Challenge 4: What are some issues related to Contact Tracing?

Estimated Time: 45 minutes

By working through this module, you’ve probably already realized that contact tracing is an important tool for slowing the spread of COVID-19, but it is not easy to implement. The resources included below present some of the challenges related to contact tracing, such as issues of capacity, equity, and privacy. Approaches to solving the identified issues and problems are also discussed.

Model

Your class has been asked to create a poster, infographic, or other visual display. To contribute to this project, work with one or two other students. Your team should work together to:

1. Select one or more of the resources listed below to review.
2. Identify specific issues or problems related to and related solutions mentioned in your resource.
3. Use index cards or sticky notes (physical or virtual) to manage your notes. Use a separate note for each idea. Consider color-coding to distinguish challenges from solutions. organize your group’s notes into categories (that you create) and/or connect them with lines/arrows to show if/how they are related.
4. Use your poster to explain your findings about contact tracing issues and possible solutions to others.

NOTE: Throughout this challenge in each of the other activities your team will be adding to and revising your poster. Your final product should illustrate the issues/solutions related to contact tracing and how they are interrelated.

Resources

• Article: “The magnitude of America’s contact tracing crisis is hard to overstate”, a National Geographic article that discusses ways contact tracing programs are getting creative to overcome funding shortages, testing delays, case surges, and public distrust.
• Podcast: “Contact Tracing 101: The Public Health Strategy That Could Help Control COVID-19 and Speed Up…"[16:30] from the podcast series “Public Health on Call”. This podcast refers to many topics previously presented in Module 6. In addition, it points out issues and challenges related to effective implementation of contact tracing as a useful mitigation strategy to slow the COVID-19 pandemic
• Podcast: “Identify every case - Successful contact tracing and what it will take to reopen the US” [13:46] from the podcast series “Public Health on Call”. This resource presents information about challenges and strategies associated with scaling up contact tracing in the US.

Activity 2: Issues related to capacity.

Estimated Time: 30 minutes

In order to refine your poster, continue preparing notes for new ideas you discover as you:

Listen

• “Checking In with Dr. Emily Gurley on COVID-19 Contact Tracing” [7:03 - 8:03]]

Read: 3 articles related to contact tracing in Connecticut

• “COVID-19 contact tracers brace for more cases as Connecticut reopens” CT Mirror 6-22-20
• “Coronavirus CT Updates: Contact Tracing Program Revealed”
• “ContaCT: Connecticut's Contact Tracing Platform”

Watch

Collaborate & Revise

• Work together to discuss what you discovered about problems and solutions related to building capacity for effective contact tracing. Add any new notes to your group’s poster, rearranging as needed.

Activity 3: Potential Issues with Fraudulent Calls

Estimated Time: 15 minutes

In order to refine your poster, continue preparing notes for new ideas you discover as you.

Read: 2 articles

• “Contact tracing slows the spread of COVID-19”, is the first section of this web page. Focus on the information in the tan box.
• “Don’t be fooled by COVID-19 Contact Tracing Scam”

Collaborate & Revise

• Work together to discuss what you discovered about problems and solutions related to fraudulent calls. Add any new notes to your group’s poster, rearranging as needed.

Activity 4: Privacy & Sharing in a COVID World

Estimated Time: 30 minutes

In order to continue to revise your poster, keep preparing notes for new ideas you discover as you.

Watch: 3 videos

Read

• “Johns Hopkins Releases Comprehensive Report on Digital Contact Tracing to Aid COVID-19 Response”

Reflect & Discuss

• What are some of the ethical challenges to contact tracing in the United States?
• If you tested positive for COVID-19, would you…
  • Is there personal information you would not be willing to share with a contact tracer? Why?
  • Tell the contact tracer who was at the party you attended the day before you were tested? Why or Why not?
  • Allow an app or Bluetooth technology to identify your past locations to track who you may have infected? Why or Why not?

Collaborate & Revise

• Work together to discuss what you discovered about problems and solutions related to privacy and sharing of personal information. Add any new notes to your group’s poster, rearranging as needed.

Activity 5: Issues Related to Equity

Estimated Time: 30 minutes

In order to continue to revise your poster, keep preparing notes for new ideas you discover as you.

Read: 3 articles

• “Health Equity Considerations and Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups”
• “COVID-19 Hospitalization and Death by Race/Ethnicity”
• “COVID-19 is affecting Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and other people of color most.”

Reflect & Discuss

• In what ways could contact tracing programs help to reduce racial and ethnic inequality related to COVID-19?
• What broad national or state policies should be in place in order to minimize equity issues?

Collaborate & Revise

• Work together to discuss what you discovered about racial and ethnic equity as it relates to CORONA-19. Add any new notes to your group’s poster, rearranging as needed.

Activity 6: Strategies for identifying asymptomatic cases

Estimated Time: 30 minutes

In order to continue to revise your poster, keep preparing notes for new ideas you discover as you.

Read

Contact tracers are concerned that since an asymptomatic person can be infectious it is easy to miss individuals that should be identified as cases. Individuals living in nursing homes, prisons, or shelters are at greater risk of becoming infected, so these are locations where frequent testing should be routine. New technologies have been developed to identify other places where higher-than-normal concentrations of not yet diagnosed cases of COVID-19 can be found and tested to confirm whether or not they should be classified as cases. Of course, these approaches are useful only if sufficient, rapid-results testing is available. Find out about some of these approaches:

• Review an App/Website: “Tracking: How We Feel”

Reflect and Discuss

• In what ways could this technology help identify asymptomatic cases that need to be tested?
• Do you know of similar apps? If so, how do they compare with this one?

Read

• “Yale's Wastewater Sampling Project Used Throughout CT to Predict COVID-19”

Reflect & Discuss

• In what ways could this technology help identify asymptomatic cases that need to be tested?

Collaborate & Revise

• Work together to discuss what you discovered about strategies to improve identification of probably contacts. Add any new notes to your group’s poster, rearranging as needed.

Activity 7: Strategies for finding contacts.

Expected Time: 30 minutes

In order to continue to revise your poster, keep preparing notes for new ideas you discover as you

Watch

Reflect & Discuss

• Explain how bluetooth technology makes this strategy possible and helps maintain privacy.

Watch

Reflect & Discuss

• In what ways could identification of superspreader events help contact tracers identify potential contacts?

Collaborate, Revise & Share

• Work together to discuss what you discovered about strategies to improve identification of probable contacts. Add any new notes to your group’s poster, rearranging as needed.
• Share your results.