Public Health
Nursing

What we do:

Public Health Nurses focus on improving or maintaining, the health of individuals, families, and population groups within Summit County. Using clinical knowledge, social and public health sciences, Public Health Nurses promote recommended health prevention screenings, administer immunizations to prevent debilitating and life threatening diseases, investigate communicable diseases to provide interventions to prevent disease from spreading and causing more illness and provide health education to meet the needs of the community.

Programs:

Baby Your Baby

The Baby Your Baby program was designed to provide helpful information for parents and their children. From financial help to preparing for pregnancy, the Baby Your Baby professionals are here for you.

The Baby Your Baby program is a cooperative effort between the Utah Department of Health, Intermountain Health Care and KUTV 2News Fresh Air.

To schedule a Baby Your Baby appointment at the Summit County Health Department, call 435-333-1500.

Communicable Disease

The Summit County Health Department works with healthcare providers, other local health departments, and the Utah Department of Health to minimize the impact of disease on the community’s health. Our staff members identify cases of reportable diseases then investigate them through patient interviews, specimen sampling, and collaborative work with healthcare providers.

Family Planning & Healthcare Services for Women

Our services are:

  • Confidential
  • Administered by female clinicians
  • Sliding scale based on income
  • By appointment only — call the Health Department to schedule an appointment

Services for Women:

  • Annual wellness exam including pap test and breast exam
  • Depending upon qualification (or If you qualify), free mammogram and/or pap test through the Utah Cancer Control Program
  • Birth control options counseling
  • Low-cost purchase of birth control pills, Depo-Provera shot, patch, Nuva ring
  • Free condoms
  • Pregnancy testing
  • Emergency contraception
  • Counseling and referral for pregnancy options

HIV/STD Testing

Sexually transmitted diseases, STDs, or sexually transmitted infections, STIs, are the most highly reported communicable disease in Summit County, in Utah, and in the United States. STIs are common, preventable, sometimes without symptoms, and can cause serious complications in men, women, and children. STIs are passed from one person to another through sexual contact.

Other STIs, including Hepatitis and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) or Autoimmune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) are passed from an infected person to another person through sexual contact, injection drug use, needle sharing, and blood transfusions prior to the year 1992. Health care workers and emergency services workers exposed to an infected person’s blood or body fluids can become infected. HIV can also be transmitted through breast milk.

Immunizations

Immunizations are one of public health’s greatest triumphs and an important aspect of preventive medicine appropriate for all ages. With the exception of safe water, no other health strategy, not even the production of antibiotics, has had such a tremendous effect on reducing disease and improving health. Despite the availability of safe and effective immunizations, thousands of cases of infectious disease continue to occur in the United States annually – diseases that could be prevented by immunization.

It is a common misconception that only babies need immunizations for health and wellness. Immunization is a lifelong, life-protecting community effort. Recommended immunizations begin soon after birth and should continue throughout life. By staying on target with recommended immunizations, we are not only protecting our families and ourselves; we also protect those around us who would otherwise be exposed to vaccine-preventable diseases.

Influenza (The Flu)

Influenza, more commonly called the flu, can be a serious illness for some people. Influenza vaccine protects adults and children against the flu. The virus that causes the flu changes often, so the vaccine is updated annually. This is why flu immunization is needed every year.

  • Influenza (the flu) is a serious disease caused by a virus that affects the lungs. Flu attacks people of all ages including the young and healthy.
  • The flu usually lasts 5 to 10 days but a cough and fatigue can last for many weeks, making the return to normal activities difficult.
  • People at higher risk of complications caused by the flu include anyone over the age of 65, those with chronic medical conditions such as heart or lung problems, and those with weak immune systems, and healthy children aged six to 23 months. Influenza can lead to pneumonia, hospitalization, and even death especially among people over the age of 65.

For information on Pandemic Influenza please click here.