The Communicable Disease (CD) program currently includes two public health nurse positions to conduct case investigations, patient follow-up, and provider response and consultation (one of these positions is currently vacant and historically difficult to fill).
During 2021, the CD team responded to 568 communicable disease case reports and approximately 90 foodborne-illness complaints. These were comprised of enteric (51%), vaccine-preventable diseases (24%), zoonotic diseases (18%), and other (7%).
The current staffing level has presented challenges in the ability to respond to all complaints as well as maintain response levels during staff vacancies and leave of absences. A disease interventionist would provide valuable support and better capacity for managing baseline caseloads, particularly in the event of an outbreak or during complex investigations such as measles. This position would also play a key role as Prevention Services and the CD program continue to plan for absorbing COVID-outbreak-response activities outside of an incident command structure. The proposed primary function of this disease interventionist would be to support the current CD team by taking lead on foodborne-illness intake and investigation and would also provide capacity for Hepatitis C investigations.
The approximate annual cost for a disease intervention specialist is $63,108 - $84,564 plus benefits (an assumption of 30%).
The funding for this position would come from Foundational Public Health funds and would support the area of reinforcing capacity.