HISTORY OF ALAMANCE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
On January 8, 1917 Dr. C. Vernon was appointed by the local Board of Health To serve as Superintendent of Health and Quarantine officer.  For twenty-one years Alamance County was served only with part-time health officers.

On January 11, 1937 the Board of health adopted a resolution that county commissioners establish a full time public health department that would meet the standards of the N. C. Board of Health.  On July 1, 1938 Dr. PY Greene, a Burlington physician was elected to the position of health officer.  He then employed two nurses, a sanitarian, a meat inspector and a clerk.

The health department was located on the third floor of the courthouse in Graham with outlying clinics in Mebane and other location in the county.  The first project of the new health department was organization of VD clinics in the Sellers Gunn School.  Typhoid clinics were held in July of 1938 followed by a school health program.  Also in 1938 greater than 10,000 school children between first and sixth grades received smallpox vaccinations.  In the fall of that same year the Tuberculosis program was organized.  The health department staff provided follow-up of patients with TB.

In 1939 the State Board of Health sent a technician and a mobile unit to hold the first adult TB clinic in Graham.  Also a well baby clinic was sponsored in cooperation with the Service League.

Dr. Greene, his staff and other interested individuals formed TBC association in 1940, followed by the establishment of the county sanatorium in 1942.
 
A venereal disease follow-up worker was added to the staff in 1943, which also included the PHN’s, two clerks, one sanitarian, on VD worker and the Health Officer.  Also in this year the health department gave blood tests to forty percent of county’s males drafted for service; maintained a VD clinic in which approximately 300 people were treated weekly; established a general clinic in Saxapahaw and gave TB tests to all school children from fourth to twelfth grade.

The health department in cooperation with the School Health Coordinating Service conducted a public health survey in the schools of the county.  The United States Public Health Service in Washington D.C. sent a representative to organize a milk sanitation program.

In 1946 a ringworm epidemic occurred in the county school system.  The U.S.P.H.S. came to aid the Red Cross.

Dr. King, Jr. became the Health officer in 1948.  He appointed a health educator and an additional nurse.  A children’s clinic previously established by the Service League, where local physicians provide care to sick children, was changed to a well baby clinic.  Local pediatricians provided care to approx. 45 babies per week.  There were no prenatal clinics in the county at this time.

This same year the main office of the health department was moved to a building in downtown Burlington.  The Health Officer, educator, and clerk remained in Graham where they conducted weekly clinics.  The main office of the health department was crowded and poorly constructed.  As the services expanded, clinic and office space became more inadequate.  In the summer of 1954 the Board of Commissioners approved money to remodel the county sanatorium building.  The sanatorium was purchased by Mr. Francis H. Robinson and conveyed the property to the county for any public health purpose.  In 1955 the staff had expanded to include eight public health nurses.  The medical services consisted of maternal and child health, venereal disease control, tuberculosis treatment of other communicable disease, work in school health and with crippled children.  Home visits were made by the nurses at the request of a physician, the school or parent of a child to follow-up on childhood diseases such as polio, meningitis, typhoid fevers and diphtheria.

The health department implemented a strong school health program.  Services included first grade school exams for children not examined prior to entering school, molar examinations for all second and fourth grade students, physical exam for students referred by the teacher to the nurse in second through eighth grades; ninth grade health exams and preschool orientation.

At the same time the health department’s sanitation program included inspection of private sewage disposal systems and water supplies, sampling private water supplies, inspection of restaurants, schools, meat market, school cafeterias, abattoirs, packing and poultry plants, food handling schools, inspection of milk production, processing and distribution plants.

In 1956 the health department employed a psychiatric social work consultant in an effort to bring community awareness to the mental health problem, also to work with children who had emotional or behavioral problems.  Massive polio clinics were held.  Approximately 4,000 children received the salk vaccines.  Tuberculosis tests were given to all high school students.

 In 1958 the county had four sanitarians and a big milk sanitation program.  There was a county veterinarian whose responsibility was to see that all animals slaughtered in the county for public sale were disease free.  He also supervised the rabies control program.

Eleven nurses were employed serving homes, schools, clinics and community groups.  A state nutritionist, who served ten counties, used Alamance County Health Department as a home office.  There was one health educator and five clerks.

By the 60’s the health department’s basic services included sanitation, maternal and child health, vital statistics, communicable and other diseases control, health education, school nursing service, and the home visit program.

In September of 1964 the Birth Control Clinic was started.  It later became known as the Planned Parenthood Clinic.

In the late sixties the shift was from infectious disease to treatment and prevention of chronic disease.

In 1969 the county opened the first sanitary landfill and also started a state and federally funded supplemental food program. 

Not only were programs changed and expanded in the early seventies, but also the facility itself.  Services were expanded to include x-ray clinics and a more extensive home health program. 

The health department has experience, many changes since it’s conception in 1937.  In those early years services provided by the department were limited to tuberculosis, typhoid, venereal disease and well baby services.  Now the department offers a wide variety of services which include AIDS/HIV education testing and treatment, Baby Love, Child Health, Child Service Coordination, Communicable Disease, Dental Clinic for Children, Environmental Health, Family Planning, Immunizations, Maternal Health, School Health, Sexually transmitted disease, Health Education, and WIC.

We are no longer confronted with epidemics of tuberculosis, typhoid and other diseases that were so prevalent in the 40’s and 50’s.  The health needs of our community have changed since then.  We now see increased numbers of HIV, STD, tuberculosis and adolescent pregnancy.  The scope and nature of public health had changed since then.  Public health has assumed its role in prevention and education as well as treatment of illness and disease.  Bioterrorism and communicable disease treatment and prevention have become a top priority of public health since 2001.  The health department works closely with local law authorities, the hospital, school system, and municipalities to plan for possible outbreaks in our community.

The increase and change in services to meet the needs as defined by the community is the reason for the growth of health department facilities and staff.  Environmental health is now housed in the old sanatorium.  The health department clinics are housed in Alamance County’s former hospital building along with DSS and Alamance-Caswell Mental Health.  Health Education is housed in a modular unit near Environmental Health.  The health department currently employees 106 individuals.

The health department has worked hard to establish a network of communication and cooperation with other health care providers in the community.  The health department also provides internships and field experience for area university student in the fields of nursing, nutrition, health education, dental health for children, and health policy and administration.