Protective Behaviors Following Digital COVID-19 Exposure Notifications, Washington State, September 1, 2021, to March 1, 2022.

Context: Digital exposure notification (EN) systems were widely used to supplement public health case investigations and contact tracing during the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. In Washington State, the state Department of Health (DOH) implemented one such system, WA Notify, which generated ENs based on smartphone Bluetooth proximity detection. However, the privacy preserving measures of this technology prevented collection of information on how users responded after seeing an EN on their device.

Integration of Jail Booking and HIV Surveillance Data to Facilitate Care Coordination.

Many people with HIV (PWH) in jail have not been well engaged in HIV treatment in the community. This study aimed to assess the impact of a data exchange paired with care coordination for PWH on HIV outcomes after jail release. We developed an automated process to match jail booking records with HIV surveillance data.

Evaluation of the effectiveness of Washington State's digital COVID-19 exposure notification system over one pandemic year.

Introduction: Digital exposure notifications are a novel public health intervention used during the COVID-19 pandemic to alert users of possible COVID-19 exposure. We seek to quantify the effectiveness of Washington State's digital exposure notification system, WA Notify, as measured by the number of COVID-19 cases averted during a 1-year period.

Methods: While maintaining individuals' privacy, WA Notify collected data that could be used to evaluate the system's effectiveness.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the State Enteric Disease Public Health Workforce in the Western United States, March-April 2022.

Objective: To assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the state-level enteric disease workforce and routine enteric disease surveillance and outbreak investigation activities in the western United States.

Design And Setting: Key informant interviews conducted using bidirectional video from March to April 2022.

Participants: Enteric disease epidemiologists at state public health agencies in the western states served by the Colorado and Washington Integrated Food Safety Centers of Excellence.

Use of Digital COVID-19 Exposure Notifications at a Large Gathering: Survey Analysis of Public Health Conference Attendees.

Background: WA Notify was Washington State's smartphone-based COVID-19 digital exposure notification (EN) tool, which was used to help limit the spread of COVID-19 between November 30, 2020, and May 11, 2023. Following the 2022 Washington State Public Health Association Annual Conference, attendees who had WA Notify activated began receiving ENs alerting them to a possible COVID-19 exposure during the conference. A survey was emailed to all conference attendees to measure WA Notify adoption, mechanisms through which attendees received ENs, and self-reported engagement in protective behaviors postexposure.