RECENT NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
Prevent ALL Mosquito-borne diseases! Remember the 5 Ds:
1-Dusk/dawn - Avoid being outdoors at those times
2-Dress - Wear loose-fitting, long-sleeved shirts and pants.
3-Drain - Dump any water-filled containers around your home
4-Doors - Doors, windows & screens need to fit well
5-DEET - Wear insect repellant containing DEET
_______________________________________________
Read more tips on how to avoid bug bites from the CDC: http://bit.ly/avoidbitesCDC
___________________________________________________________
Dalton (GA) – If there were a vaccine against cancer, it is likely that most parents would get it for their children.
HPV vaccine is protection against most of the cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. HPV is a very common virus that spreads between people when they have sexual contact with another person. About 14 million people, including teens, become infected with HPV each year. HPV infection can cause cervical cancer in women and penile cancer in men. HPV can also cause anal cancer, throat cancer and genital warts in both men and women.
M
arie Smith, Immunization and Child Health Coordinator for the North Georgia Health District, said, “The HPV vaccine is recommended for preteen boys and girls at age 11 or 12 so they are protected before ever being exposed to the virus. If your teen has not yet gotten the vaccine, talk to their doctor or contact your county public health department about getting it for them as soon as possible.”
The HPV vaccine is given in 3 shots. The second shot is given 1 or 2 months after the first shot. Then a third shot is given 6 months after the first shot. It is important that children get all 3 shots for full protection.
For more information about HPV and HPV vaccine, contact your local county health department (find the phone numbers for county health departments in the North Georgia Health District by clicking on the Locations tab above) or log onto the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website at www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-Vac/hpv/.
Hurricanes
Even here in North Georgia, Hurricanes can have an impact that may include flooding, tornadoes, wind damage and a possible surge of evacuees.
Are YOU prepared for Hurricane Season?
Inspire others to act by being an example yourself, Pledge to Prepare & tell others about it! A hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone or severe tropical storm that forms in the southern Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and in the eastern Pacific Ocean. A typical cyclone is accompanied by thunderstorms, and in the Northern Hemisphere, a counterclockwise circulation of winds near the earth’s surface.
All Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coastal areas are subject to hurricanes. Parts of the Southwest United States and the Pacific Coast also experience heavy rains and floods each year from hurricanes spawned off Mexico. The Atlantic hurricane season lasts from June to November, with the peak season from mid-August to late October. The Eastern Pacific hurricane season begins May 15 and ends November 30.
Hurricanes can cause catastrophic damage to coastlines and several hundred miles inland. Hurricanes can produce winds exceeding 155 miles per hour as well as tornadoes and mircrobursts. Additionally, hurricanes can create storm surges along the coast and cause extensive damage from heavy rainfall. Floods and flying debris from the excessive winds are often the deadly and destructive results of these weather events. Slow moving hurricanes traveling into mountainous regions tend to produce especially heavy rain. Excessive rain can trigger landslides or mud slides. Flash flooding can occur due to intense rainfall.
To learn what to do Before, During and After a Hurricane, go to FEMA's website at www.ready.gov/hurricanes.
Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C can become chronic, life-long infections which can lead to liver cancer. Millions of Americans are living with chronic viral hepatitis, and many do not know they are infected.
CDC’s Division of Viral Hepatitis is leading a national campaign called Know More Hepatitis. The initiative aims to increase awareness about this hidden epidemic and encouraging people born from 1945-1965 to get tested for Hepatitis C. The division is also coordinating with community partners to promote testing among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders through the multilingual Know Hepatitis B campaign.
The online Hepatitis Risk Assessment is designed to determine an individual’s risk for viral hepatitis and asks questions based upon CDC’s recommendations for testing and vaccination. The Hepatitis Risk Assessment allows individuals to answer questions privately, either in their home or in a health care setting, and print their recommendations to discuss with their doctor.
Dalton (GA) – Girl Scout Brownie Troop 12617 of Whitfield County, Georgia and their leaders were recently recognized for the outstanding tobacco-free accomplishments they achieved as part of their healthy living community service project for this year.
Jennifer King of the North Georgia Health District presented trophies and merit badges to the group at New Hope Elementary School in Dalton on Tuesday, May 13 for their successful appeal to the Whitfield County Schools Board of Education in adopting the Georgia Model 100 Percent Tobacco-Free Schools Policy.*
The board voted to adopt the policy following a presentation by the troop at the board of education meeting on April 14. The board began to consider changing the policy several weeks prior to the vote 
after the troop had sent petition letters and tobacco-free pledges to Whitfield County Schools Superintendent Judy Gilreath.
"Although Whitfield County Schools has been a tobacco free system since 2001, the revised policy will bring us more in line with the state criteria required in order to be officially designated by the state as tobacco free,” Dr. Gilreath said after the policy was passed. She said of the scouts, “It is so encouraging to see this young troop of girls actively involved in making our community healthier for all of us. Troop 12617 and their adult leaders are to be commended for leading this effort."
Seventh graders are now required to have the tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) and meningococcal (meningitis) vaccines prior to entering school.
Effective July 1, 2014, children born on or after January 1, 2002 who are attending seventh grade and new entrants into Georgia schools in grades 8 through 12 must have received one dose of Tdap vaccine and one dose of meningococcal vaccine. ("New entrant" means any child entering any school in Georgia for the first time or entering after having been absent from a Georgia school for more than 12 months or one school year).
For more information about this and all school required immunizations, go to the Georgia Department of Public Health website.
Shots are available at each of our health departments in Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield Counties. Click above on the LOCATIONS tab to find health department contact and location information for each county.
Dalton (GA) May 8, 2014 – Disaster rarely comes in the form of just one event. That is why hospitals and partnering agencies must be prepared to deal with widespread emergencies on multiple levels.
Today, Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton staged a full-scale drill to test response plans for evacuating the hospital due to an imaginary impending storm while a hypothetical chemical leak led to a sudden influx of patients to the hospital’s emergency room.
The full-scale drill was conducted in collaboration with several partnering agencies and Georgia Hospital Association (GHA) Region A hospitals, including Fannin Regional Hospital, Gordon Hospital, Hutcheson Medical Center, Murray Medical Center, North Georgia Medical Center and Piedmont Mountainside Hospital. Hamilton Medical Center is the GHA Region A Coordinating Hospital.
National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW), set for April 26 - May 3, 2014, is an annual observance to highlight the importance of protecting infants from vaccine-preventable diseases and celebrate the achievements of immunization programs and their partners in promoting healthy communities.
2014 marks the 20th anniversary of NIIW. Since 1994, hundreds of communities across the United States have joined together to celebrate the critical role vaccination plays in protecting our children, communities, and public health.
Learn more about NIIW at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/events/niiw/index.html
Spring is a good time of year to get your dogs and cats vaccinated against rabies. Usually, there will be discount rabies vaccination clinics at different locations and times on certain Saturdays during April, May or June. Check with your local environmental health office, veterinary clinic or other sponsoring organization for specific dates, times and locations. Rabies vaccinations are offered at a significant discount and other kinds of pet vaccinations can normally be obtained at the same time.*
Vaccinating your pet against rabies may save the life of your dog or cat and protect you and your family against this fatal disease. Rabies is always present, to some extent, in various wildlife species such as raccoons, skunks, foxes, bobcats, bats, coyotes and other carnivores. A typical rabies case involves a rabid raccoon coming into the yard of a home and fighting with a pet dog or cat. If the pet has not been properly vaccinated against rabies, our first recommendation is to euthanize the dog or cat. The only other alternative would be to put the pet in strict quarantine inside a double enclosure for six months with no human contact. This is very poor repayment to your pet for protecting your family from a rabid wild animal.
Do the right thing for your pets and your family by having your dogs and cats vaccinated against rabies at your local public clinic this spring.
It is also the law that your pets be vaccinated (Rabies Control Law-O.C.G.A-31-19).
Veterinarians are always available to vaccinate your animals any time of year. Valuable livestock such as cows, horses, sheep and exotics such as llamas or alpacas can also be vaccinated against rabies.
If you think you, your pets or livestock may have been exposed to the rabies virus, you can get information and guidance from your county health department, veterinarian, county animal control or the Georgia Poison Control Center at 1-800-222-1222. Other basic information on rabies exposure can be found on the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website at www.cdc.gov/rabies.
________________________________________
*Click here to see details about the 4-H Rabies Vaccination Clinic in Murray County on Saturday, April 26
***Due to Weather-related conditions, this event had to be cancelled for today - A New date will be determined***
Get your child’s car seat checked for FREE at the Murray County Health Department on Tuesday, April 29, 2014 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. The Murray County Health Department is located at 709 Old Dalton-Ellijay Road in Chatsworth.
Child Passenger Safety Technicians will be on hand to check child car seats and child restraint installations to make sure they are properly installed.
Buckling up your child the right way for every ride is the most important thing you can do to keep your child safe in the car, so join the Murray County Health Department, the Murray County Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia State Patrol for this free child car seat check event!
For more information, call the health department at (706) 695-4585.
(Click here to view/download a printable poster and share!)