Will Co. At COVID-19 Warning Level; WCHD Ramps Up Contact Tracing

WILL COUNTY, IL — Will County is now at a warning level — also knows as the orange level — for the coronavirus. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, a county enters a warning level when two or more coronavirus risk indicators increase.

Other Illinois counties on the latest list included Bureau, Cass, Clinton, Franklin, Greene, Grundy, Hancock, Jefferson, Kane, LaSalle, Moultrie, Perry, and Union.

Will County is at this level due to an increase in new cases per and a two-week increase in percentage of visits to the hospital for Coronavirus Like Illness. As of Friday, IDPH reports 93 cases per 100,000 residents, after a rate of 71 cases per 100,000 residents the previous week. The target for this is less than 50. The positivity rate in the county is at 6.8 percent, which is also close to reaching the warning level at 8 percent.

Counties with increased COVID-19 activities are asked to implement measures for increased testing and contact tracing. The Will County Health Department said in a release Monday that it has already been doing both.

For testing, the Will County Community Health Center Mobile Medical Unit has been participating in both walk-in and congregate testing for several months. For the latest schedules, visit here.

The department had ramped up the Contact Tracing Program last month. To slow the spread of the virus, contact tracers reach out to someone who tests positive to make sure they're self-isolating, and then attempt to find out who they were in contact with who might also be at risk of infection.

WCHD received a $4.9 million grant from IDPH to hire contact tracers, managers, nurses, and even IT support to ensure that information gathered during the pandemic remains confidential.

Thus far, the newly hired contact tracers in Will County are finding a disturbing "mixed bag" of attitudes within the county’s residents identified as close contacts. Currently, 30 contact tracers are working various remote shifts, making phone calls from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Up to 60 contact tracers may eventually be hired, the WCHD release stated.

Contact Tracers Program Manager Angela Maffeo said contact tracers making the calls are definitely noticing too much of a "so what" attitude.

"At first, they are often willing to talk, but then they stop when our contact tracers ask about who they were with at the location where they may have picked up the virus," she said. "They don’t want to tell on anybody, even though it is crucial that these close contacts be informed and told to quarantine to avoid potentially spreading the virus to others."

WCHD Contact Tracers Program Manager Susan O’Keefe said people not caring about those beyond their own households is another problem.

"You often hear the attitude of, ‘what’s in it for me?’ In other words, if their family is okay, they feel they don’t have to worry," she said. "Or even within their own family, you might have four people test positive after going to an event, and then the one person who tests negative thinks he or she is home free. That’s not true. They could still become symptomatic later, or still pass it on to someone else. They need to stay isolated for 14 days, starting with the last day they may have been exposed to the person who is in the infectious period."

Both Maffeo and O’Keefe both have noticed that someone getting tested for COVID-19 still indulges in the daily activities such as social gatherings etc. while waiting for the results.

"They can’t just say, ‘okay I did the right thing and got tested, now I can go back to regular life.’ That is dangerous," Maffeo said. "Because if the test does turn out positive a few days later, they may have exposed many other people to COVID-19 by the time the contact tracer calls them."

O’Keefe said those who attend events with a small group of people, just end up ignoring the guideline about keeping 6 feet of social distance.

"It’s a basic attitude of, ‘I’m over it already. I’m going to this small birthday or graduation party.’ But if they don’t observe social distancing and don’t wear a mask, then go to another small gathering and then another, they are still behaving dangerously," she said. "We are a very mobile society. Even if we stay put, others are driving all over the county and coming from other counties. We know of a family that hardly ever left the house because a couple of them had compromised health situations. They were just running occasional errands for food or to the bank, and yet, one of them caught Coronavirus."

Another complication being studied on the fly is how to assist with the mental health perspective of the contact tracers themselves.

"This is very challenging work,” O’Keefe said. "They might be talking to someone with a small infant who could be or already is infected. Or speaking with a patient who is already in the hospital and now has more to worry about. During our weekly virtual Teams meetings for the tracers we work hard on keeping our spirits up. And that’s another challenge for now and the future."

To keep Illinois from going back a phase or two in the reopening plan, Maffeo and O’Keefe said people need to follow all guidelines concerning mask wearing, social distancing, staying away from large gatherings, and washing their hands frequently.

When a contact tracer calls, the caller ID should read “COVID CONTACT,” with the phone number (312) 777-1999. They can provide a written excuse from work or school, and even a written notice that says someone is cleared to return to work.

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