The Community Health program monitors the health and well-being of Lexington residents through a process of:
- Disease Investigation
- Disease Surveillance
- Health Education to empower the individual
The Community Health program tracks over eighty specific diseases that may impact the public, as mandated by Massachusetts General Law 105 CMR 300.
This is accomplished by sharing information with:
- Local hospital infection control departments
- Massachusetts Department of Public Health Epidemiologists
- Lexington Public School nurses
- Lexington Human Services staff
- Lexington Board of Health
- Lexington Public Health staff.
The goal is to prevent and control infectious and communicable disease in the community. An important tool that is used to help share this information is the statewide Massachusetts Virtual Epidemiology Network (MAVEN).
Other functions of the Community Health program include:
- Tuberculosis (TB) case management
- Influenza vaccination clinics
- Grant writing to support health education opportunities
- Tick and mosquito disease prevention efforts
- Medical waste collection
- Responding to reports of potential Food Borne Illness threats
- Mental Health First Aid awareness education efforts
Health education materials and fact sheets can be found on the Mass. Department of Health and Human Services website. Additional information about communicable diseases can also be found on the Mass. Department of Public Health website.