Public Health District Launches New Website

Photos of Health District Programs, Quick Links to all Programs, Forms, Fees, Meeting Dates, Publications and Permit Applications Are Only a Few of the New Features on www.cuphd.org

The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District launched a new website this week. It’s the first major overhaul of the agency’s website since it was first created in 1994!

The site has been dramatically expanded and improved. It includes:

• Descriptions of all Public Health programs and services, with a page devoted to each. Each program description includes hours, locations, contact information, eligibility requirements and fees.

• Quick links to the Champaign-Urbana and Champaign County Boards of Health with schedules of each board’s meetings.

• A calendar of Public Health events. Visitors to the website may search for all Public Health events on a specific day, or find information about events within specific Public Health divisions.

• Online forms, including all Environmental Health permit applications and forms, income guidelines for various health programs and instructions for obtaining birth and death certificates from Public Health.

• A database of local health statistics, created in collaboration with the University of Illinois, which allows users to look at local health trends and compare them to statewide trends and national health goals.

• A list of all reportable infectious diseases, with links to in-depth information about each disease and information for physicians and patients.

• A new website for the Champaign County Public Health Department

• An Emergency Preparedness website for Champaign County, with detailed information, contacts and resources for the public and for hospitals, police, fire, social service agencies and others who respond to public emergencies

“This new website is a vital part of our efforts to bring information about Public Health programs and services to a wide audience,” said Public Health Interim Administrator Garry Bird. “We are striving to make our website a resource for the community, our staff and other health and service providers as well as those called on to respond to emergencies.”

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Download 2005-12-08-New-Website-PR

Public Health District’s Dental Clinic Provides Dental Exams to Head Start Kids

About 60 Children to Receive Required Exams in Early December

This month the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District’s Dental Clinic is working to meet the local need for dental exams in toddlers and kindergarten children. On December 1 and December 5, Dr. Trina Blunt will provide dental exams to nearly 60 children enrolled in the Champaign County Head Start program. Dr. Blunt is Acting Director of the Health District’s Division of Dental Health.

Dental needs of children – particularly those in low-income families – often go unmet during school years – neglect that may result in major health problems later in life. A study of access to oral health care for Illinois low-income children in 2000 showed only 33 percent of children enrolled in Medicaid or the State Children’s Health Insurance Program received oral health care during the year. The study also found that only one-third of active general and pediatric dentists were enrolled as Medicaid providers.

Early this year, Governor Rod Blagojevich signed a law that calls for mandatory dental screenings for public and private school students in kindergarten, second and sixth grades. Public Health is working to meet the need for these exams in children who have not yet had them.

Studies of the dental health of Illinois schoolchildren have found that more than half of students surveyed have evidence of tooth decay. According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, poor children have nearly 12 times more restricted-activity days due to dental problems than children from higher-income families. Pain and suffering due to untreated tooth decay can lead to problems in eating, speaking, and attending to learning. Dental exams early in a child’s life can reveal tooth decay before it develops into a major health problem.

The Health District’s Dental Clinic serves children aged 3 to 18 who are residents of Champaign or Urbana. Call 217-531-4279 to schedule an appointment.

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Download 2005-11-30-Exams-Head-Start-PR

Thursday December 1 is World AIDS Day

Public Health’s Mobile Unit is a Model for the State, Bringing HIV Counseling, Testing and Other Vital Health Services to Those Most at Risk

December 1 is World AIDS Day, and the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District is at the forefront of bringing HIV counseling and testing to individuals and communities at risk. This month the Illinois Department of Public Health recognized the Health District’s pioneering program to use mobile health units to bring HIV testing, counseling and other vital health services to those who might not otherwise get these services.

In a press release this month, Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Eric E. Whitaker praised the Health District’s Wellness on Wheels (WOW) program, which was launched in 2002 in collaboration with Carle Foundation Hospital. The program was later expanded to include Christie Clinic’s mobile unit and this summer the Health District acquired its own mobile health unit, dubbed WOWee.

Wellness on Wheels offers blood pressure and blood sugar tests; cholesterol tests; vaccinations; Hepatitis A & B immunizations; Hepatitis C tests; HIV counseling and testing; tests and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases; pregnancy tests; help with KidCare and FamilyCare health insurance applications and health information and supplies. Program staff includes nurses, counselors, health educators, and Spanish- language translators.