Bureau of Chest Diseases
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1869 Brentwood Road
Brentwood, New York 11717
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Telephone: (631) 853-7243
Fax: (631) 853-7250
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Program Overview
The mission of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, Division of Patient Care, Bureau of Chest Diseases (BCD) is to prevent, control and eliminate tuberculosis (TB) inSuffolkCounty. The BCD will accomplish this mission through policy development, provider consultation, technical assistance, education, supervision, regulation and surveillance. The BCD identifies and ensures treatment for suspected and confirmed cases of TB, ensures TB patients are rendered non-infectious by completion of adequate anti-TB therapy and reduces TB transmission through prompt contact follow-up.These BCD activities protect the public health in Suffolk County by preventing the spread of TB.
Bureau of Chest Diseases Programs
- Nurse Case Management
- Directly Observed Therapy
- Contact Investigations
- Source Case Investigations
- Provider Consultation Services
- Tuberculosis Registry
- HIV Pre-Test Counseling and HIV Testing
- Community and Professional Education Programs
Nurse Case Management
A registered nurse case manager follows each case of TB from initial report through completion of therapy to ensure that proper treatment protocols are followed; that high-priority contacts are identified, evaluated and treated; and that all mandated reporting is completed in a timely manner.
Directly Observed Therapy (DOT)
DOT is the preferred means of ensuring adherence with TB treatment because it involves providing the anti-TB drugs directly to the patient and watching as the patient swallows the medications. DOT is provided by appointment during normal weekday business hours, either daily or intermittently in the “field” (e.g., patient’s home, place of employment, school, or any other site that is mutually agreeable and deemed safe).DOT is administered by appropriately trained BCD personnel.DOT enables early identification of non-adherence, adverse drug effects, and clinical worsening of TB.
Contact Investigations
TB contact investigations are an essential public health aspect of TB control and are usually conducted by the local health department. TB contact investigations prevent the spread of TB in the community by identifying persons at risk of exposure to TB from a person with infectious TB disease. Since TB has a long incubation period of months or even years from exposure to development of disease, time is taken to carefully follow accepted medical and public health practices in identifying those persons at risk of exposure. Such persons are usually those who shared the same air space, in an enclosed environment, for a prolonged period of time (days or weeks, not minutes or hours) with the individual diagnosed with infectious TB disease and are offered TB screening. Suffolk County Department of Health Services follows current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for conducting TB contact investigations as adapted for use in Suffolk County. For additional information please see the CDC’s Guidelines for the Investigation of Contacts of Persons with Infectious Tuberculosis at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr5415a1.htm.
Source Case Investigations
Parents or guardians of children 2 years of age diagnosed with latent TB infection (LTBI) are interviewed to identify and evaluate their child’s close contacts in order to determine, if possible, the source of the child’s TB infection.
Provider Consultation Services
Health care providers are encouraged to contact the BCD to discuss the management of TB cases.
Tuberculosis Registry
Maintains records of TB cases as required by New York State Public Health Law.
HIV Pre-Test Counseling and HIV Testing
New York State trained personnel offer HIV pre-test counseling and HIV testing to TB patients.
Community and Professional Education Programs
Presentations about TB are made to community and professional groups.
Links
Division of Tuberculosis Elimination
New York State Department of Health
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