Journal of public health management and practice : JPHMP
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J Public Health Manag Pract · Jan 2021
COVID-19 Case Investigation and Contact Tracing: Early Lessons Learned and Future Opportunities.
Case investigation and contact tracing are fundamental public health strategies for controlling and preventing the spread of infectious diseases. Although the principles behind these strategies are not new, the capacity and operational requirements needed to support disease investigation during the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic are unprecedented. This article analyzes the implementation of case investigation and contact tracing in controlling COVID-19 transmission during the early stages of the US pandemic response (January 20 through August 31, 2020). ⋯ Lessons learned from disease intervention specialists, guidance and resources from federal agencies and national partners, and peer-to-peer exchange of promising practices can support jurisdictions encountering early implementation challenges. Further research is needed to assess COVID-19 case investigation and contact tracing program models and innovations, as well as strategies for implementing these activities during containment and mitigation phases.
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J Public Health Manag Pract · Jan 2021
Public Health Across Partisan Lines: What Has Changed Since the Onset of COVID-19.
Two polls were conducted by an independent polling firm in September 2018 and July 2020 to assess public perceptions of public health departments and services among voters in the United States. The poll also sought to uncover changes in perception before and after the onset of COVID-19. A random sample was drawn from state voter files proportional to the national registered voter population by state, with quotas set by specific demographics to ensure representativeness. ⋯ In 2020, 85% of Democrats perceived the public health department to be very important while only 62% of their Republican counterparts felt similarly. Public health advocates have a unique opportunity to demand sustained funding for public health as American voters are more familiar and supportive of public health departments now than they were before the pandemic. In addition, policy makers, elected officials, and political candidates have the opportunity to leverage these data to fight for the health of their communities.
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J Public Health Manag Pract · Jan 2021
Creating a Blueprint for the Future: Lessons Learned From Public Health Laboratories in the COVID-19 Response.
Public health laboratories have played a central role in the US response to COVID-19. Since the earliest days, myriad issues have impeded the laboratory community's ability to keep pace with the overwhelming demand for effective tests. In this article, the Association of Public Health Laboratories and a subset of its members examine the response to date and evaluate lessons learned from 4 main categories: testing surges, supplies, staffing, and regulations and policy. Within these categories, the authors offer recommendations intended both to improve the ongoing COVID-19 response and to strengthen planning for future outbreaks.
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J Public Health Manag Pract · Jan 2021
Responding to the Pandemic: Challenges With Public Health Surveillance Systems and Development of a COVID-19 National Surveillance Case Definition to Support Case-Based Morbidity Surveillance During the Early Response.
Responding to introductions of diseases and conditions of unknown etiology is a critical public health function. In late December 2019, investigation of a cluster of pneumonia cases of unknown origin in Wuhan, China, resulted in the identification of a novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Multiple public health surveillance actions were rapidly implemented to detect introduction of the virus into the United States and track its spread including establishment of a national surveillance case definition and addition of the disease, coronavirus disease 2019, to the list of nationally notifiable conditions. Challenges in conducting effective case-based surveillance and the public health data supply chain and infrastructure are discussed.