Wanted: COVID-19 contact tracing volunteers

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) is looking for volunteers who would help them in the contact tracing of 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients and those they came in contact with.

Health professionals who are “able, healthy, and willing” will render volunteer work for at least five days from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to do contact tracing activities in Metro Manila.

“We are looking for health professionals, healthy, and willing volunteers to commit at least five days of work with the Department of Health Epidemiology Bureau to do contract tracing in Metro Manila, with volunteer hours from 8:00 a.m. to 5 p.m.,” the DOH said in a Twitter post on Monday.

Help DOH in its contact tracing activities by volunteering as a contact tracer!

Know more and sign up at: https://t.co/IHmELYh2Rf pic.twitter.com/GHurAsxaXI

— Department of Health Philippines (@DOHgovph) March 22, 2020

Volunteers could be profilers who would be doing field work or data encoders and call center staff who would be based at the DOH Central Office in Manila.

They may also be deployed to assigned health facilities to interview admitted COVID-19 cases or persons under investigation (PUIs). The DOH will be providing transportation.

The health department will also provide food and communication allowances to volunteers who will be deployed in the field.

Volunteers could also be tasked to consolidate and encode data from interviews into an electronic base.

They will also be oriented by the DOH-Epidemiology Bureau on risks, contact tracing, and training on the proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE).

Willing participants will have to sign up and answer DOH’s survey, after which they will have to wait for confirmation of fitness.

They will also be asked to sign a waiver and a non-disclosure agreement.

GSG