Oswego County Health Department Celebrates National Public Health Week April 4 – 12

by Contributor | April 3, 2016 12:06 pm

OSWEGO – The Oswego County Health Department is recognizing National Public Health week April 4 to 12.

The Health Department is encouraging Oswego County residents to take healthier steps in their everyday lives like going for more walks or visiting their healthcare providers regularly for health screenings.

Public Health serves communities and the individuals within them, in countless ways, providing an array of essential services.

“Many health services go unnoticed until the need for such services arises, such as a communicable disease outbreak; weather related emergency or emerging health issue,” said Jiancheng Huang, Oswego County Director of Public Health.  “We call on every resident to help us make Oswego County and the Nation healthier in one generation, by taking a step towards improving their health.”

Recent national health headlines have drawn attention to the need for a strong public health system to monitor and respond to health emergencies, lead in public water supplies, the emergence of Zika virus, and the obesity epidemic.

The dedicated professional staff of the Oswego County Health Department assures the conditions necessary for people to live healthy lives, through community-wide prevention and protection programs.  Some of the fundamental responsibilities are to:

•    Prevent epidemics and the spread of disease, by investigating communicable diseases and providing follow up to insure that residents are getting the treatment they need to get well and to prevent the spread of illness in the community.
•    Protect against environmental hazards, by monitoring the public water supply; preventing, treating, and responding to rabies; inspecting restaurants, children’s camps and hotels; engaging in surveillance of mosquitoes and mosquito-borne disease; and enforcing the clean indoor air act.
•    Prevent injuries, by providing education for our seniors on fall prevention and ways to improve balance; and by working with families to make sure children are riding safely in cars, with the correct car seat.
•    Promote and encourage healthy behaviors, by offering educational classes for those with chronic disease and caregivers of those with chronic disease so that they can better manage their disease at home. In addition, Public Health is encouraging residents to quit smoking, eat healthy and be physically active.
•    Respond to disasters and assist communities in recovery, by working with partners in the community to plan for radiological, biological, chemical, or natural disasters.  These plans are tested and modified to prepare to meet the needs of the community during these events and to help the community recover as quickly as possible.
•    Assure the quality and accessibility of health services, by providing quality nursing care to moms and babies as they come home from the hospital, and compassionate end of life hospice care and support for families. The Children with Special Needs program, makes sure that our children are getting the health services they need to make them ready to succeed in school!  In addition, Public Health is partnering with local healthcare providers to find solutions on how to best navigate the changing healthcare delivery system on a local and regional level to insure that residents continue to have access to quality healthcare in their community.

All of these activities and many more are provided with the support of a dedicated team of public health professionals.

Working together they help to inform, educate and empower Oswego County residents to live healthier and safer lives.

This week (April 4-12) we salute the Oswego County Health Department’s continued efforts to the field of Public Health.  Efforts that have helped Oswego County see a reduction in childhood illnesses, benefit from quality drinking water, find safer ways to transport children, and understand the dangers of tobacco.

“Eating more fruits and vegetables, taking a walk, using less salt, seeing your healthcare provider for regular health screenings and quitting smoking are a few things that you can do,” said Diane Oldenburg, senior public health educator with the Oswego County Health Department.

For more information about the services provided by the Oswego County Health Department, contact 349-3547 or visit http://www.oswegocounty.com/health/

Source URL: https://oswegocountytoday.com/community/oswego-county-health-department-celebrates-national-public-health-week-april-4-12/

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