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| February 27, 2012- In This Issue |
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Home
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Linking to Medical Community |
Dr. Ford gets Award |
Telehealth Reaches Rural Georgians |
Enjoli Jones: Help Make Clayton Safer |
DPH 'InStep' with Good Health |
Christy Hubbard gets Award |
Eating for the Eyes
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PHBRIEFS |
PHRECIPE |
PHTRAINING |
PHEVENTS
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PHNEWS
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PHTECHTIP
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Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D.,
Commissioner DPH
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In her second such email to nearly 32,000 physicians
and physician's assistants across the state of
Georgia, Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH)
Commissioner Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D., emphasized the
importance of disease reporting for the health of
our state.
"I'm familiar with the provisions outlined in
OCGA 31-12-2, which require reporting of
patients with certain conditions to the
Department of Public Health," Fitzgerald wrote.
"Like you, my compliance was rooted in the
desire to protect against disease."
Georgia law provides that both lab-confirmed and
clinical diagnoses are reportable within
specified time frames, depending on condition.
Disease reporting enables appropriate public
health follow-up for patients, helps identify
outbreaks, and provides a better understanding
of disease trends in Georgia.
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Dr. Sandra Elizabeth Ford Receives a Legendary Humanitarian
of the Year Award from The Dominique Wilkins Foundation
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S. Elizabeth Ford, M.D., Director,
DeKalb County Board of Health,
received a Humanitarian of the Year
Award from the Dominique Wilkins
Foundation at the Fox Theatre.
Pictured (L to R) with: Lila Womack,
Dr. S. Elizabeth Ford, Val Archer,
Jocelyn Dorsey, Eldrin Bell and
Deion Sanders.
Rear: Dominique Wilkins
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Amid a silent auction with glitz, glamour and a
celebrity red carpet,S. Elizabeth Ford, M.D.,
received a Humanitarian of the Year Award from
the Dominique Wilkins Foundation last Thursday
at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta.
As district health director of the DeKalb County
Board of Health, Dr. Ford was honored along with
Clayton County Commission Chairman Eldrin Bell,
TV personality Jocelyn Dorsey, community
activist Lila Womak, music producer Dallas
Austin, sports personality Deion Sanders and
cable television executive Ted Turner.
Other presenters included Dr. David Satcher,
director of the Satcher Health Leadership
Institute and, musician Joey Sommerville and
more than 400 guests.
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Telehealth Reaches Rural Georgians
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Local dentist Jon Drawdy examines a
patient's teeth using Southeast Health
District teledental equipment located in
a local school.
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Times have changed, and so has technology. With such
advances in the technological realm, the Southeast
Health District has become a leader in telemedicine.
As it has grown, it has helped connect more people
in rural communities to vital Public Health
services.
Telemedicine began in the Southeast Health
District (SEHD) in 1993, when the Ware County
Health Department became a site in the Georgia
Statewide Academic and Medical System (GSAMS)
videoconferencing network. Services provided
over GSAMS included HIV consultations,
Children's Medical Services clinics (Genetics,
Asthma/Pulmonology, and consults for other
pediatric specialties), and Babies Can't Wait
multidisciplinary team evaluations.
In 2000, the Southeast Telehealth Network was
formed, and funding was received from HRSA's
Office for the Advancement of Telehealth (OAT).
The grant allowed the district to develop its
own videoconferencing network in multiple sites
throughout the district.
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Enjoli Jones: Helping Make Clayton County Safer
Since arriving at the Clayton County Board of
Health (CCBOH) in 2010, few people have made as
big of an individual impact as Enjoli Jones.
As one of 25 people in the country selected in
2009 to participate in the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) Public Health
Prevention Service Fellowship, Jones was
assigned to Clayton County in order to serve as CCBOH's Injury Prevention Coordinator. Since
then, she has spearheaded the Safe Kids Clayton
County program, a coalition dedicated to
preventing unintentional injury among Clayton
County's children, particularly those ages 14
and under.
"Our goal is to make our county safe for kids
through education, advocacy, and partnerships,"
Jones said. "We want to prevent injury at home,
at play, and on the way."
According to Jones, the top three unintentional
injuries for children under the age of 14 in
Clayton County are motor vehicle crashes, falls,
and poisonings. The emergency room visits
resulting from those injuries place additional
strain on local hospitals, she said.
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DPH "InSTEP" with Good Health
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Commissioner Brenda Fitzgerald is
all smiles as she has her blood
drawn for the 2 Peachtree worksite
wellness insulin program.
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Each morning during the last week, Georgia
Department of Public Health (DPH) employees at 2
Peachtree who signed up to participate in the
new worksite wellness pilot program rolled up
their sleeves for a blood draw. The blood draws
were to test the person's level of insulin.
Elevated insulin levels can be an indicator for
increased blood pressure and cholesterol,
diabetes and other chronic diseases. When
Commissioner Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D., proposed
the idea of the new worksite wellness program,
she wanted people to be aware of their body's
insulin level. "By knowing their numbers, and
what those numbers mean, I believe that people
can take control of their health and make
important steps toward better health outcomes,"
she said.
Called InSTEP (Insulin Support, Tips and
Exercise Program), the program aims to
improve the health of Public Health
employees at 2 Peachtree through nutritional
change and exercise. Dr. Fitzgerald has
dubbed the elements of the program the "ABCs
of Health" and they are:
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SAFE KIDS USA Awards 'Outstanding Local Coordinator' to
Christy Hubbard of Columbus
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Christy Hubbard (L) awarded
'Outstanding Local Coordinator'
Safe Kids Columbus
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Hubbard Recognized Nationally as a
Safe Kids Champion
Out of more than 600 state and local Safe
Kids Coalition Coordinators throughout the
United States, Christy Hubbard, Coordinator
of Safe Kids Columbus, Georiga, was recently
recognized as Outstanding Local Coordinator,
one of the coveted Safe Kids Champion
Awards. Christy Hubbard received the award
from Kate Carr, President and CEO of Safe
Kids Worldwide.
"Our staff in Washington relies on the
dedicated, passionate and inspiring people
at the local level who take our injury
prevention messages out into their own
communities," said Carr. "As a grassroots
organization, we would not be able to
deliver vital safety knowledge to parents
and caregivers everywhere without our
network of coalitions. Hubbard and Safe Kids
Columbus are key ingredients to our
success."
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 We've all heard the expression "eating with your
eyes," but many people may not be aware of the benefits of
eating for your eyes. In addition to promoting overall
health, a diet rich with sight-saving beta carotene, lutein,
zeaxanthin, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids and certain vitamins
can also help guard against vision loss from eye disease,
such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
AMD diminishes central vision and currently affects the
vision of more than 2 million Americans, ages 50 and
older and is a leading cause of blindness. AMD is a
progressive disease that if left untreated, can result
in severe vision loss and even blindness. The exact
cause of AMD is unknown, but risk factors for the
disease include age, race, smoking, family history as
well as those with cardiovascular disease and
hypertension.
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Home
|
Linking to Medical Community |
Dr. Ford gets Award |
Telehealth Reaches Rural Georgians |
Enjoli Jones: Help Make Clayton Safer |
DPH 'InStep' with Good Health |
Christy Hubbard gets Award |
Eating for the Eyes
|
PHBRIEFS |
PHRECIPE |
PHTRAINING |
PHEVENTS
|
PHNEWS
|
PHTECHTIP
|
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