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Communicable Disease

About Us

The North Carolina Communicable Disease Branch is one of the five branches of the Epidemiology Section of the N.C. Division of Public Health, Department of Health and Human Services. (The other four branches are: Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology, Public Health Preparedness and Response, State Laboratory for Public Health and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.)

The North Carolina Communicable Disease Branch strives to protect and improve the health of people in North Carolina through disease detection, tracking, investigation, control, education, prevention and care activities to reduce morbidity and mortality resulting from communicable diseases that are a significant threat to the public.

The Communicable Disease Branch works with the public, local health departments and other public health agencies, healthcare professionals, educators, businesses, communities and healthcare facilities to ensure that North Carolina is prepared to respond to any communicable disease situation that affects the people who live, work and visit here.

The Branch consists of five different units: Operations, Surveillance, Medical Consultation, HIV/STD Prevention and Care, and Field Services.

To prevent the spread of infection and reduce the impact of disease on the public, our disease control activities include:

  • Reducing the risk of infections.
  • Ensuring treatment standards for sexually transmitted diseases and tuberculosis.
  • Ensuring standards of prevention for rabies and healthcare-associated infections.
  • Informing and educating our partners and the public about disease prevention.
  • Working with local health departments to provide rapid response to disease outbreaks.
  • Eliminating causes of infections
  • Monitoring current health data and observing where, when and to whom reportable infections occur.
  • Identifying the source of infections.
  • Communicating best practices for patient and provider safety.
  • Advocating appropriate use of control measures for reducing risk, separating people from infection sources (such as contaminated products or infected people), and environmental disinfection.
  • Promoting interventions that are sufficient and necessary for reducing risks to the public's health.

In addition, the HIV Care component of the Branch ensures that HIV/AIDS-infected individuals are able to access a continuum of care services.

 

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