Virginia Department of Health Sexually

Virginia Department of Health

Sexually transmitted diseases please see all instructions below

Agency, role and structure

According to its website, the Virginia State Board of Health and the Virginia Department of Health exist "to implement a coordinated, prevention-oriented program that promotes and protects the health of all Virginians. In addition, the Board serves as the primary advocate and representative of the citizens of the Commonwealth in achieving optimal health" (Mission, 2008, VDH).

Include the population served, preventive services, organizational structure.

The central functions of the VDH are the prevention and control of chronic disease; reduction of disparities in health care and health status; to improve the state's public health infrastructure; and "to improve the health and well-being of all Virginians overall" (Mission, 2008, VDH). The Department is funded with state and federal funds. Its outreach is extremely wide, and spans containment of smoking and STDs; health education; epidemiology; vaccinations; birth and death certificates; health promotion of exercise and a healthy diet; anti-smoking campaigns; measures to contain the spread of preventable chronic aliments like type 2 diabetes, and also epidemics such as salmonella and the flu.

Discuss overall community efforts to resolve this problem (STD)

The Virginia Department of Health STD Prevention Program is funded with state funds and through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It has as its primary goal the reduction and prevention of the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases including HIV infection. There are specific community screening programs in areas that have historically high rates for syphilis, gonorrhea, and Chlamydia and "diagnostic and therapeutic services are supported through a contract with the Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services and the provision of laboratory testing supplies to local health departments. Gonorrhea screening services are conducted in all public health clinics and selective private health care settings," and Chlamydia prevention efforts screen for the disease in "all public health STD, family planning and prenatal clinics (STD, 2005, VDH). Patients are also offered HIV screening. However, there seems to be a self-perpetuating aspect in these statistics: health and family planning clinics report the bulk of the cases of STDs, so naturally it appears that the populations that predominantly use such clinics will have higher rates of these conditions.

Most of the links on the website are not Virginia-specific, and are connected to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). There is little discussion of Virginia-specific needs regarding this particular crisis, other than the fact the Department engages in locally-coordinated efforts. Because education about STDs is an essential component of prevention, given that so many people (adults and adolescents alike) do not understand that STDs dare asymptomatic, even after the individuals is infected, adolescent awareness programs are an important aspect of the department's initiative.

The State Division of HIV/STD works with local health districts to provide Chlamydia screening to all adolescents receiving pelvic examinations at STD clinics, at family planning clinics or at prenatal clinics. Although the VDH does strive to test the male partners of infected females, the emphasis of the program is obviously slanted to screening and treating females. Women and girls in general are also more likely to seek medical care, for all ailments. The Division of HIV/STD of the VHS provides educators the resources "to counsel selected high-risk teens and locate contacts for treatment. This Division also collects and disseminates aggregate data on all reportable STDs in Virginia," although again this may, because of its focus on public health clinics, disproportionately emphasize low-income youth (Adolescent, 2009, VHD). "The Division also funds HIV prevention programs targeting youth. Programs include prevention education for at-risk communities and populations and 19 projects to reach racial and ethnic minority youth and other high-risk youth" (Adolescent, 2009, VHD).

Discuss the community health nurse's role in solving this problem (STD)