The Living Bridge Center¹ has moved and is holding an Open House in observance of World AIDS Day² on Friday, December 1st from 10 AM to 2 PM. The new location for The Living Bridge Center (which had been housed in the Whitfield County Health Department) is 1200 W. Waugh Street in Dalton, at the corner of W. Waugh Street and Broadrick Drive. FREE HIV and Hepatitis C Testing will be offered during the Open House, and staff will provide tours of the new facility. Light refreshments will be served. Come join us! For more information, call (706) 281-2360. 

¹  The Living Bridge Center, provider of Ryan White Part B and Part C, serves those living with HIV within North Georgia Health District 1-2 of the Georgia Public Health. Funded services include: outpatient HIV ambulatory care including HIV, primary care, and sub-specialty medical care; medical case management and adherence; oral health; non-medical case management; individual and group level mental health and substance abuse outpatient counseling; consumer advisory services; laboratory and nutritional services; pharmaceutical assistance; linguistic services; medical transportation; and HIV counseling, testing, and prevention services.

² World AIDS Day, designated on December 1st every year since 1988, is dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection, and mourning those who have died of the disease. Government and health officials, non-governmental organizations and individuals around the world observe the day, often with education on AIDS prevention and control.

Dalton (GA) – Hours of operation for the Whitfield County Health Department will change by half an hour only on Tuesdays, beginning November 27. The new hours will be from 7:30 AM to 6:30 PM on Tuesday, which remains the longest day of operation for the health department each week. The Whitfield County Health Department extended operational hours on Tuesdays in 2010 to provide residents with better access to public health clinical services.

All hours for the Whitfield County Health Department will be as follows: 

• Monday, Wednesday, Thursday - 7:30 AM - 4:30 PM 
• Tuesday - 7:30 AM – 6:30 PM 
• Friday - 7:30 AM - 1:00 PM

 The dental clinic is open Monday through Thursday from 8 AM to 5 PM, except for lunch from 1 PM to 2 PM., and from 8 AM to 2 PM on Friday, with no lunch.

The Whitfield County Health Department is located at 800 Professional Boulevard in Dalton. To learn more about the health department and the wide variety of public health services provided there, log onto http://nghd.org/locations/health-depts/whitfield-health.html.

North Georgia – Ready to quit? You can do it for at least one day this Thursday, November 16^th during the Great American Smokeout®! Every year on the third Thursday of November, many Georgians join tobacco users across the nation in giving up using tobacco and electronic cigarettes for the entire day during this Great American Smokeout® event, initiated by the American Cancer Society^[1]. Quitting for just one day is an important step toward a healthier you, especially if that one day can lead to many more. 

The Georgia Smokefree Air Act^[3], passed in 2005, has reduced exposure to secondhand smoke by prohibiting smoking in all enclosed facilities, including buildings owned, leased, or operated by the State or local governing authorities.

Now, it’s your turn to reduce tobacco-related health hazards by quitting the use of tobacco and electronic cigarettes during the Great American Smokeout®.

Here in Georgia, we can help. The Georgia Tobacco Quit Line^[4] is a free resource that can help tobacco users reach their goal of quitting. The Georgia Tobacco Quit Line (1-877-270-STOP; Spanish speakers call 1-877-2NO-FUME; TTY: 1-877-777-6534 for the hearing impaired) provides counseling for Georgia tobacco users ages 13 and older. Callers speak with tobacco cessation counselors who help to develop a unique quitting plan for each person.

North Georgia Health District 1-2 of the Georgia Department of Public Health, health departments in Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield Counites, Drug Free Cherokee, Cherokee Focus, and the Cherokee Youth Council encourage Georgians to go tobacco-free during the Great American Smokeout®, and beyond!

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¹ https://www.cancer.org/healthy/stay-away-from-tobacco/great-american-smokeout.html

² https://dph.georgia.gov/tobacco

³ https://dph.georgia.gov/sites/dph.georgia.gov/files/SmokeFree%20Act_Booklet.pdf

⁴ https://dph.georgia.gov/ready-quit

Blue Ridge (GA) – Free and confidential Rapid HIV Testing will be available at the Fannin County Health Department on Monday, November 20th! Hours for the free testing are from 9 to 11 AM and no appointment is needed. The CDC recommends that everyone between ages 13 and 64 be tested for HIV at least once in their lifetime, and those at increased risk – such as gay and bisexual men, injection drug users, or persons with multiple sexual partners – should be tested at least annually. For more information, call the Fannin County Health Department at (706) 632-3023.