Contact tracers as knowledge-makers

ABSTRACT

Contact tracing is one of the primary tools in interrupting the transmission of infectious disease, including COVID-19. Contact tracing has been shown to be a set of varied roles and contextualized practices. It is essential that contact tracer training reflect this complexity, and prepare and support contact tracers to engage in this multilayered work. However, there are potential obstacles to preparing and supporting contact tracers beyond necessary knowledge and skills, including dominant discourses which position contact tracers as mere technicians responsible for delivering information. Contact tracing involves professional decision-making, negotiation and deliberation. Contact tracers have first-hand knowledge of these roles and practices. Those who do the work of contact tracing need to be able to learn from each other and to generate knowledge. Suggestions are given for how contact tracer training may invite and structure such learning, and recognize contact tracers as knowledge-makers.The knowledge generated by contact tracers can inform future health communication and public health workforce development efforts.

KEYWORDS:

• Contact tracing
• contact tracer training
• professional learning
• workforce development
• critical theory
• reflective practice
• communication
• COVID-19

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Anne Marie Liebel

Anne Marie Liebel Ed.D. is President of Health Communication Partners LLC and administrator of h-cpartners.com, a site dedicated to equity-oriented health communication, health literacy, and patient education resources for medicine and public health. She is writer and host of ‘10 Minutes to Better Patient Communication’ podcast series.