Dr. Paul Persaud, Faculty, Trident
For a virus without a vaccine, contact tracing is one of the most effective ways to deter its spread. The importance of contact tracers during the outbreak of a communicable disease cannot be overstated. – Dr. Paul Persaud.
CYPRESS, Calif. (PRWEB)
July 06, 2020
Dr. Thakur “Paul” Persaud, a part-time faculty member in Trident at American InterContinental University’s (Trident) College of Health and Human Services, has led a proactive charge against the spread of COVID-19 as the Director of Public Health in the City of Paterson, NJ.
His leadership has helped to mitigate the spread of the virus, with Paterson’s death rate among those who have tested positive for coronavirus sitting below the state average. The New York Times and National Public Radio, among others, have taken notice of his strategy.
While there is still much to achieve, these promising results can be traced back to Dr. Persaud’s foresight. Last year the city’s infectious disease staff sat at two. Convinced of the need of expansion and additional training in order to combat communicable diseases, Dr. Persaud successfully lobbied Paterson’s mayor for a $95,000 state grant.
Today the city’s COVID Contact Tracing Team sits at 55 people, most of them performing the time-intensive, yet essential role of contact tracing. This has put Paterson ahead of its neighbors, including the nearby New York City.
“For a virus without a vaccine, contact tracing is one of the most effective ways to deter its spread,” states Dr. Persaud. “The importance of contact tracers during the outbreak of a communicable disease cannot be overstated.”
Contact tracing is the process of identifying anyone who may have come into contact with an infection person. Tracers will collect information about these individuals, test them for the virus, help the potentially infected get treated, and then in turn, identify additional people who came into contact with these additional individuals.
Dr. Persaud has been a faculty member at Trident since 2010, teaching Emergency Healthcare Logistics in Disasters, Homeland Recovery and Continuity of Operations, and Survey of Emergency and Disaster Management.
He earned a Ph.D. in Public Health, with an Epidemiology concentration, from Walden University and a Master of Public Health from Columbia University.
About Trident at American InterContinental University
Founded in 1998, Trident at American InterContinental University (Trident at AIU) is part of an online postsecondary university serving adult learners. Trident at AIU uses the EdActive™ learning approach, which employs case-based learning in an online setting to teach real-world relevant critical thinking skills designed to enhance the lives and education of students. Trident offers quality associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degree programs and certificates, led by a qualified faculty team, over 80% of whom have doctoral degrees. Trident at AIU is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org) and has more than 22,000 alumni with a military affiliation. Trident has received acknowledgements from Washington Monthly, Military Times, and Military Advanced Education & Transition for their dedication to student success. Visit http://www.trident.edu or call at (855) 290-0290 to learn more about Trident at AIU’s wide range of educational options.
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