Download the 2019 Community Report (PDF, 35 pages, 4 MB)
Message from Dr. Nicola Mercer, Medical Officer of Health & CEO
As Medical Officer of Health and CEO of Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, I am pleased to share our 2019 Community Report. It seems strange to try and look back on 2019 without the impact of COVID-19 colouring everything. Even though our focus has shifted dramatically in 2020 to the global COVID-19 pandemic, 2019 was an active and exciting year for WDG Public Health in ensuring residents had the information and programs to stay well.
Today, much of the work of Public Health has been dedicated to our community response to COVID-19. Public Health is using its website and social media platforms to get accurate information to community partners, members of the public and the media. At the same time, most staff have been redeployed to manage outbreaks and to undertake the very necessary steps of managing positive cases in our area and tracing contacts of cases to ensure we can slow the transmission of the virus.
Much of the vital work we were doing in 2019 carries on as essential services in 2020. Providing necessary vaccines, inspecting food vendors and public service settings, managing outbreaks of other diseases in long-term care and retirement homes, investigating if someone has been exposed to rabies or working to keep individuals safe from West Nile virus and Lyme disease are all examples of essential Pubic Health activities that are continuing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
You will find information about all these activities in the 2019 Community Report. It also includes highlights of many other activities, that have been deferred in 2020 because of COVID-19 and that we look forward to resuming when the pandemic is over.
Public Health is an integral part of the local health care system and no matter what unexpected future events may occur which impact the health or wellbeing of our communities, we will continue to work together with our Ontario Health Team partners, municipal governments and broader community organizations to benefit every individual who lives or visits Wellington County, Dufferin County or the City of Guelph. This pandemic has shown that together we are strong, organized and we can make a difference in the health of our community.
