This Division is primarily responsible for the epidemiology, surveillance and control of communicable diseases through a comprehensive program of immunization, disease reporting, follow-up, and control of disease occurrences and outbreaks. It also has responsibility for the epidemiology and control of non-communicable and chronic diseases and works as part of a government team to ensure a safe environment.

• Disease Surveillance - This program involves receiving, compiling and analyzing reported communicable diseases as outlined in the Communicable Diseases Act and the Venereal Diseases Act. In addition to producing weekly, monthly and annual reports for the province, and reporting to Health Canada, this includes maintenance of disease registries. Disease registries maintain demographic, treatment and epidemiologic data on individuals with specific diseases. There are seven current disease registries; Tuberculosis, Syphilis, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, HIV and AIDS, Measles, Meningococcal Disease.

• Disease Control - This program involves responding to variations in disease patterns, outside that which is normal or expected in the population, with a view to elimination or containment. Some examples include investigation and control of outbreaks of food and water-borne illness, tuberculosis, measles, and unidentified symptoms or disease syndromes in the population.

• Immunization - This program involves the immunization of all persons in the province according to national and provincial standards and recommendations. This includes policy development, maintenance of vaccine supply (including budget and monitoring), maintenance of immunization records, and provision of data related to immunization status. Also included in this program are ad hoc immunization programs directed to specific outbreak control measures.

• Environmental Health - The environmental health program of the Disease Control and Epidemiology Division is responsible for the review and/or development of environmental/public health program areas. This includes policy, guideline and standards development and the promotion of environmental/public health issues related to:

  food premises inspection program food safety bacteriological quality of drinking water: public and private water supplies sanitation: private sewage disposal & nuisances public facility inspections: public pools, child care centres, and schools tobacco sales to minors environmental tobacco smoke enteric disease investigations air quality

  The following Acts and Regulations are applicable to the Environmental Health Program:

  Health and Community Services Act Food and Drug Act Smoke-free Environment Act Tobacco Control Act Communicable Diseases Act Food Premises Regulations Public Pools Regulations Sanitation Regulations Smoke-free Environment Regulations Staff are involved in emerging environmental health issues at the provincial and national levels by participating in various Federal/Provincial/Territorial committees. The environmental health programs are carried out by Environmental Health Officers of the Government Service Centre, Department of Government Services and Lands.

• Consultation - This involves acting as consultant to the Minister of Health, community health boards and other professions and government departments in the province. This also includes acting as the Departments' liaison with other departments, organizations and with other provincial and federal governments in the area of disease control.