| | November 20208UTLOOKHealthcare Tech Prevent, promote, protect as the public health shield says. This is our creed. It is also our charge for those who live, work, play, and worship in the City of Worcester (population 187,000) and the six surrounding communities we provide public health services to (additional population of 100,000) in the Central MA Regional Public Health Alliance. Local public health is often invisible, but that's how we know we are doing our jobs. Unlike police departments that put up yellow caution tape around a crime scene or a red fire truck that puts out a fire, public health does its work quietly and without fanfare. Often underfunded and misunderstood, public health is responsible for much more than ensuring the food and water we drink is safe and that we live in safe and sanitary conditions. In Massachusetts, local health departments and boards of health are legally responsible to provide food protection, ensure adequate and safe housing, and communicable disease investigation to their residents. Much of our work is about education and compliance, not punishment. Over the past 10 years, How Local Public Health is Mitigating the Spread of COVID-19By Karyn E. Clark, Director, Division of Public Health, City of WorcesterIN MY OPINION
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