Recognizing the Forgotten Frontline of COVID-19

Since its inception, the field of Public Health has focused on preventing, researching, monitoring, and responding to the largest health threats to morbidity and mortality at any given time. From the moment the emerging COVID-19 pandemic began unfolding in Wuhan, China, public health agencies in Colorado and across the country began planning for and anticipating the impact and needs that would arise in our communities.

After decades of underfunding, the country is now looking to public health to deploy a coordinated response to contain the spread of COVID-19 and move our country back to ‘normal.’  Public health professionals are once again being asked to do more with less, and continue to occupy the forgotten frontline as fear and uncertainty compete with data and best practice.

Trailhead Institute stands by our public health workforce, including local public health staff and administrators, health care professionals, first responders and others who continue to prioritize the health and well-being of our communities. While accessible, accurate testing and treatment will stop the spread of this pandemic, they are the essential workers without which this crisis would be even worse than imaginable. They are the heroes supporting our local communities. They are keeping us going. They are making a difference. And we know that they will be the ones, once the hospital surge is over, once Emergency Operations Centers disband, once the public goes back to a new “normal”, who will still be on the frontlines of COVID-19 continuing to prevent disease, promote health, and protect our communities.

Inexplicably, public health’s role in the COVID-19 response has become a politicized issue. Political rhetoric, division, and misinformation are all taking a heavy toll on the public health workforce and our communities. As we work with our public health colleagues to coordinate efforts across the state, the nation, and the globe, Trailhead will continue to recognize and remember those who are truly on the frontline of this outbreak. Their work helps ensure that the most vulnerable of us have the best possibility of being healthy and safe. Please join us in saying *Thank You* to the public health workforce for all they do, during and beyond these uncertain times.

Go to the  Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment website for the latest updates about COVID-19 in Colorado.

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