids and the germs they can bring with them. The staff cleans top to bottom twice a day with a highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide.
"We do the entire science center to make sure it's clean and prepared for our guests to combat any viruses or bacteria that's going around," said Marcel Jackson, the operation supervisor at Impression Five.
Just like with Head Start, the museum constantly wipes down its surfaces once kids leave an area.
Jackson said, "At the end of the day there will be sick children coming through the science center, the only thing we can do is do the cleaning as much as we can to try and prevent that."
The museum is also putting hand sanitizer stations around the exhibits to help prevent the spread of the flu virus.
By law, workers in the state of Michigan are not required to get a flu shot but many businesses like the museum and Head Start offer the vaccination to their staff for free.
FOR SOME MORE ADVICE ON PROTECTING YOURSELF FROM THE FLU, CLICK LINK BELOW:
LINK: CDC TIPS TO FIGHT FLU
