Alaska Tuberculosis Program Manual - Epidemiology - State of Alaska

General Guidelines for Interviewing an Index Patient
1. Discuss confidentiality and privacy in frank terms to help the patient decide how to
share information, and revisit these topics several times during the interview to stress
their importance. Emphasize confidentiality, but inform the patient that relevant
information may need to be shared with other health department staff or other
persons who may assist in congregate settings to most efficiently ascertain which
contacts need to be evaluated. Inform the patient that it will be necessary for visits to
be made at sites such as the home, workplace/school, or leisure establishments to
assess the shared air environment to accurately structure the contact investigation. 38
2. Conduct the interviews in the patient’s language, using a medical interpreter if the
patient does not speak English.
3. Conduct the interviews in a culturally competent manner.
For more information on cultural sensitivity, refer to the Participant’s
Workbook for Session 4: “Working with Culturally Diverse Populations” in
the Directly Observed Therapy Training Curriculum for TB Control
Programs (Francis J. Curry National Tuberculosis Center Web site; 2003)
at:
http://www.currytbcenter.ucsf.edu/products/product_details.cfm?productI
D=EDP-07
For assistance with language issues, see the Language Services
Resource Guide for Health Care Providers (The National Health Law
Program Web site; 2006) at
http://www.healthlaw.org/images/pubs/ResourceGuideFinal.pdf
A L A S K A T U B E R C U L O S I S P R O G R A M M A N U A L Contact Investigation 11.24
Revised November 2012