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The recent spike in cases of MERS is a matter of growing concern to businesses with people travelling through, or working, in the Middle East. Over 800 cases of MERS have been reported worldwide, including at least 300 deaths; in Saudi Arabia there have been 688 cases with 282 deaths.

Every year many business travellers contract unpleasant diseases such as typhoid, yellow fever, Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B. Suddenly a productive and successful business trip turns into weeks off work, recovering from an acute illness that could so easily have been avoided.

It is a fact that a person could go days without food and hours without water, but would last only a few minutes without air. Air is pivotal to us, but what happens to your employees in countries where there is hazardous air pollution? Can it stop your people from achieving your business objectives?

Tsunamis, floods and forest fires happen all too often, as do earthquakes, hurricanes and other extreme weather events. Global organisations consider their business travellers and expatriates are at medium risk of hurricanes, typhoons and tsunamis whilst on assignment. 52% of large organisations report dealing with occurrences of these threats over a three-year period.

Managers are in danger of being drawn into a very low level of detail that could be addressed more efficiently: time spent tracking people down and trying to communicate could be reduced in order to make additional time for addressing the bigger picture.

During Ramadan, it is important for organisations to promote healthy routines to their workforce. Often, key indicators for lifestyle-related conditions are not often checked and known.

Road safety isn't just about being a safer driver. Sometimes, the safest option is not to drive at all. If you don’t know the rules of the road, highway conditions, or local language, you may be better off arranging transportation with a trusted and vetted provider.

For organisations, Russia can pose various challenges when trying to comply with their health and safety regulations. Organisations have a moral and legal responsibility to provide Duty of Care to their employees and understanding the Occupational Health standards in the country is the first step.