BUREAU OF EPIDEMIOLOGY AND DISEASE CONTROL | SUFFOLK COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SERVICES - DIVISION OF PUBLIC HEALTH

Provides services to prevent the occurrence and spread of communicable disease. The Bureau maintains surveillance for each disease through investigation performed by experienced epidemiological staff. Surveillance activities include identifying patterns and clusters to find common source outbreaks and tracing chains of infection to their origin. The Bureau encourages recommended adult immunizations and provides regular MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccination clinics for college students. The Bureau operates a Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) Control Unit, investigating reported cases of Chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV/AIDS. The Unit initiates disease intervention strategies which include interview of the index patient, counseling and referrals as needed, contacts & partner notification and follow-up and investigation of possible clusters. Medical providers are contacted to ensure treatment is completed. Clinical staff are available 24 hours, seven days a week to respond to urgent public health disease inquiries or issues.