Ten Essential Services of Environmental Health

Incorporating Cortland County Environmental Health Objectives

1. Monitor health status to identify community health issues

• Monitor communicable disease reports.

2. Diagnose and investigate health problems and hazards

• Investigate and act upon all complaints.
• Initiate immediate action to abate Imminent Public Health Hazards.
• Initiate action to correct Public Health Hazards.

3. Inform, educate and empower people about health issues

• Provide educational presentations on environmental topic and issues.

4. Mobilize community partnerships to identify and solve health problems

• Collaborate with the Cortland County Soil and Water and Planning Department to ensure aquifer and wellhead protection.
• Collaborate with the Community Action Program to provide radon testing and remediation.
• Collaborate with municipalities to address health problems and environmental issues within the municipality.

5. Develop policies and plans that support individual and community health efforts

• Review and update disinfection policy, onsite sewage policy, housing policy, enforcement policy ………..
• Develop new policies as needed to support public health initiatives.

6. Enforce laws and regulations that protect health

• Prevent waterborne disease outbreaks/ assure safe drinking water.
• Prevent foodborne disease.
• Reduce the prevalence of elevated blood leads exceeding 15ug/dL.
• Reduce tobacco exposure.
• Increase aquifer protection and wellhead protection.
• Reduce radon exposures.
• Control and monitor vector-borne diseases.
• Reduce asthma hospitalization rates.
• Reduce fire-related injuries.
• Prevent and control diseases associated with sewage exposure.
• Enforce the County and State Sanitary Code

7. Link people to needed health services and assure the provision of health care when otherwise unavailable

• Maintain an understanding of other environmental agencies to provide accurate and adequate referrals to the appropriate environmental agency.
• Ensure that people obtain rabies post-exposure rabies treatment.

8. Assure a competent public health workforce

• Provide professional technical training to staff to assure competency in environmental health programs.
• Provide inservice training to maintain staff competency in environmental health programs.

9. Evaluate effectiveness, accessibility and quality of personal and population-based health services.

• Prepare quarterly performance measures reports.
• Prepare Annual Environmental Health Report.

10. Research for new insights and innovative solutions to health concerns

• Collaborate with municipalities, governmental agencies, community agencies, educational institutions, and facility owner/ operators to research alternative solutions to public health environmental problems.