Epidemiologist

The Oklahoma State Department of Health, through its system of local health services delivery, is ultimately responsible for promoting, protecting and improving the health of all Oklahomans through strategies that focus on preventing disease and injuries.

Oklahoma State Department Programs and Services:

Community and family health services

Community and Family Health Services provides oversight and direction to the 68 organized county health departments in the state, establishing implementation priorities for program guidelines of OSDH-defined goals and objectives. Central office programs focus primarily on preserving and improving the health of women, adolescents and babies. Community and Family Health Services acts as the liaison between the county health departments and statewide programs.

OSDH administers the Child Guidance Service in regional county health departments along with the Childcare Warmline, which offers free telephone consultation and referrals to child care providers. These programs provide support and training to parents, youth, child care providers, educators and medical communities. The agency also staffs the Early Intervention (SoonerStart) program for infants, toddlers and babies who have developmental delays.

The Dental Health Service program provides oral health screening and small-scale treatment for children and nursing home residents in some areas through contracts with providers. The Dental Health Service also administers school-based dental education programs, a fluoridation program to improve the state’s drinking water supply and the Dental Loan Repayment Program.

The Family Support and Prevention Service program promotes the health, safety and wellness of Oklahoma’s children and families by administering visitation programs for low-resource mothers. This service improves health outcomes and parenting skills by providing training and assistance to organizations or agencies that serve families with young children, in an effort to avert child abuse, unplanned repeat pregnancies and other adverse outcomes.

Maternal and Child Health Service partners with key stakeholders, county health departments and nonprofit clinics to improve the physical and mental health, safety, and well-being of Oklahoma mothers and children by developing and promoting best practices for reproductive health and the health of babies. The agency also provides community-based programs aimed at lowering the state’s teen birthrate.

The agency is responsible for providing public health nurses, who comprise the largest segment of Oklahoma’s public health workforce, with clinical practice guidelines and orders, continuing education and training opportunities, performance improvement activities, and professional development.

OSDH ensures county health department patient records are organized and maintained within medico legal standards by providing on-site training and software support for agency computer application programs, data collection, billing and patient records.

The agency protects Oklahoma’s children and families by providing specialized statewide surveillance and screening programs, including genetics, newborn screening, newborn hearing screening, childhood lead poisoning prevention and the Oklahoma Birth Defects Registry.

The federally funded Women, Infants and Children program provides nutritious foods to supplement the diets of women, infants and children for approximately 100,000 clients per month. The agency offers nutrition classes, interactive online education and fitness group classes, as well as private consultation with nutrition experts.

Clients served: 191,376 Oklahomans.

Protective health services

OSDH has responsibility for a wide range of regulations that affect the health of citizens. Regulatory responsibilities include enforcing laws and rules; performing routine inspections; investigating complaints; and issuing, renewing and revoking licenses.

The Long-Term Care Service oversees the health and safety of residents living in licensed long-term care facilities. Long-term care facilities include nursing homes, skilled nursing facilities, residential care homes, assisted-living centers, continuum of care homes and intermediate care facilities for individuals who are intellectually disabled.

Medical Facilities Service is comprised of three main programs: medical facilities, trauma and emergency medical services. The Medical Facilities Service licenses and certifies health care facilities in accordance with state and federal laws. It inspects, licenses and performs Medicare certification of all non-long-term care medical facilities in Oklahoma.

Emergency Medical Services develops rules for administering emergency response systems in the state and performs other functions, including developing a comprehensive plan for EMS development, testing and licensure of EMS, and collecting statewide EMS data. The trauma program is responsible for facilitating and coordinating a multidisciplinary system response to severely injured patients in Oklahoma. The trauma system includes EMS field intervention, emergency department care, surgical interventions, intensive and general surgical in-hospital care, rehabilitation services, and support groups.

OSDH administers three customer health service programs: Consumer Protection, Occupational Licensing and Professional Counselor Licensing. The Consumer Protection program is responsible for licensing, monitoring and inspecting hotels and motels, eating and drinking establishments, retail and wholesale food outlets, food manufacturers, public bathing places, and all sources of ionizing radiation. The Occupational Licensing program licenses and inspects hearing aid dealers, home inspectors and sanitarians. The Professional Counselor Licensing program promotes and enforces laws and regulations which govern the practices of licensed professional counselors, licensed marital and family therapists, licensed behavioral practitioners, and licensed genetic counselors.

The Health Resources Development Service performs health protection and public assurance functions in the following program areas: health facility systems, managed care systems, Nurse Aide and Non-Technical Services Workers Registry, Home Care Administrator Registry, and jail inspections.

Clients served: Long-Term Care, 35,000; Health Resource Development Services, 68,653; all other programs, unknown because services provided vary.

Prevention and Preparedness Services

Prevention and Preparedness Services is comprised of five public health prevention and/or surveillance services: public health laboratory, acute disease, HIV/STD, emergency preparedness and response services, and injury prevention. This division is overseen by the deputy commissioner for prevention and preparedness services, who serves as the state epidemiologist and as a medical consultant to the agency on matters relating to infectious disease, immunizations, preparedness and response, and supervision of the investigation of disease outbreaks.

Injuries are the third leading cause of death in Oklahoma and the leading cause of death among children and young adults 1 to 44 years of age. The mission of Injury Prevention is to improve the health of Oklahomans by working in collaboration with communities and stakeholders to identify injury problems and develop, implement, and evaluate environmental modifications and educational interventions. Some successful focus areas include car seat safety, fire safety and prevention of traumatic spinal cord injuries.

Clients served: Emergency Preparedness and Response, 3.9 million; Immunization Services, 850,000; Public Health Laboratory, 3.9 million; HIV/STD Prevention Services, 40,000; and Acute Disease Services, 3.9 million.

Health Improvement Services

Health Improvement Services focuses on the leading causes of death (cardiovascular disease and cancer) and provides a range of programs to prevent disease, disability and premature death. This includes working directly with communities, schools and businesses; aiming programs at specific populations who are suffering health disparities; and transforming health care to improve outcomes, quality and cost. HIS assesses the health of the population, collects data on health care quality and costs, and makes data available to public health and health care practitioners, health serving entities, stakeholders and the public.

Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority

The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority was established to oversee Oklahoma’s medical marijuana program, established by a vote of the people via State Question 788. It is responsible for licensing, regulating and administering medical marijuana as authorized by state law. The primary goal is to ensure safe and responsible practices for the people of Oklahoma.

Clients served: Since the inception of this program on Aug. 25, 2018, OSDH has received an average of $1,895,388 in registration fees per month through 7,206 license applications.

Oklahoma Athletic Commission

The mission of the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission is to implement the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission Act and to protect, maintain and improve the safety and welfare of the participants of professional boxing, wrestling and kickboxing, as well as the general public. The Commission is governed by 3A O.S., Section 601-624 and Title 92 in the Oklahoma Administrative Code.

Clients served: 1,738 licenses were issued in FY 2018.

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Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

If you are employed by The Oklahoma State Department of Health, you might be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. Keep reading to see whether you might qualify.  https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service