Contact Tracing: A Community Engagement 

Checklist for Health Departments 

CS 319545-A 08/08/2020

Health departments often collaborate with other organizations to improve the health and well-being of their 

community. This collaboration can increase acceptance and trust of health department activities such as contact 

tracing in a community. Keep these tips in mind when working with community organizations on contact tracing. 

 Review the key principles of community engagement.

• Community engagement is the process of working collaboratively with and through groups of people affiliated 

by geographic proximity, special interest, or similar situations to address issues affecting their wellbeing.

• Community engagement efforts can increase health equity, promote social connection, strengthen partnerships, 

and build trusting relationships with the community.

Determine the purpose and goals of working with community partners. 

• Work with community partners to develop contact tracing priorities and strategies. While reviewing the contact 

tracing process, think about key areas where community engagement is most needed and could be effective 

in supporting response efforts. Consider the community’s cultures and languages when planning community 

outreach. 

» Is the goal to find contacts who are difficult to reach in a local area with a high number of cases? 

» Is there a need to focus on reaching contacts with high potential for community spread? 

» What is the most effective way to build community awareness and acceptance of the contact tracing process? 

Build relationships and work together with community partners. 

• Health departments should meet with community partners to identify resources and share concerns related to 

COVID-19. Building community partnerships may require a dedicated support person or team with an awareness 

of local COVID-19 conditions and experience in community organizing. A Communities of Practice model may 

be appropriate when facilitating meetings between community partners. 

• Spotlight: Using a Community of Practice (CoP) to improve contact tracing and communications in Virginia. In Richmond, 

Virginia, Hispanic and Latinx individuals represent only 6% of the population but account for 32% of COVID-19 

cases and 30% of COVID-19 related hospitalizations. The Richmond (RCHD) and Chesterfield (CCHD) County 

health districts collaborated with a CDC team of 6 bicultural and bilingual Hispanic/Latinx individuals to 

strategize a local response. The RCHD and CCHD staff identified limitations in cross-coordination between the 

health districts and community partners regarding their COVID-19 response efforts. As a result, the CDC staff 

identified the CoP as a strategy to leverage community resources, share best practices, and collaboratively create 

solutions to meet COVID-19 needs in Richmond and Chesterfield. The CoP workshop facilitated discussions 

cdc.gov/coronavirus
regarding the lack of bilingual/bicultural staff in both RCHD and CCHD required for effective communication, 

contact tracing, and outreach efforts in the Hispanic/Latinx community. 

Take-away: The RCHD hired more bilingual and bicultural staff from Hispanic/Latinx communities to improve the 

contact tracing and communication efforts in Richmond and Chesterfield as a result of the CoP workshop. 

• True community engagement seeks to foster the empowerment of people so they can make life decisions. This 

takes time and sometimes isn’t feasible in a crisis, however, there are immediate steps health departments and 

community representatives can take to build a foundation towards empowerment. Other key questions to 

consider:

» Do health department staff understand the community’s perceptions of illness, methods of disease 

prevention and experiences with the health care system? 

» How can public health workers use plain language to explain case interviews, contact tracing, and COVID-19 

testing to community members? 

» What are the challenges to contact tracing for deeply affected communities? 

» What barriers do community members face in accessing viral tests? 

» What organizations, agencies, and individuals do the community trust?

Ask community members to identify barriers to contact tracing and develop 

potential solutions. 

• Common concerns about contact tracing include: 

» Privacy and confidentiality of health and personal information

» Stigma and discrimination if exposed or tested positive to COVID-19

» Being fired, laid off from work or not being paid while complying with self-quarantine

» Not being able to self-isolate or self-quarantine because of housing that makes preventing transmission 

difficult

• Identify roadblocks to successfully working with a target population. 

» Why is there reluctance to engage in contact tracing? 

» How can public health workers build trust and educate the community about the value and impact of 

contact tracing? 

Develop a communications strategy so that community partners can convey 

clear, consistent messaging about contact tracing to the public. 

• Refer community partners to the CDC Interim COVID-19 Contact Tracing Communications Toolkit for sample 

talking points, public service announcements, and other resources. 

• Help community partners identify the best use of social media and outlets like newsletters, signs, newspapers, 

radio and other media to convey messages about what contact tracing is and how it works.

• Assess whether bilingual health department staff and translation/interpretation services are needed to ensure 

messages and materials are culturally and linguistically appropriate.
Additional resources

ASTDR Principles of Community Engagement Second Edition. 

https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/communityengagement/ 

CDC Interim COVID-19 Communications Toolkit for Health Departments (available in English and Spanish) 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/contact-tracing-comms.html 

CDC Contact Tracing Resources

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/open-america/contact-tracing-resources.html 

CDC Contact Tracing Steps Infographic 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/downloads/Contact-Tracing-Infographic-FINAL.pdf

CDC Health Equity: Promoting Fair Access to Health

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/health-equity/index.html 

CDC Guidance for Health Departments about COVID-19 Testing in the Community

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/open-america/testing.html/

CDC Reaching At-Risk Populations in an Emergency

https://emergency.cdc.gov/workbook/index.asp

cdc.gov/coronavirus