CLC Offers Contact Tracing Certificate

LAKE COUNTY, IL — The College of Lake County is now offering training in contact tracing in an effort to help in local efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19. Certificate of Contact Tracing Proficiency (CCPT) is an online instruction course through the college’s learning partner 4Med, according to a news release from CLC.

“Contact tracing has been identified as a crucial component to navigating, and recovering from, the COVID-19 virus,” said CLC vice president of Community and Workforce Partnerships Ali O’Brien. “In support of this effort, CLC is delivering a key workforce solution by training individuals and helping connect them to employment opportunities.”

Illinois Coronavirus Update June 12: 130,603 Cases, 6,185 Deaths

Contact tracers interview people recently diagnosed with COVID-19 and notify their close contacts of potential exposure so they can get tested and quarantined, limiting further spread of the virus, according to a CLC news release.

Anyone can register for the six to eight-hour self-paced online training, although it is best suited for people who are organized and effective communicators, according to a news release from CLC. The CCPT course covers all the guidelines and protocols established by the Centers for Disease Control in preparation for a contact tracer job.

The Lake County Health Department is among two Illinois health departments selected in Governor J.B. Pritzker’s Illinois Contact Tracing Collaborative, a locally-driven approach to scale up contact tracing in Illinois. The Lake County Health Department is now hiring COVID-19 Case Investigators.

These jobs are funded by federal CARES money and hourly pay will be determined in accordance with salary rates in Lake County, according to CLC officials.

The CCPT certificate is a $49 investment and you can apply the code CLC20 to receive a 20 percent discount. Those interested can enroll online.