The Contact Tracing Service (CTS) is today taking a major step forward, moving to a ‘digital first’ model which will provide online self-service contact tracing for the majority of people who test positive. This innovative system will contact people with a positive test result by text message and provide them with a personal code which they can use at a dedicated website to input details of people with whom they were in recent close proximity. The identity of people using this service will be protected and will not be shared with those whose contact details they have provided. The information

The Public Health Agency (PHA) has introduced a new text alert model for close contacts of positive COVID-19 cases. This will strengthen the speed of the Contact Tracing Service (CTS) as case numbers, and the number of subsequent contacts, increases. Dr Gerry Waldron, Head of Health Protection at the PHA, said: “Contact tracing is an essential part of the Test, Trace and Protect programme. The model is kept under constant review and we have been working on developing an SMS text option to alert close contacts of confirmed cases as soon as their details are entered into our system, which means

The Joint Public Health Annual Conference brings together a host of speakers working in public health and will take place over half a day. There will be a number of keynote speakers and various breakout sessions. Participate in the Joint Public Health Annual Conference by sharing your work on public health and COVID-19. The theme this year is COVID-19 - picking up the pieces. The focus will be on inequalities, such as ethnicity, deprivation, etc. The deadline for abstract submission is Friday 16 October 2020. Please submit abstracts here.

The issue of death and dying is one which we often, as a society find difficult to talk about, particularly with our frail and elderly loved ones. Few of us want to consider the end. With the pandemic sweeping across the world this year, this issue has been brought into sharp focus for many. A recent survey found that 74% of people had never prepared a statement of their end of life wishes or preferences and only 11% had discussed this with family and friends. Paul Turley, Commissioning lead for Palliative and End of Life Care, Health and Social Care Board said, “Talking about dying, death and

The Public Health Agency (PHA) is calling on parents of children aged 2-12 to get them vaccinated against flu. This will help protect not only them but also those around them, particularly older grandparents or relations with an underlying health condition. Children in particular can increase the spread of the flu virus in the community, but vaccination helps curb this. This year, given the impact COVID-19, the childhood flu vaccination programme has been extended. Not only will pre-school and primary school children be offered the vaccine, but those in Year 8 of secondary school will also be