Georgia PH week [Jan. 3, 2012]

January 03, 2012- In This Issue
Home | School-Based Flu Clinics | Radon and Lung Cancer |The Beat Goes On | DPH "Partners Up" | UGA Vaccine | UGA and Emory Training | PHBRIEFS | PHRECIPE | PHEVENTS | PHNEWS | PHPOLL
North Central Finds Success in School-Based Flu Clinics
Last week, 58 percent of PHPOLL respondents indicated they will set a New Year's resolution. One Georgia Public Health District has set their own kind of resolution-to ensure school children and their families are healthy and flu-free in the New Year. This was the challenge presented to the North Central Health District's (NCHD) Immunization Program this fall: One health district. 13 county health departments. Over 150 schools. And one goal: To offer a flu vaccine to every school-aged child with no out of pocket expense to parents.

Radon and Lung Cancer: How Safe is Your Air

Teacher Shelly Osborne and her son, Nolan, both received the flu vaccine at Nolan's school.

It's toxic and deadly. But you can't see it. You can't taste it. You can't smell it.
This harmful chemical is seeping into some homes in Georgia and scientists have linked this colorless, odorless and toxic gas to lung cancer. It's called radon.
During the National Radon Action Month, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) is raising awareness of its ongoing efforts statewide to address the concerns around radon in homes.
Radon comes from the decay of the natural radioactive element uranium found in some soils and rocks. Radon gas goes through radioactive decay and emits particles that can be harmful to the human body, primarily the lungs. It is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Radon can be found all over the United States in varying amounts. It can get into any type of structure and build up, resulting in a high indoor radon level.

Small children are at greater risk for radon exposure because they breathe air closer to the ground where levels are highest and they breathe a greater volume of air in
relation to their body size.
The Beat Goes On
All expectant parents hope that their babies will be healthy, but it can be hard not to worry about potential complications. What if the baby has a serious health problem? Is there anything I can do to prevent problems?
Birth defects affect approximately one in 33 newborns and are the leading cause of death in children less than one year of age-causing one in every five deaths. A birth defect is an abnormality of structure, function or metabolism present at birth that results in physical or mental disability or is fatal, and for many babies born with a birth defect there is no family history of the condition.
The most common type of birth defects is congenital heart defects, which are the focus of January's National Birth Defects Prevention Month theme, "And the Beat Goes On... Looking to the Future for Healthy Hearts."

DPH "Partners Up"

One in 33 babies is born with a birth defect.

In 2012, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) will collaborate with the Partner Up! for Public Health campaign to highlight local achievements in Public Health throughout the state. The Partner Up! for Public Health Heroes program plans to recognize the work and achievements of Public Health champions over the next year.
Partner Up! for Public Health is a statewide advocacy campaign with the goal of advancing Public Health in Georgia. Partner Up! launched in the fall of 2009 and is funded by the Healthcare Georgia Foundation. As the campaign begins its third year, the goal is to create more positive messaging in order to continue to build awareness of the vital functions of Public Health.
The Partner Up! for Public Health Heroes program is designed to highlight the important work of improving the health of communities and citizens of Georgia. "We want to highlight the positive advancements in Public Health around Georgia, especially now as Georgia has established a standalone

Department," said Charles Hayslett, spokesman for the Partner Up! for Public Health campaign. "We feel there is a lot of momentum in Public Health
and want to build on that."
UGA Vaccine Could be Big Anti-Cancer Agent
Researchers at the University of Georgia and the Mayo Clinic hope they've found a way to harness the body's own immune system to fight cancer.
Working with mice, UGA chemistry professor Geert-Jan Boons and the Mayo Clinic's Sandra Gendler have developed a vaccine that actually can seek out and kill cancer cells - including fast-growing cancers that kill quickly.
The body's immune system recognizes foreign bacteria and other invaders in the human body, fighting back with killer cells and antibodies that snuff out invaders. But because cancer is produced within our own bodies - our own cells growing out of control - the immune system usually doesn't recognize anything is wrong.
UGA chemistry professor Geert-Jan Boons worked with the Mayo
Clinic's Sandra Gendler to develop a vaccine that can seek out and kill cancer
cells.
UGA and Emory Offer Training for Public Health Workforce
Funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Public Health Training Center (PHTC) program was developed over 10 years ago to help improve the public health system in the United States by enhancing skills of the current and future public health workforce. Centers are primarily located at schools of public health and are awarded through a competitive process. Prior to September 2010, Georgia was one of seven U.S. states not covered by the national PHTC network. In the last round of competitive applications, Georgia was fortunate to have been awarded two PHTCs. The University of Georgia, under the direction of Dr. Marsha Davis, and Emory University, under the direction of Dr. Kathleen Miner, both received PHTCs.
While the specific training activities of the two PHTCs are different, the staff of both centers recognizes the synergistic benefit of collaboration. Together, the two PHTCs conducted a state-wide training needs assessment and developed work plans to provide both competency-based field placements for the future workforce (public health students) and competency-based training for the current public health workforce.

PHRECIPE

Quick Black Bean Chili Servings: 2 Click Here for Full Recipe
Home | School-Based Flu Clinics | Radon and Lung Cancer |The Beat Goes On | DPH "Partners Up" | UGA Vaccine | UGA and Emory Training | PHBRIEFS | PHRECIPE | PHEVENTS | PHNEWS | PHPOLL