Back to SearchNORTH BAY, ON - The inaugural Canadian Public Health Week is here! Public health is playing an essential role in the COVID-19 pandemic; however, there is more to the North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit (Health Unit) than the 4,663 cases of COVID-19 that were managed since the start of the pandemic or the 272,540 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered.
The Health Unit promotes and protects the health of over 125,000 residents within the district consisting of 31 municipalities, four unorganized areas, and nine First Nations communities. While an acute care setting treats people who are unwell, public health works upstream to create policies and opportunities to prevent people from getting sick or injured. Public health looks not only at an individual’s personal health but also underlying social conditions that affect a person’s or a population’s health.
Health Unit staff support an upstream approach to health in a variety of areas such as Environmental Health, Healthy Families, Healthy Living, Healthy Schools, Oral Health and Vision Screening, Sexual Health, Vaccine Preventable Diseases, Communicable Disease Control, Emergency Preparedness and Surveillance. This work is completed by teams, which include community health promoters, epidemiologists, research assistants, public health inspectors, administrative assistants, communications, information technology professionals, dental hygienists and assistants, dentists, dietitians, nurses and doctors.
Although much of the regular public health work was still completed despite the pandemic, the pandemic amplified many inequities faced by people within our district. In response, public health promoted campaigns to address priority areas such as housing and homelessness and food insecurity.
Additionally, public health continued health promotion activities such as tobacco use education, nutrition for youth, and outdoor learning and sharing. Many health promotion and disease prevention messages were amplified through collaboration with community partners. Work also continued in areas of harm reduction, routine inspections, and oral health services. New projects were completed to assist the public with navigating the pandemic and group living settings with enhancing infection prevention and control measures.
In 2021, the Health Unit’s Sexual Health Clinic serviced 6,010 clients, either in person or over the phone, while also receiving and responding to 346 reports of a sexually transmitted or blood-borne infection (inclusive of chlamydia, gonorrhea, ophthalmia neonatorum, syphilis, and HIV).
Throughout the 2020/2021 flu season 4,967 vaccines were administered, helping to prevent spread of influenza, an increase of 2,666 vaccines administered from the 2019/2020 flu season.
“Although the work of public health may not always be seen directly, it is seen through the health of our community,” states Dr. Jim Chirico, Medical Officer of Health at the Health Unit. “Public health works behind the scenes to help prevent the spread of illness. Public health staff are passionate about the work they do and strive to realize our vision of a healthy life for everyone in our district.”
For more information on what the Health Unit does, visit myhealthunit.ca.
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Media Inquiries:
Alex McDermid, Public Relations Specialist
P: 705-474-1400, ext. 5221 or 1-800-563-2808
E: communications@healthunit.ca
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