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Epidemiology & Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP)

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EPD Staff Infectious disease surveillance is the ongoing collection, analysis, interpretation, and dissemination of health data. This type of assessment is a core public health function. Communicable disease surveillance monitors patterns of disease occurrence and assesses the populations health status. Surveillance can detect sudden changes in disease occurrence, such as an outbreak, or identify long-term disease trends or new and emerging diseases. Surveillance activities are linked to public health actions, such as investigation, control and prevention, evaluation, or planning and allocating resources to address the diseases affecting the population.

The Epidemiology Division maintains an active surveillance program of health-related conditions within the City of Laredo, Duval, Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata Counties. The ultimate goal of the epidemiology division is to predict health related conditions, identify the risks, and implement elements that can lower morbidity and mortality. The Epidemiology Division investigates confirmed and suspected cases of infectious diseases and conditions that are reported by physician’s offices, hospitals and medical laboratories. Our team ensures that action is taken to prevent infectious disease outbreaks in the area.

Who Must Report

The Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Act (Health & Safety Code, Chapter 81) requires physicians, dentists, veterinarians, and chiropractors to report, after the first professional encounter, each examined patient suspected of having a reportable disease. Some individuals at hospitals, laboratories, and schools are also required to report.

All diseases shall be reported by name, age, sex, race, ethnicity, DOB, address, telephone number, disease or condition, date of onset, method of diagnosis, and name, address, and telephone number of physicians.

For a list of the most current reportable disease conditions in the State of Texas, please visit www.dshs.texas.gov.

To report a Texas Notifiable Disease Condition to the City of Laredo Health Department’s Epidemiology Division, please fax laboratory results to (956)-795-4953.

For any comments, questions, or concerns regarding an infectious disease, please contact our office at (956) 795-4951. We are available Monday-Friday 8am-5pm.

You can report notifiable conditions 7 days a week by calling (956) 763-2786.

Public Health Emergency Preparedness

The PHEP program performs public health disease surveillance, preparedness and intervention plan, designed to upgrade state and local public jurisdictions’ preparedness for the response to bioterrorism, other infectious diseases, as well as other public health threats and emergencies. This program was created on June 1, 2002, and funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) through the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS).

The PHEP program services have been extended to the counties of Webb, Duval, Jim Hogg, and Zapata. The mission of the PHEP program is to detect and predict act of bioterrorism or threats as early as possible through an active and responsive disease surveillance system. The program also coordinates immediate control efforts and further prevents the spread of disease.

EPISodes:

Wastewater Surveillance Reports:

Monitor Values Report - Hazardous Air Pollutants

Outdoor Air Quality Data

This report displays hazardous air pollutant summary data for individual monitoring sites. Read more about what's in this report.

The PHEP program addresses 15 Capabilities:

Community Preparedness
Community Recovery
Emergency Operations Center Coordination
Emergency Public Information and Warning
Information Sharing
Mass Care
Medical Countermeasure Dispensing
Medical Materiel Management and Distribution
Medical Surge
Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions
Public Health Laboratory Testing
Public Health Surveillance and Epidemiological Investigations
Volunteer Management

Strategic National Stockpile (SNS)

The Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) is a national repository of life-saving pharmaceuticals and medical materiel/supplies that are available to protect the general public if there is a public health emergency severe enough to cause local supplies to run out. Each State and local jurisdictions have plans to receive and distribute SNS supplies to the targeted population as quickly as possible.

For more information, visit the Strategic National Stockpile website.

To register as a volunteer, please email phep@ci.laredo.tx.us.

For volunteers, please access SNS trainings at https://tx.train.org.

After creating and account, search courses by ID number:

Course ID	Course Name
1009414	SNS 110 POD Training
1010263	Working in a POD (1CEU)
1010523	The POD Game
1013282	SNS: Basic Intro for Hospital Preparedness Staff (1CEU)
1013352	Introductions to Points of Dispensing
1015200	SNS: A Basic Intro for SNS Volunteers (1CEU)
1018973	Intro to SNS and Mass Prophylaxis (0.3 CEU)
1022753	POD Operations
1027222	SNS: A Basic Intro for SNS Medical Workers (1CEU)
1031228	Establishing Closed PODs: An Overview of Recruitment, Training and Operational Matters