Collected by: Tennessee State Library and Archives

Archived since: Dec, 2006

Description:

The Department of Health works to promote, protect and improve the health and well-being of Tennesseans. Keeping people healthy by preventing problems that contribute to disease and injury is the overall emphasis of the Department. Responsibilities include immunizing children against measles, recruiting doctors to practice in rural medically underserved areas of Tennessee, offering early prenatal care and proper nutrition to pregnant women, ensuring that restaurants meet standards of cleanliness, and performing laboratory tests ensuring safe drinking water.

The greatest causes of premature death and preventable illness are closely related to the way we live—what we eat, whether we smoke, how much we exercise, and what we do to protect our own safety. The Department promotes healthy lifestyles by educating Tennesseans about these risks and making them more aware of the importance of individuals taking responsibility for their health and their family’s health.

The Department of Health works to ensure the quality of health care through the licensure and regulation of health professionals and of health care facilities. The Department also plays a critical role in ensuring that personal health care services are available when and where people need them and are accessible despite economic and geographic barriers. The Department provides a variety of services for all age groups through local health departments across the state, ranging from well-child visits and immunizations, to school health services, to family planning and prenatal care, to wellness programs, and to education.

Subject:   Government - US States,  Public health - Tennessee,  Public health - Statistics - Tennessee,  Health status indicators - Statistics - Tennessee,  Abnormalities, Human - Statistics - Tennessee