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Photo courtesy John Winters Thanks to The Boren Foundation, and Jack and Karen Kay Leonard for making this website possible. |
EQSC Recommendations
Implement County Pilot Programs: ISDH and local health departments should establish pilot programs in three or four counties in Indiana, including Lake and Marion counties, to assemble existing health information and analyze the information to:
- Recognize environmental insults affecting public health;
- Identify local and statewide disease trends that exceed averages; and
- Identify gaps in the information.
The programs will focus on diseases that affect children and that are believed to be linked to environmental threats.
Rebuild Cancer Registry: The state should add staff and invest $2 million for two years and $1 million annually thereafter to rebuild and maintain the Indiana Cancer Registry so that the information is current and useful. The current registry lacks the resources to provide timely and accurate information on cancer cases in Indiana, especially for border counties.
Expand Birth Malformation Reporting: ISDH should require reporting of birth defects identified in children up to four years old. Current reporting is limited to birth certificates. Indiana recently got a grade of “F” from the Pew Foundation for its lack of a birth defects registry. See http://pewenvirohealth.jhsph.edu for a copy of the report.
Establish Standing Commission: The state should establish a standing commission to:
- Assess the effectiveness of the ISDH/Local Health Department system in dealing with diseases other than communicable diseases;
- Address information exchange between IDEM and ISDH; and
Encourage research into potential causes and effects of important diseases.