Schools in Pima County, Tucson are having difficulty informing students and staff of the need to quarantine | Local news

The local health department has already quarantined more than 4,000 people who have been exposed in a school setting in the past six weeks since schools in Pima County opened. As of Friday, August 27, there had been 1,235 cases in schools, most of them in high school students, and 50 outbreaks.

The health department’s contact tracing team makes three attempts to reach people who have either been viewed as close contact with someone who tested positive or are part of a classroom where an outbreak has occurred, but more than 60% of calls are not answered or returned immediately .

The schools are working closely with the Department of Health to identify students and staff who may have been exposed to COVID-19 and need to be quarantined, says Heather McGovern, the Department of Health’s epidemiology program manager.

“Schools help us, but it is difficult, and it is way more than last year, and we are all doing our best to support one another in this complex environment,” McGovern said in an email.

Amphi just learned on Aug. 26 that the county contact tracing process has been delayed, but the county is hoping the process will be worked out, Amphi spokeswoman Michelle Valenzuela said.

“We believe that in the future, the county will be able to provide close contact information within a day of the positive case depending on what time of day the case is reported and the ability to get in touch with all parties.” She said.

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