Everyone has a role to play in the COVID-19 pandemic. It is important that individuals feel empowered to make decisions that protect themselves and their community.
The community is the front line for early identification of possible COVID-19 cases. As such, it is critical that there is a reporting system in place where community can report unusual incidents to the public health authorities.
Once concerns about a possible case or cluster are identified, the community-based system needs to rapidly trigger the surveillance team to investigate, isolate, test and treat as needed, as well as monitor and quarantine contacts to reduce the chance of further transmission.