As misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic seemingly spills into almost every nook and cranny of the internet, some public health professionals in Alaska are countering false claims and myths in an embattled space: Facebook comment threads.
In December and January, UAA’s Alaska Airlines Center (AAC) became a focal point for two critical COVID-19 mitigation efforts. In the same time frame, several UAA faculty, staff and students contributed to a report on the effects of Anchorage’s COVID-19 emergency orders. The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) announced on Dec. 9 that the AAC had been established as the state-run infusion center for two new monoclonal antibody therapies that can reduce the severity of COVID-19 infections.
DPHS Assistant Professor Kristin Bogue and Gloria Burnett, director of the AK Center for Rural Health and Health Workforce, spoke with Alaska Business Magazine about ramping up contact tracing efforts when COVID hit Alaska.
Contact tracing is an essential part of combating the spread of Covid-19. Not only do contact tracers work to discover where a person infected with the coronavirus may have contracted it, they also attempt to inform others about possible infection. But there is a lot more to the complicated work that they do. In this episode we’ll be hearing from Annie Thomas. She’s been a nurse for about fifteen years, and currently she is the project manager for the UAA Surge Contact Tracing team. She is also the owner of Managing Me Enterprises which does retreats for teens to help them build community cohesion and resilience.
Public health is a noble calling, largely unappreciated until recent events (namely, a global pandemic) shone new light on its importance. We need public health workers and leaders now more than ever.
