What is Public Health?

Public health is a term that is used to encompass a variety of activities designed to prevent the spread of disease and promote optimal health.

​What does a local health department do? 

Local health departments were developed to provide an organized approach to public health activities in communities.  Examples of the major types of activities include nursing, education, environmental health, screening and immunizations, communicable disease control, epidemiology, vital statistics, emergency preparedness, and other population based health programs.

In public health we address a wide scope of issues and problems found in your every day lives.  Every time you visit restaurants, grocery stores, camps, swimming pools, trailer parks, and schools among other venues, we are play a role in ensuring their safety and standards of health.  It is also the responsibility of a health department to conduct health monitoring, perform epidemiological investigations, coordinate our response to emergencies with other agencies, and provide public health education.