Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) Program - Community Screening

Your baby will be referred to Community Hearing Screening if:

• your baby is discharged from hospital or birth centre before hearing screening can take place
• your baby is born at a hospital or birth centre that does not offer hearing screening
• your baby is not born in a hospital or birth centre

A community screening site will call and offer a hearing screening appointment for your baby soon after their birth.

The results of your baby's hearing screening and any follow up needed will be shared with you.

Hearing screening is the best way to find out if your baby has hearing loss.

Hearing screening is quick, safe, and will not hurt your baby. Your baby's hearing is important for many areas of child and brain development. Hearing loss can delay your child's speech, learning and social skills.

For more information, visit our website.

Environmental Public Health - Water Sample Bottle Pick-up and Drop-off

Drinking water, beaches and swimming pool water can be tested. Chemical water sampling testing is available and looks for common chemicals and trace metals found in water. Bacteria water sampling tests water samples for indicator bacteria to ensure water is safe.

For additional information,

• Environmental Public Health - Drinking Water
• Sample Your Water - Environmental Public Health
• Testing your drinking water in Alberta

Immunization - Adult Services

This service provides routine immunization for adults. Suggested immunizations:

• a booster dose of diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (whooping cough)(dTap) every 10 years
• dTap vaccine for pregnant women every time they are pregnant
• Hepatitis B vaccine (HBV) for unprotected adults born in 1981 or later. Some adults born before 1981 may need this vaccine if they are at risk for hepatitis B (e.g. health problems, type of work, lifestyle, contact with the virus)
• Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for adults up to and including age 26 years who did not get it in school.
• Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR) vaccine for adults whose immunization records do not show the recommended number of doses of measles, mumps, or rubella vaccine
• Chickenpox vaccine for unprotected adults
• annual influenza vaccine
• pneumococcal vaccine for all adults 65 years of age and older and adults with certain health problems

To find out which vaccines are recommended for you and to book an appointment for immunization, call your nearest community / public health centre. If you are not sure where your nearest community / public health centre is, you can call Health Link at 811. Bring any immunization records you have to the appointment, especially if you were immunized in another province or country.

For more general information about immunization go to ImmunizeAlberta.ca, Immunizations at myhealth.alberta.ca, or call Health Link.

Immunization - Infant and Preschool Services

Alberta Health Services provides routine immunization for infants and children across Alberta. Immunizations are free of charge for infants and children who live in Alberta.
Immunizations are recommended for infants starting at 2 months of age. Routinely recommended vaccines include: diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), tetanus, polio, Haemophilus influenzae type b, hepatitis B, rotavirus, meningococcal, pneumococcal, measles, mumps, rubella, varicella (chickenpox), and influenza.

For the routine immunization schedule, go to immunizealberta.ca.

Additional vaccines may be needed depending on your child’s health conditions or other risk factors.

Immunization is effective. Other than providing safe drinking water, no other health intervention works as well as immunization to reduce disease and death rates. Immunization protects whole communities. The more people who are fully immunized in a community, the safer everyone is.

Immunization is safe. It is much safer to get immunized than to get the diseases that vaccines protect against.

For more information, and to book an appointment, call your nearest community/public health centre. If you are not sure where your nearest community/public health centre is, call Health Link at 811. Bring your child’s immunization record to the appointment, especially if your child was immunized in another province or country.

For more general information about immunization, go to immunizealberta.ca, Immunizations at myhealth.alberta.ca, or call Health Link at 811.

Immunization - School Services

Each year, Alberta Health Services, Public Health reviews immunization records for students in grades 1, 6, and 9 to see what immunizations each student needs. A consent form is then sent home with an information sheet for each vaccine recommended for the student. No immunizations will be given in school without consent from a parent or legal guardian. Immunizations in this program include:

• Grades 1, 6, and 9: Any routine childhood and school vaccines that may have been missed according to a review of the students immunization record on file
• Grade 6: Hepatitis B (HBV) vaccine for students who have not already completed a hepatitis B immunization series and human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine
• Grade 9: diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis (dTap) and meningococcal (Groups A, C, Y, W-135) conjugate vaccine

Lower Limb Assessment Clinic

Provides assessments for people to see if they qualify for funding from Alberta Aids to Daily Living (AADL) for compression hose.

Preschool Oral Health Services

Fluoride varnish helps protect your child's teeth from tooth decay (cavities). It slows down decay already started.

Your child needs four fluoride varnish visits, six months apart, to best protect their teeth. Fluoride varnish is painted on your child's teeth. It takes less than one minute to apply. You can hold your child during the visit.

You can also ask any questions you may have about protecting your child's teeth.

If your child is diagnosed with asthma by a doctor, bring their quick reliever medication to the appointment. If your child feels anxious with dental visits it may trigger asthma symptoms.

This provincial prevention service is available across Alberta.

For more information and eligibility, visit our website: Preschool Oral Health Services

Public Health Breast Pumps

Breast pumps are available for short term loan at Community Health Centres. Contact your local Community Health Centre for details.

Public Health Nursing

The four areas that are covered by public health nurses include:

• maternal, child and family health
• communicable disease control
• school health
• health promotion

Public Health Parent and Baby Drop In Services

Contact your local Community Health Centre for service options or to speak with a public health nurse. Information provided may include:

• breastfeeding and infant feeding
• healthy eating
• parenting
• growth and development
• injury prevention
• diseases and immunizations

Information and support may be offered in one-to-one, and/or group sessions so parents can connect with other parents and caregivers.

Public Health Postnatal Services

Services are offered to parents who:

• have been discharged with their baby
• have been discharged while their baby is still in the hospital
• are adopting
• have chosen adoption for their baby
• had a stillborn baby
• are dealing with loss due to a neonatal (newborn) death

Public health nurses contact families within 48 hours after discharge from the hospital. Services are offered according to the situation and discussion with the family and may include health assessments of the newborn, mother and family; information about what to expect and when to seek medical attention; feeding support and referrals to community services.

School Oral Health Services

Services are offered to eligible schools and may include:

• fluoride varnish, provided to kindergarten, Grade 1 and Grade 2
• dental sealants, provided to Grade 1 and Grade 2

A child diagnosed with asthma must have their short acting asthma reliever medication with them to receive service.

Tuberculosis Testing

Offers free tuberculosis (TB) skin testing to eligible Albertans. The Mantoux skin test is not recommended to diagnose TB.

Testing is done at public health centres throughout the province:

• North Zone
• Edmonton Zone
• Central Zone
• Calgary Zone
• South Zone

If you are not eligible for free testing but still need to be tested there will be a charge for the test.

For travel or work related TB testing contact the Travel Health Services in your area.