NORTH GEORGIA HEALTH DISTRICT

Healthy people, families, and communities.
  • NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

    NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

  

State Interagency Coordinating Council (SICC)

Quarterly Meeting

Georgia’s Part C Program | Babies Can’t Wait (BCW)

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!!!! We want to hear your ideas, concerns, and thoughts related to the Babies Can’t Wait Program.  Would you like to attend the State ICC meeting? Ask your BCW Service Coordinator about limited financial assistance available to help you with related expenses.

Public Comment

Time is set aside for public comment during each quarterly meeting of the State Interagency Coordinating Council. If you would like to share any thoughts or ideas about Babies Can’t Wait with the Council please choose one of the options below.

  1. Written Comment:

  2. Send written comments, clearly marked “PUBLIC COMMENT” to fax number 770-342-7699 or email to Phyllis Turner, SICC Coordinator, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or email Jan Stevenson, SICC Chairperson, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. not later than Wednesday, February 7, 2018. Your comments will be read aloud during the Public Comment portion of the meeting.

  3. Remote Participation:

    Pre-Register to make Public Comment via remote participation by conference line or telehealth during the meeting. (See instructions below for remote participation.) Email Phyllis Turner, SICC Coordinator, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or email Jan Stevenson, SICC Chairperson, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. not later than Wednesday, February 7, 2018. You will be recognized to provide public comment remotely during the Public Comment portion of the meeting.

  4. In person:

    At registration and sign-in on the day of the meeting checkYes” to the question “Would you like to make public comment?” You will be recognized to provide public comment during the Public Comment portion of the meeting. 

 For more information, please email Phyllis Turner, SICC Coordinator, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

REMOTE PARTICIPATION 

 

For remote participation during the SICC meeting, please use one of the following options:

 

Free Conference Line

Telehealth (VICS)

  • View and listen to the public portion of the meeting by video conference (VICS) by going to one of the following locations around the state. Participants who pre-register can make public comment when recognized by the Council Chairperson at the time set aside for Public Comment on the meeting agenda. See pre-registration instructions under Public Comment via remote participation. District Early Intervention Coordinators and Local Interagency Coordinating Council members will be given an opportunity to provide updates and information in the order listed on the meeting agenda.

By the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Why does my child need HPV vaccine?HPV small

HPV vaccine is important because it protects against cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV)(https://www.cdc.gov/hpv/parents/whatishpv.html) infection. HPV is a very common virus; nearly 80 million people—about one in four—are currently infected in the United States. About 14 million people, including teens, become infected with HPV each year.

Most people with HPV never develop symptoms or health problems. Most HPV infections (9 out of 10) go away by themselves within two years. But, sometimes, HPV infections will last longer, and can cause certain cancers and other diseases. HPV infection can cause:

  • cancers of the cervix, vagina, and vulva in women;
  • cancers of the penis in men; and
  • cancers of the anus and back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils (oropharynx), in both women and men.

HPV Video IconEvery year in the United States, HPV causes 30,700 cancers in men and women. HPV vaccination can prevent most of the cancers (about 28,000) from occurring. 

HPV Vaccine is available at all public health departments in Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield Counties. Find contact information for your local county health department by clicking on the above LOCATIONS tab... contact them today!

When should my child be vaccinated?

All kids who are 11 or 12 years old should get two shots of HPV vaccine six to twelve months apart. Adolescents who receive their two shots less than five months apart will require a third dose of HPV vaccine.

If your teen hasn’t gotten the vaccine yet, talk to their doctor or nurse about getting it for them as soon as possible. If your child is older than 14 years, three shots will need to be given over 6 months. Also, three doses are still recommended for people with certain immunocompromising conditions aged 9 through 26 years.

Who else should get the HPV vaccine?

Teen boys and girls who did not start or finish the HPV vaccine series when they were younger should get it now.

HPV vaccine is recommended for young women through age 26, and young men through age 21. HPV vaccine is also recommended for the following people, if they did not get vaccinated when they were younger:

  • young men who have sex with men, including young men who identify as gay or bisexual or who intend to have sex with men through age 26;
  • young adults who are transgender through age 26; and
  • young adults with certain immunocompromising conditions (including HIV) through age 26.

Read more: HPV Vaccine – Questions & Answers(https://www.cdc.gov/hpv/parents/questions-answers.html)

Flu Season.UpdatedFacebook.Social.Risk.1.640x336By the Georgia Department of Public Health

ATLANTA –  If you have not gotten a flu shot yet, do not wait any longer! Flu is widespread in Georgia, and over 2,000 individuals have been hospitalized with flu-related illness. The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) has confirmed *98 flu-related deaths so far, but that number is expected to increase.

Flu Season.Facebook.Social.640x336.FluAway

.The predominant strain of flu circulating in Georgia and around the country is influenza A (H3N2). This strain can be particularly hard on the very young, people over age 65, or those with existing medical conditions. H3N2 is one of the strains contained in this year’s flu vaccine along with two or three others, depending on the vaccine.

 

Flu Season.Facebook.Social.ColdVSFlu.1.600x336"It's not too late to get a flu shot", said J. Patrick O’Neal, M.D., DPH commissioner. “Every individual over the age of six months should get a flu vaccine – not just for their own protection, but to protect others around them who may be more vulnerable to the flu and its complications.”

***FLU SHOTS ARE AVAILABLE AT NO COST TO CLIENTS FOR PEOPLE OF ALL AGES AT OUR PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENTS IN CHEROKEE, FANNIN, GILMER, MURRAY, PICKENS AND WHITFIELD COUNTIES. CLICK ON THE LOCATIONS TAB ABOVE TO FIND THE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT NEAREST YOU!***

Flu symptoms and their intensity can vary from person to person, and can include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. If you think you have the flu, call or visit your doctor.

In some cases, healthcare providers may recommend the use of antivirals such as Tamiflu® or Relenza®. Antiviral drugs are prescription medicines (pills, liquid, an inhaled powder or an intravenous solution) that fight against the flu in your body. Antiviral drugs work best for treatment when they are started within two days of getting sick. Antivirals are used to treat those at high-risk for flu complications - young children, the elderly, individuals with underlying medical conditions and women who are pregnant. Most otherwise-healthy people who get the flu, however, do not need to be treated with antiviral drugs.

There are other things you can do to help prevent the spread of flu – tried and true measures your mother taught you.

  • Frequent and thorough hand-washing with soap and warm water. Alcohol based gels are the next best thing if you don’t have access to soap and water.
  • Cover your nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing to help prevent the spread of the flu. Use a tissue or cough or sneeze into the crook of your elbow or arm.
  • Avoid touching your face as flu germs can get into the body through mucus membranes of the nose, mouth and eyes.
  • If you are sick, stay home from school or work. Flu sufferers should be free of a fever, without the use of a fever reducer, for at least 24 hours before returning to school or work.

If you are caring for a sick individual at home, keep them away from common areas of the house and other people as much as possible. If you have more than one bathroom, have the sick person use one and well people use the other. Clean the sick room and the bathroom once a day with household disinfectant. Thoroughly clean linens, eating utensils, and dishes used by the sick person before reusing.

To learn more about influenza log on to www.flu.gov.

______________________

*Updated February 27, 2018

From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

preventcancer 456pxHPV vaccination can protect your children from several types of cancers. For girls, this includes cervical cancer. For boys, HPV vaccination means stopping the spread of the virus, which results in the reduction of cervical and other HPV-related cancers.

Every year in the United States, 31,500 women and men are diagnosed with a cancer caused by HPV infection and more than 4,000 women die from cervical cancer, even with screening and treatment. Any woman can get cervical cancer, at any point in their lives. Cervical cancer doesn’t discriminate for age or how healthy a woman’s lifestyle may be. Cervical cancer, along with most other HPV-related cancers, can be prevented by receiving the HPV vaccine.

Vaccinating for HPV also protects women against the uncomfortable process of dealing with cervical “precancers.” Each year in the U.S. nearly 500,000 women endure invasive testing and treatment for lesions (changes in the cells) on the cervix that can develop into cancers. Procedures to eliminate these precancers are necessary to prevent cancer, but can have lasting effects on a woman.

Cervical cancer is a serious disease that affects women, but it only accounts for 38% of cancers caused by HPV infection. While there is screening for cervical cancer, there is no routine screening for the other 20,000 cases of cancer caused by HPV infections each year in the United States. Often these cancers—such as cancers of the back of the throat (oropharynx) and cancers of the anus—aren’t detected until later stages when they are difficult to treat, and affect both men and women.

How can I help protect my children?

Get your kids two shots of HPV vaccine at least 6 months apart at ages 11 or 12, finishing the two-shot series before their 13th birthday. Teens and young adults through age 26 who have not received the HPV shots should ask their doctor or nurse about getting them now—it’s not too late!

Teens and young adults who did not start the HPV vaccine series before they turned 15 will need three shots within six months for the best protection. Adolescents and young adults with a weakened immune system will also need three shots. Make an appointment today to get your child vaccinated.

If it has been a long time since your child got the first or second dose of HPV vaccine, you don’t have to start over—just get the remaining shot(s) as soon as possible.

***HPV VACCINE IS AVAILABLE AT PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENTS IN CHEROKEE, FANNIN, GILMER, MURRAY, PICKENS AND WHITFIELD COUNTIES. FIND CONTACT INFORMATION AT ABOVE LOCATIONS TAB***

Like all medical products, vaccines can cause side effects. The most common side effects of HPV vaccines are mild and go away on their own, such as pain and redness in the arm where the shot was given. Occasionally, patients might faint after receiving an injectable vaccine, or any shot. Preteens and teens should sit or lie down when they get a shot and remain there for about 15 minutes after the shot. This can help prevent fainting and any injury that could happen while fainting.

The cancer prevention benefits of HPV vaccination far outweigh the risk of these side effects.