ROCK ISLAND, Illinois — The Rock Island County Health Department says about half of the people contact tracers call don't answer the phone. Both positive cases and their close contacts are called three times, and left voicemail messages, before a letter is sent to their home.
Janet Hill, Chief Operating Officer, says most people do contact the health department after receiving that letter.
"People understand that when something official is sent, it's serous," she says. "They understand that they have to do their part to help the community."
There are 15 contact tracers working for the department right now, with each person making about 30 calls a day. Half of those are call backs from previously unanswered calls. Each positive case means about 30 minutes on the phone with a contact tracer, and about 10 minutes with each of their close contacts.
Contact Tracer Tricia Day says says the person on the other line reacts one of two ways.
"If the person is comfortable, it's a very smooth conversation," she says. "They understand that the information we're gathering is very important to learn about (COVID-19)."
Or, Day says they can be tightlipped about who their close contacts are.
"They don't want to put someone else out of a paycheck. That's what I would guess," she says. "They understand if they release a close contact, they will have to quarantine."
The department says it could soon hire more contact tracers, if cases increase and the positivity rate doesn't improve. Right now, the county's positivity rate is at 9.4 percent, and if all of Region Two's metrics reach that level, mitigation efforts could be possible on local businesses.
Hill says the entire community can do their part to get the COVID-19 spread under control, by staying smart, safe and limiting their holiday gatherings.
"I get people are tired of this. Pandemic fatigue is real. However, the pandemic isn't going away anytime soon," Hill says. "We have to become extra vigilant again like we were at the beginning (of the pandemic)."