On our social media lately, we have been talking about the incredible job our Public Health Team is doing, particularly with contact tracing. It’s time we introduced you to the team and explain why their job is so important to our Darling Downs community.
Who is in the team?
Our Public Health Team is made up of doctors, nurses, environmental health officers, data managers, epidemiologist, administration and logistics officers, and contact tracing officers. Since the coronavirus pandemic, the team has welcomed more members, particularly contact tracing officers.
What does the Public Health team do?
The team focuses on the health of our Darling Downs community. This includes food safety, water safety, immunisations and communicable diseases that spread far and wide that can cause great harm, such as coronavirus.
You may have heard of some of their work throughout the year, such as the Tackle Flu clinics, Cherbourg vet visits and mosquito trapping and school immunisations.
How has coronavirus changed the roles of the team?
Since the outbreak of coronavirus, the Public Health Team has been busy! The whole team has been working hard to respond to coronavirus by identifying cases, giving advice regarding testing, contact tracing and determining who needs to go into quarantine.
Our environmental health team issue isolation and quarantine orders under the Public Health Act, and we follow up with our contacts to make sure they are doing okay. Alongside coronavirus, we still have our normal work to do!
Messages for our community:
We can all help in these uncertain times. Practice cough and sneeze etiquette by using your elbow or tissues. Wash your hands regularly and stay safe. If you need to go out, make sure you don’t interact with lots of people, and maintain social distancing of 1.5metres.
By each one of us doing our part, we can minimise the risk to those most vulnerable in our community.