December 27, 2018
OHIO DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH MEDICAL DIRECTOR’S VISIT TO KICK OFF TUSCARAWAS COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT’S 100 YEAR CELEBRATION!
Tuscarawas County, Ohio— Dr. Clint J. Koenig, Medical Director for the Ohio Department of Health, visited with the staff of the Tuscarawas County Health Department to applaud them for their collaborative work in program planning and quality improvement. Dr. Koenig also wanted to lend his ear for any thoughts on how the state and local health departments continue collaboration and joint partnerships.
Commissioner Seward shared her gratitude with Dr. Koenig for taking time out of his schedule to come and meet with the staff at the health department, “to know that the work you do locally means something to those at the state level means so much to the staff, the Board of Health, and myself. This is certainly a day to remember.” Dr. Koenig spent about 2 hours with Commissioner Seward and the Department Directors and went on a tour of the building. He took time for a photo opportunity as well.
Commissioner Seward added further, “Dr. Koenig’s visit coincides nicely with our 100-year celebration that will start January 1, 2019. To think the Tuscarawas County Health Department has been serving the residents of Tuscarawas for 100 years is astonishing!” 2019 holds many exciting events for the Tuscarawas County Health Department: GuardCare, the long-awaited outcome of their Accreditation Site Visit, a potential redesign of programming so as to bolster population health for the county, and many more things to come for the health department and the county.
Did you know that TCHD was established in 1919, 100 years ago? In the 1918s and the 1919s, each municipality or township in Ohio could choose to operate as its own health district, employing part-time, informally-educated public health employees on salaries averaging $4-10 a week. More than 2,100 health districts existed in Ohio in the first two decades of the 1900s, with little oversight from the State Board of Health.
The Hughes Law and subsequent Griswold Act, which received widespread support from labor unions, women’s organizations and medical professionals, created a public health model for the country by organizing local health districts into city and county areas of populations of 25,000 or more. This law was a direct response to the influenza epidemic (pandemic) of 1918/9 in which more than one-half million people died in the United States and more than 20 million worldwide.
At a minimum, each district was required to employ a full-time health commissioner, a nurse and a clerk. In addition, each district was required to have a five-member board of health, with the health commissioner serving as administrative or executive agent of that board. A newly reorganized State Department of Health was given more oversight over local health districts, though local health officials retained the authority to resolve local issues.
To learn more about the history of the health department and the programs and services they offer, go to their website at www.tchdnow.org or contact them at 330-343-5555. You can also follow them on Facebook and Instagram.
The Tuscarawas County Health Department is dedicated to promoting healthy choices, preventing disease, protecting the environment for all persons who live, work and play in our community.
About us
The Tuscarawas County Health Department was established in 1919 and became a full time entity in 1948. The Health Department operates under the provisions set forth in the Ohio Revised Code Chapter 3709. Today, the Health Department employs approximately 65 individuals.
The Tuscarawas County Health Department is a local government public agency. The Health Department is one of two health departments in Tuscarawas County and has jurisdiction in all areas outside of the city of New Philadelphia. The agency consists of seven divisions which include Alcohol and Addiction Division, Environmental Division, Clinic Division, Medical Records Division, Health Education Division, and Women, Infant and Children (WIC) Division.
The Board of Health is the governing body for the Health Department. The District Advisory Council appoints five members of the Board of Health, the District Licensing Council appoints one member, and the final member is a physician from the community. The District Advisory Council consists of the chairman of the board of trustees from each township, the mayor from each city or village and a representative of the Board of County Commissioners. The Licensing Council consists of representatives from the major Environmental Health programs that are licensed and inspected by the Health Department.
The agency is directed by a Health Commissioner and a leadership team that is comprised of the Director of Nursing, the Director of Environmental, Director of Medical Records, Director of WIC, Director of Health Education, and Director of the Alcohol and Addiction Program. Directors oversee programs and supervise staff within their respective divisions.
The Health Department is funded through a variety of sources including outside millage, grants, permits and licenses, contracts for services and fees for direct services.
About Tuscarawas County:
Tuscarawas County is located in the Eastern part of Ohio. The 2010 census listed the population at 92,582. The County seat is New Philadelphia. The County has a total area of 571 square miles. 94.1% of residents speak English, 1.4% Spanish, 1.1% German and 2.0% speak another language. The racial makeup of the county was 97.87% White, 0.73% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.24% Asian.
The Tuscarawas County Health Department is a local government public agency. The Health Department is one of two health departments in Tuscarawas County and has jurisdiction in all areas outside of the city of New Philadelphia. The agency consists of seven divisions which include Alcohol and Addiction Division, Environmental Division, Clinic Division, Medical Records Division, Health Education Division, and Women, Infant and Children (WIC) Division.
The Board of Health is the governing body for the Health Department. The District Advisory Council appoints five members of the Board of Health, the District Licensing Council appoints one member, and the final member is a physician from the community. The District Advisory Council consists of the chairman of the board of trustees from each township, the mayor from each city or village and a representative of the Board of County Commissioners. The Licensing Council consists of representatives from the major Environmental Health programs that are licensed and inspected by the Health Department.
The agency is directed by a Health Commissioner and a leadership team that is comprised of the Director of Nursing, the Director of Environmental, Director of Medical Records, Director of WIC, Director of Health Education, and Director of the Alcohol and Addiction Program. Directors oversee programs and supervise staff within their respective divisions.
The Health Department is funded through a variety of sources including outside millage, grants, permits and licenses, contracts for services and fees for direct services.
About Tuscarawas County:
Tuscarawas County is located in the Eastern part of Ohio. The 2010 census listed the population at 92,582. The County seat is New Philadelphia. The County has a total area of 571 square miles. 94.1% of residents speak English, 1.4% Spanish, 1.1% German and 2.0% speak another language. The racial makeup of the county was 97.87% White, 0.73% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.24% Asian.
A look at our past...