MPOX INFORMATION
MCHD is updating webpages with the term “mpox” to reduce stigma and other issues associated with prior terminology. This change is aligned with the recent World Health Organization decision.
WHAT IS MPOX?
Mpox is a very rare disease caused by infection with the mpox virus. It is usually found in Central and West Africa and does not occur naturally in the United States.
However, cases have recently been identified in the U.S. with more cases expected. This situation is being closely monitored by public health.
For more information, please visit https://www.alabamapublichealth.gov/monkeypox/index.html or call MCHD’s Bureau of Disease Surveillance and Control at 251-690-8175.
HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS
Here is a link to the Alabama Department of Public Health website in regards to mpox — https://www.alabamapublichealth.gov/monkeypox/healthcare.html
VACCINATION
Family Health is the primary care division of MCHD. Clients who take part in Family Health’s Ryan White Program should make an appointment to receive the Jynneos vaccine by calling 251-690-8889.
Other individuals interested in receiving the vaccine may register through MCHD’s Bureau of Disease Surveillance and Control at this link — https://redcap.link/MPXmchd. If the client meets the Alabama Department of Public Health’s expanded criteria for the vaccine, MCHD staff will contact the client by phone or email to provide information on the availability of the vaccine and instructions on getting vaccinated.
Clients may also sign up for the vaccine through MCHD’s smartphone app under “More” and then “Sign Up for mpox Vaccination.” The app is available for download for free in the App Store and Google Play. Search “My MCHD Health Check” or visit the following link to download the app — https://apps.myocv.com/share/a65536603.
COVID-19 INFORMATION
COVID-19 TESTING
The COVID-19 Response Team provides rapid testing at its Festival Centre location in Mobile and the Southwest Public Health Center in Tillman’s Corner.
An appointment can be made by visiting the following link — https://appointments.mchd.org.
For a list of other testing locations in Mobile County according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, click here.
For the COVID-19 testing packet, please click here.
The CDC has a one-stop shop for instructional videos for the various at-home COVID-19 products. To see the videos, please click here.
WOMEN, INFANTS & CHILDREN (WIC) IS A FEDERALLY-FUNDED NUTRITION EDUCATION PROGRAM.
WIC’s mission is to increase awareness among postpartum and breastfeeding women and parents/caretakers of participants age 1-5 years of the need to balance food intake and daily physical activity, to promote increasing the intake of fruits and vegetables and to increase awareness of the benefits of breastfeeding.
You may apply for an Alabama vital record at the main Health Department site in downtown Mobile. It’s easy. Fill out an application at the site and give payment and application to the clerk. You may also download an application and fill it out beforehand.
Restaurant and Food Establishment Program
The Inspection Services Department has environmental health specialists who perform restaurant and food establishment inspections on a routine basis to protect consumers from unsanitary conditions, educate food service employees and to prevent foodborne illnesses.
Each food service establishment must obtain a food permit from the Health Department each year. Any establishment, permanent or temporary, that offers for sale, any unpackaged food product or potentially hazardous packaged product to the public must have a current permit. This permit must be displayed in public view.
HEALTH EQUITY OFFICE
What is Health Equity?
There are many things that contribute to health—eating a balanced diet, exercising, and visiting a doctor on a regular basis. But it is so much more than that. Population-level factors such as the physical, built, social, and policy environments can have a greater impact on health outcomes than individual behaviors and choices.
Program Overview
The Mobile County Health Department (MCHD) established a leadership-level Health Equity Office (HEO) to address health disparities in Mobile County. Funding came from the national initiative to address COVID-19 health disparities among populations at high-risk and underserved, including racial and ethnic minority populations and rural communities.
MCHD has identified four target areas in the county, comprised of 15 zip codes, in which health disparities exist alongside high COVID-19 rates and low vaccination rates.
The MCHD HEO is responsible for evaluating internal and external programs and policies, identifying weaknesses, and laying a foundation for serving community members living in these vulnerable zip codes through a health equity lens.
Mission
The MCHD HEO wants to help create a community where everyone has the opportunity to be as healthy as possible. To create this community, we must address both upstream factors like social inequities, institutional inequities, and living conditions and downstream factors like risk behaviors, disease and injury, and mortality. We aim to do this by:
- Connecting with and listening to our community
- Building community partnerships
- Collecting and analyzing data to drive our mission forward
- Providing education, outreach, and supportive services to chronically underserved areas
- Advocating for program and policy decisions that use a health equity lens
- Strengthening the capacity for our community to create its own health future
The MCHD HEO provides support for our community to be well, get well and stay well.
To learn how to get involved, visit https://healthequity-mc-hd.hub.arcgis.com/ or contact the MCHD Health Equity Office by phone at 251-405-4535 or via email at HealthEquityOffice@mchd.org
Awards & Accreditations
