Preamble

The Department of Public Health is a regulatory agency responsible for the protection of public health and safety. It is also a services agency which provides prevention, intervention and treatment programs for infectious and chronic disease as well as a number of others support services. These responsibilities extend around the clock and make it imperative that the Department be able to respond to emergencies and other problems that occur at times when the regular management system is inoperative. This would include request for assistance or intervention that occur after normal working hours, on holidays, or during emergencies.

This book is intended to provide management personnel with sufficient information to respond to the majority of requests for consultation, assistance or intervention that a Public Health Department would reasonably be expected to receive. It is not intended to be exhaustive in scope nor to only address emergencies.