For eighteen years, the Monday before Thanksgiving has been recognized as Public Health Thank You Day. This day of recognition is an opportunity to say “thank you” to the public health workforce who work to protect communities from disease, injury, and other health threats. This year’s theme is “Why Public Health?”
Why does public health exist? What does public health do? Who is a part of public health? We have the answers for you.
Most people can name specific benefits of organizations like law enforcement or public education, but many people aren’t aware of the benefits of public health until they have a problem. Public health organizations have been around for over 200 years, and Green County Public Health has been in existence for almost 90 years.
While public health organizations have their roots in preventing and addressing communicable diseases (like influenza and others), they have also been instrumental in protecting safe drinking water, maintaining healthy homes, supporting maternal and child health, promoting healthy behaviors, and so much more. To learn a bit more about the history of public health, check out my articles in The Monroe Times from February and March of 2023. Today, Green County Public Health offers several programs and services to community members and works closely with other organizations to create positive changes in the community.
Green County Public Health offers a wide range of services to community members; no matter where you and your family are in life, we are here to help. Our department provides important programs like the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program, breastfeeding support, home visiting, and other services that help support families with young kids. We also have well water test kits and radon test kits available to homeowners.
In addition to these, we provide vaccines to adults and kids who do not have health insurance. Our Public Health Nurses also work with community members who are sick with a foodborne disease or other communicable diseases to help determine where they might have gotten sick and how they can help prevent others from getting sick. Our staff also works on issues you may not think of, such as working with law enforcement and community members when an animal bites someone, so we can help prevent the spread of rabies in the community. These are just a few examples of what Green County Public Health does.
To learn more about our department and how we can help you, check out our website: https://wi-greencounty.civicplus.com/192/Public-Health.
Green County Public Health isn’t the only organization doing public health work in Green County; groups that address food insecurity, mental health, housing, healthcare, and so many other topics and issues are all improving public health. Our department is fortunate to work with so many other amazing organizations in Green County. Our staff members are a part of numerous coalitions and workgroups that work together to bring important events, programs, and training to our community.
This Public Health Thank You Day, we recognize all of you who are working to make Green County a healthier place to live, work, learn, and play. Everyone knows someone who is part of the public health workforce; reach out today to say “thank you.”
— Bridget Zimmerman is the Public Health Educator for the Green County Public Health Department and can be reached at bzimmerman@greencountywi.org or 608-328-9509.
