Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) us located in Atlanta, Georgia. It is an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. On the CDC website, the mission is clearly stated: "To promote health and quality of life by preventing and controlling disease, injury, and disability."
The CDC was first called the "Communicable Disease Center" and it opened in 1946 in the old Office of Malaria Council in War Areas of downtown Atlanta. It was not until 1980 that the agency was renamed the Center for Disease Control to "reflect a change in organizational structure." The CDC has been beneficial our nation through a plethora of discoveries. In 1956, the CDC developed a fluorescent antibody test for rapidly identifying bacterial and viral pathogens. The CDC discovered in 1971 that hepatitis B is sexually transmitted. The agency led teams to Zaire and the Sudan to investigate large outbreaks of Ebola in 1976. In 1988, the CDC mailed information related to the prevention of AIDS to every household in America. However, these advancements are only to name a few. The CDC is also responsible for establishing many programs such as the Epidemic Intelligence Service in 1950 (EIS—a response team for a wide range of health emergencies), the Polio Surveillance Unit (1955), the Influenza Surveillance Unit (1958), the National Nosocomial Infections Surveillance system (in 1970 to monitor trends in infections acquired in hospital settings), or units involving famine relief (’68), breast and cervical cancer, and AIDS. The CDC also developed the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in 1973. NI)NIOSH protects Americans form on-the-job hazards. In 1980, a task force was organized by the CDC on toxic shock syndrome.
What are the CDC’s Core Values? Accountability, respect for the people within the agency and all through the world, and integrity so that the CDC is "honest and ethical" in all that they do and achieve. There are approximately 6900 employees in 170 occupations. There are 10 facilities of the CDC, including locations in Anchorage, Alaska and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The facility in Atlanta is the CDC’s headquarters. In the Atlanta area, there are approximately 4,600 employees with 1,648 employees at the headquarters on Clifton Road. In the 1960’s the CDC was moved to Clifton Road and the 15 acres was a token payment of $10.
Prior to researching the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, I was not aware of how much the CDC has contributed to preventing disease. The agency has made immeasurable advancements in the Nation, as well in the entire world. Christen Reinhold