Patricia Spanjer, IBCLC, LLLL, President of the Northwest Georgia Breastfeeding Coalition celebrates their 30th year!

The Northwest Georgia Breastfeeding Coalition (NWGBC) celebrated its 30^th anniversary by hosting its 18^th annual professional conference. After three years of on-demand only, they were excited to be back in person. On-demand was also offered at this year’s conference.

The 2023 conference was held at the Dalton Convention Center and featured Liz Brooks, JD, IBCLC, FILCA. The conference title, “Is That Even Legal? Law and Ethics for Lactation Providers,” gave the attendees consisting of nurses, WIC staff, IBCLCs, dietitians/nutritionists, and community volunteers a rare look at how the law applies to protecting parents.

The Northwest Georgia Breastfeeding Coalition began on March 11, 1993, in Dalton, Georgia. The first official meeting was attended by 16 interested persons and led by Carol Srymanske. Theresa Brown and Patty Spanjer, attendees at the first meeting, are still very involved in the coalition. 

Carol Srymanske, former WIC Breastfeeding Coordinator of the North Georgia Health District, and her husband, Jay, both passed away in November 2008. In memory of Carol and Jay, the Northwest Georgia Breastfeeding Coalition provides scholarships to selected conference attendees each year. The primary requirement is involvement in lactation work through employment, volunteer work, or as a student.

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April 9-15 is STI Awareness Week this year and it's time to seriously think about preventing and protecting from sexually transmitted infections.

GYT: Get Yourself Tested is a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) campaign that encourages young people to get tested and treated for STIs and HIV to protect their health and that of their partners. According to the CDC, STIs affect people of all ages, yet these infections take a particularly heavy toll on young people.

The GYT campaign highlights the idea that preventing, testing for, and treating STIs is very straightforward. The campaign offers streamlined information and illustrations that help focus on STI awareness, prevention, testing, and treatment among young people. Click here to learn more from the CDC about STI prevention and protection.

Cherokee County Health Department - Canton | Fannin County Health Department | Gilmer County Health Department | Murray County Health Department | Pickens County Health Department | Whitfield County Health Department | The Living Bridge Center - Cherokee | The Living Bridge Center - Whitfield

The North Georgia Health District wants you to enjoy Easter, and one of the ways to protect your family is by avoiding potential food poisoning from contaminated Easter eggs.

While eggs are used all year long, they are especially important for many spring and summertime activities. They are used for cooking festive delights and for decorating and hiding just before the big Easter egg hunt.

Information from the Fight BAC! (“Fight bacteria”) website tells us that eggs are perishable and need to be handled properly to prevent foodborne illness. Occasionally, even eggs with clean, uncracked shells can be contaminated with bacteria, specifically Salmonella Enteritidis. FightBAC! offers these tips on having a safe Easter egg hunt:

We're closed for a State Holiday on Friday, April 7th. This includes all district and county Public Health offices, departments, programs, and services in Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens, and Whitfield counties.

MAKO COVID-19 Drive-thru Testing in Dalton will also be closed that day.

We look forward to serving you when our regular hours of operation resume on Monday, the 10th.

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It’s National Public Health Week! For this NPHW, we join the American Public Health Association and related public health agencies nationwide in looking to community leaders as our health leaders. As we celebrate the unique and joyful ways different cultures focus on health, we look to how we can learn from each other, with humility and openness. Learn more at https://nphw.org/.