Contact tracing jobs expected to help health departments in the East

North Carolina health leaders are preparing to hire and train staff to support existing efforts of local health departments to track the transmission of COVID-19 in our state.

The new hires will perform a job called contact tracing and will assist health departments when more widespread COVID-19 testing begins.

Pamela Brown is the Lenoir County Public Health Director and in one of the counties expected to get additional workers.

"The whole purpose of contact tracing is to figure out who has the disease, and who they've been around, and to get those folks to stay at home. And, that way, we break that chain of transmission," said Brown.

Pitt County Public Health Director Dr. John Silvernail said the state will be responsible for hiring. The job is considered safe and will be done mostly by phone. Contact tracing is already implemented in health departments and the new positions will add to those existing jobs as more testing begins. Silvernail said he's hoping the jobs will help them continue meeting requirements from the state. ​

He said, “The state is looking to hire additional folks. They really want to see testing ramped up across the state. Using national guidance, they want to see us able to test two percent of our population per month."

Governor Roy Cooper said he expects 250 additional new hires.

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary, Dr. Mandy Cohen, said recruiting has already begun and around one thousand people have submitted interest in the job.

You can apply at communitycarenc.org.