NCPHD celebrates National Public Health Week

National Public Health Week, April 1-7, is an opportunity for North Central Public Health District (NCPHD) to highlight the many programs we offer to keep our communities safe.

Going strong this year is a free tobacco cessation program, which launched in 2023, available to Wasco, Sherman, and Hood River County residents. It offers not only free cessation counseling for people of any age, but also free nicotine replacement therapy, such as gum, lozenges or patches, for those 18 and older. Learn more and register by visiting ncphd.org/tobacco-programs, calling 541-506-2609, or emailing [email protected].

"We're thrilled to continue offering this free service to our communities," said Neita Cecil, tobacco prevention coordinator for NCPHD. "It's already helped people quit, and the approach we use has been shown to be effective. People who use both cessation counseling and nicotine replacement therapy have a 25 percent higher quit rate than people who don't."

NCPHD, serving Wasco and Sherman counties, is also always working hard to keep our drinking water, public pools, and restaurants safe.

More critical behind the scenes work includes preparing NCPHD itself to respond to public health emergencies, which can range from wildfire smoke response to years-long pandemics. The emergency preparedness and communicable disease staff works with community partners at preventing disease and reducing death rates in the event of an emergency or disaster.

NCPHD staffers are perhaps best known as providers of immunizations to kids and adults, and for our WIC program, which provides nutrition help to new moms and kids up to age 5.

NCPHD also has several nurse home visiting programs. Babies First is for expectant moms and parents with kids up to age 5. Our nurses visit families at their homes and provide advice and resources to help moms be the best parent they can be. The CaCoon program helps families of children up to age 21 with disabilities to help connect them to needed services.

We also offer reproductive health services for men and women. This includes testing and treatments for sexually transmitted diseases, and services to help people who are either seeking or avoiding pregnancy.

If any of these programs support topics that you can benefit from, please reach out by calling (541) 506-2600 or visiting us on the web at http://www.ncphd.org. Or, follow us on Facebook.