To break the chains of transmission of Covid-19, agents of the Health Insurance contact-tracing platform inform positive cases so that they can isolate themselves. In Haute-Garonne, there are currently more than 3,000 people to contact every day.
Telephone headphones on, precise questionnaire displayed on the computer screen, they are “tracking” the Covid-19. They are the agents of the contact-tracing platform of the CPAM (Health Insurance) of Haute-Garonne. From Monday to Sunday, from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., installed in a building on Place Occitane in Toulouse (due to work on the headquarters site, boulevard Escande), 64 people are responsible for contacting people declared positive for Covid-19. The primary objective is to enforce isolation measures to break the chain of contamination.
A work in the shadows which in recent days has taken on the appearance of a race against the clock in the face of the multiplication of the number of infected people. Thus of 665 positive cases per day on December 13, Haute-Garonne had 1,575 on December 27 and 3,781 on December 29. Far from the hundred people to contact in November …
Priority to isolation of “Omicron” positives
So the tracking strategy adapts. “Our priority is on the positives suspected of having the Omicron variant according to the indications of the laboratories. These are put at the top of the list of people to contact”, summarizes Natacha Delbosc who co-pilots the contact- platform. tracing of the CPAM Haute-Garonne. And when calls go unanswered or all positive people could not be contacted, an SMS message is sent. It contains isolation recommendations for oneself and those close to them, a link to the declaration service for work stoppages and contact cases. “To lighten the load, our systems are becoming more and more automated and we only make one call attempt without leaving a message. Currently, it is not possible to reach everyone and not all the called people go off hook. not: one in two calls is unsuccessful but policyholders are receptive to SMS and know what to do, ”adds Natacha Delbosc. “When they drop out, people are generally happy to have us, they wait for this call and know what process is in place”, adds Stéphane Cobigo, deputy director of the CPAM Haute-Garonne, in charge of the health department.
And when the call is well received, the list of contact cases climbs quickly. “The number of contact cases is huge compared to last year when, at the same time, bars and restaurants were closed, and we were under curfew. Life has resumed and the omicron variant is more contagious, we sees it clearly: when a case is listed in the family, it is common for the whole table to be positive, “says Natacha Delbosc.
“At each period, our questionnaire adapts. We had people returning from travel, those in schools and associations and now we are mainly on lists of contact cases within the family unit and Christmas meals” , slips Corinne Compans who has been working on the contact tracing platform since May 2020. “And I am still just as motivated. I feel useful, our information and our support are precious for many people, especially the most isolated”.
Positive test: the procedure to follow
In the event of a positive test, here is the action to take that you can find on the Health Insurance website. It should be noted that the recommendations may still evolve, in particular on the duration of isolation.
-If you have done an antigen test, perform an RT-PCR test as soon as possible. To avoid false positive cases (there are some) and to ensure virus and variant tracing.
– You must isolate yourself for 10 days from the first symptoms or from the date of the positive sample in the absence of symptoms. In case of temperature at 10e day, it is advisable to wait an additional 48 hours after the fever has disappeared to complete isolation. If you have difficulty breathing, immediately call 15 (or 114 for people who are deaf or hard of hearing).
-You must list the people with whom you had contact 48 hours before the onset of symptoms, or 7 days before if there were no symptoms. If you can, tell them as soon as possible so they can isolate themselves and get tested.
–
–
–
