Open AccessContact Tracing: A Clarion Call for National Training Standards
Author(s) -
Bettina M. Beech,
Le Chauncy D. Woodard
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
ethnicity and disease
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.767
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1945-0826
pISSN - 1049-510X
DOI - 10.18865/ed.30.3.437
Subject(s) - contact tracing , certification , public health , covid-19 , medicine , psychology , medical education , public relations , political science , nursing , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , law , disease
As of late May 2020, more than 1.5 million people had tested positive for coronavirus infection in the United States; however, only 3% of Americans had been tested. However, testing is only one of the key elements in the effort to control communicable diseases. There is a need to investigate others who may have been exposed to the virus; this can be accomplished through a foundational public health strategy – contact tracing. Most public health students and professionals have been introduced to the concept of contact tracing; however, competency in this area is undetermined. The purpose of this perspective is to call for national standards for contact tracing training programs that lead to a widely recognized certification process. Ethn Dis. 2020;30(3):437-440; doi:10.18865/ed.30.3.437