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Public Health Thank You Day is November 21 November 21 marks the first national Public Health Thank You Day. Today, we express our gratitude to our local public health professionals for leading the effort to protect the health of all Americans. Public health workers come from diverse cultural and professional backgrounds and are dedicated to the communities they serve and are sometimes the "invisible" heroes who protect us. The work of public health professionals have a significant impact on our daily lives: protecting our food and water supplies, ensuring that immunizations are provided, identifying community health threats and implementing policies and programs to alleviate them; providing pregnant women with resources to ensure that they have healthy pregnancies and healthy babies; working with the elderly to ensure that they are safe in their homes and the community; teaching parents how to keep their children safe in motor vehicles; and performing surveillance for emerging diseases. The public health challenges facing our community are numerous. Among them are the rising incidences of obesity in both our adult and youth populations, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, injuries and violence, the risk of avian influenza, the threat of bioterrorism, natural disasters, and the increase of asthma prevalence in our community, to name a few. The Yale School of Public Health's faculty collaborates with the City of New Haven as well as other municipalities throughout the state, the State of Connecticut, and with local non-governmental organizations such as the Connecticut Public Health Association and the Connecticut Association of Directors of Health to enhance the health and meet the needs of the people in our state. The recent devastations of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma serve to remind us that we are no less susceptible to the forces of nature and the public health threats that would inevitably ensue. These incidents have again increased our nation's awareness of the need for a strong and prepared public health system. Agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Connecticut Department of Health, and local health departments and health districts work daily to provide such public health protection. They plan for public health activities and interventions, provide education and resources to the community and monitor our health. Public Health Thank You Day, organized by Research!America, the American Public Health Association, the Association of Schools of Public Health, The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, and the National Association of County & City Health Officials, provides us the opportunity to recognize and appreciate the crucial role of our public health practitioners and advocates in ensuring our safety and well-being.
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