Communicable Disease Testing and Prevention

The Portsmouth Health Department’s Communicable Disease program works to lower the chance of illness and death from infectious diseases in the community. The staff consists of trained physicians, nurses, and epidemiologists. This department receives reports of communicable diseases from local physicians, hospitals, clinics. and laboratories. These reports are investigated to prevent and contain the spread of diseases and monitor trends.

Communicable diseases can include influenza (seasonal and pandemic), Lyme disease, rabies, West Nile virus, whooping cough, MRSA, and more. The staff gather information, provide counseling and education to clients with reportable diseases, and investigate outbreaks in the community.