Amid COVID-19, Public Health Workers Face Intense Pressure And Backlash Article origination WFYI-FM Nola Aigner-Davis is the public information officer for the Polk County Public Health Department. She says their 42-person team is anticipating COVID-19 vaccine distribution to be challenging. Natalie Krebs/Side Effects Public Media The work that people in public health do is often not very visible. It’s usually focused on long-term impacts like improving maternal health and encouraging flu shots. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S. last spring, public health workers were thrown into the spotlight seemingly overnight. And this sudden shift has taken a huge toll on them.