DILG PR
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) will accept applications for contact tracers until tomorrow in all its provincial and city field offices nationwide. The DILG was earlier authorized under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act or Bayanihan 2 Law to hire at least 50,000 contact tracers to ramp up the government’s contact tracing program.
DILG Secretary Eduardo M. Año said that the additional 50,000 contact tracers is “the game-changer in the country’s COVID-response since this will allow us to cut the transmission of the disease and ultimately defeat COVID-19. These 50K contact tracers will greatly amplify our COVID-19 efforts and further decrease our daily cases,” he said.
“The DILG is looking for dedicated and patriotic individuals who want to join the fight against COVID-19. If you want to take an active part in defeating the pandemic, join the DILG Contact Tracing Teams!,” he said.
He said that the 50,000 contact tracers to be hired will be assigned to the various Contact Tracing Teams (CTTs) of the Local Government Units. At present, the Contact Tracing Teams are composite units led by the Municipal/City Health Officers with members from the Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection, Barangay Health Emergency Response Teams (BHERTS), and volunteers from Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).
DILG Undersecretary and Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said Applicants are required to submit an application letter, Personal Data Sheet, National Bureau of Investigation clearance, and drug test result to the nearest DILG provincial or city field office.
He said that contractual personnel whose employment were not renewed, Overseas Filipino Workers whose employment were disrupted, local employees whose service have been recently terminated, and Barangay Health Workers may be given priority in the hiring process if qualified.
Malaya said that to qualify, the applicant must have a Bachelor’s degree or college level in an allied medical course or criminology course. Aspirants must also be skilled in data gathering and have assisted in research and documentation; able to interview COVID-19 cases and close contacts in order to gather data; possess the ability to advocate public health education messages, and have investigative capability.
“While our first preference is college graduates or college level of allied medical courses or criminology, we are also open to graduates or college level of any course. So, they may also apply subject to screening and availability of slots,” he said.
Under the guidelines drafted by the DILG, the contact tracers will earn a minimum of P18,784 per month in a contract of service status. Among their responsibilities are to conduct interviews, profiling, and perform an initial public health risk assessment of COVID-19 cases and their identified close contacts; refer the close contacts to isolation facilities; conduct enhanced contact tracing in collaboration with other agencies and private sectors; conduct daily monitoring of close and general contacts for at least 14 days, and perform such other tasks in relation to the COVID response.
He said that the National Capital Region (NCR) will get 19.2% of the total number of the new contact tracers to be hired for the simple reason that it remains as one of the hot spots of COVID-19. “Mas maraming naitatalang kaso, doon maglalagay ng mas maraming bagong contact tracer. A huge number of these new contact tracers will operate and work in all the regions of country with NCR having the biggest number,” said Malaya.
“It is crucial that a candidate must be willing to do research and investigation because that is the very essence of the job. Iyon ang hinahanap natin, isang tao na magsasaliksik ng mga posibleng kaso ng COVID sa komunidad,” he said.
