Rural health departments have led the charge in educating their communities about the COVID-19 virus and say the increased interest will help them spread other health-related messages to their audience.
Todd County Health Department Director Jen Harris said before COVID-19, they primarily utilized social media to promote educational health programs. Since the pandemic began in March, Harris said they have seen engagement on their sites more than double.
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One concern health department officials have is that constant coverage of COVID-19 may see other important health programs and questions get moved to the back burner. Harris said they have started using live updates to keep people in the loop about COVID-19 and other health issues.
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Harris said she has taught a puberty class in the Todd County School System for nearly 20 years and has moved that class online this week which allows both the child and parent to attend at the same time and get questions answered.She also said a cooking class featuring dietician Devon Jenkins has been a popular social media feature.
Harris said another important program the Todd County Health Department oversees is case managing an HIV program for south-central Kentucky.
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The topic of contact tracing people who test positive for COVID-19 has been controversial to some people, but Harris says health departments have been conducting that type of tracing for years in other areas.
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The Todd County Health Department has been giving back to school shots this week at different locations in the county and will begin offering free virtual prenatal classes next week.
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