County health department modifies contact tracing approach

By Laura Schiermeier, Staff Writer
Posted 12/2/20

As COVID-19 testing expands and cases increase across the state, health departments are struggling to keep up with contact tracing and will modify its approach.

Delay in contact tracing has …

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County health department modifies contact tracing approach

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As COVID-19 testing expands and cases increase across the state, health departments are struggling to keep up with contact tracing and will modify its approach.

Delay in contact tracing has resulted from a variety of factors. It may take several days for the local health department to receive positive results. It may not receive all lab results. Not all lab results have the correct contact information and many do not have contact information at all. Many people avoid answering the phone or do not give complete information. An increasing number of positive cases are declining to disclose their direct contacts and instead report that they will notify their contacts on their own. An increasing number of contacts believe they are incorrectly being named as direct contacts by cases and would rather be contacted by the person they know than a public health professional.

Health Departments across the region have worked tirelessly to contact each and every positive case as well as all close contacts. However, cases continue to rise. With widespread community transmission of COVID-19, contact tracing has shown to be ineffective in determining where a case may have been exposed to COVID-19 or which individuals they may have exposed during their communicable period.

After exploring expedited contact tracing and community mitigation strategies, the Phelps-Maries County Health Department, in conjunction with the Region I Health Departments, are shifting to a modified approach to contact tracing which will allow positive cases to immediately notify their contacts as soon as they receive positive lab results.

Moving forward, individuals do not need to wait for instructions or information from their respective health department. Those that are positive for COVID-19 should refer to the COVID-19 Patient Guidance Tool. This form will be pinned to the top of the health department’s Facebook page. An emailed copy can be requested by calling (573) 458-6010 or emailing phelpsmariesCOVID19@phelpscounty.org.

Given the rapidly increasing cases of COVID-19 on a daily basis, the health department also will be prioritizing case investigation to the most vulnerable populations. All positive cases will be expected to notify their contacts. This will eliminate the wait time and hopefully, stop people from unknowingly spreading the virus. The health department is also hopeful that people will feel more comfortable telling their contacts about their positive result versus a stranger on the phone.

The Phelps-Maries Health Department will continue to assist places where outbreaks are more likely to occur, such as businesses, schools, and long-term care facilities. Contact tracing may still be implemented in those situations.

The Phelps-Maries Health Department will no longer be calling close contacts of positive cases. Instead the department will focus efforts on case investigations and household contact quarantine. Persons who get a call from their doctor with a positive result, will need to take immediate action to slow the spread of the virus within their friends, family and coworkers by following the outlined steps on COVID-19 Patient Guidance Tool handout. Please do not wait for a call from the health department to implement your own contact tracing.

Person who receive a positive test result need to notify everyone with whom they have had close contact. A close contact is anyone  who was within 6 feet of for more than 15 minutes total starting two days prior to becoming symptomatic, regardless of the use of cloth face coverings. A close contact is also someone they were within the same closed space for an hour or longer, such as a small room or a vehicle. This could be a large number of people.

The health department is urging the citizens to take action now to reduce that number on a daily basis. Keeping your distance from those outside of your household is important in limiting the spread of COVID-19.

The health department has observed clusters of positive cases at local businesses, group gatherings, and long-term care facilities. They have also seen numerous cases from household exposures to a known case.

The health department is urging everyone to continue to take responsibility for their own health and to protect others. Please reconsider hosting or attending gatherings that bring together people that are outside of your normal interactions, especially if physical distancing cannot be maintained. These activities are high risk for transmission of the virus. Please adhere to physical distancing recommendations and limit contact with others outside of your household.