Communicable Diseases

What is a Communicable Disease?

Communicable diseases are illnesses that spread from one person to another through a variety of ways including: 

• contact with blood or bodily fluids
• breathing in an airborne virus
• being bitten by an insect
• contact with a contaminated object or food.

Related Health Topics

• STD Control
• Tuberculosis Services
• Viral Hepatitis

Communicable Disease Objectives

• To promptly investigate disease outbreaks and unusual situations and to put control measures into action to minimize further transmission of disease
• To monitor disease reporting by physicians and laboratories to detect trends and determine the public health impact of diseases
• To provide a channel of communication between public health agencies, private physicians, and hospital and occupational infection control personnel
• To explain public health interventions and share health education messages with the community and media to improve disease control efforts