-
Established under the Constitution of 1885, the original State Board of Health located in Jacksonville was created. Dr. Joseph Porter, Secretary of the State Board of Health and Florida’s first state health officer, recognized the necessity of having local representatives and selected practicing physicians as “county agents”.
-
During the 1920’s attempts to establish County Health Departments were stalled by reductions in the appropriations to the State Board of Health.
-
It wasn’t until after an act that permitted the State Board of Health to join with local authorities that CHDs were formed in Florida.
-
Polk County Health Department was founded and the first clinic opened in an area of Bartow on 17th Street. This office later moved to Bartow Air Base with District Offices in Bartow & Winter Haven. The original unit consisted of three sanitarians, four nurses and one supervising nurse. The total budget was $38,000 and the health officer’s salary and travel of $4,500 was paid by the state.
-
On loan from the State Board of Health
-
-
-
-
20 cases were reported.
-
-
-
The clinic sat on Florida Avenue in an old two story frame house.
-
-
-
-
-
-
New offices were built in Winter Haven, Lakeland, Haines City, Lake Wales, Mulberry, Bartow, Frostproof and Auburndale.
-
-
-
Read the articleThe Winter Haven Daily News Chief published an article about our work.
-
Sanitation Engineer
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Name changed to Department of Health & Rehabilitative Services and pulled together all health, social service, and rehabilitation programs under one “umbrella agency”. The only real change that took place in the State Board of Health is that they changed their letterhead to read Division of Health.
-
Health Department partnered with Mid State Lung Association and Polk County Association of Nursing Council to start a clinic for COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). Later became known as Mary Sands Clinic
-
-
-
-
-
-
New Lakeland clinic built in north Lakeland at the intersection of Griffin Road and Highway 33. The clinic on North Florida Avenue closed.
-
We broke ground on the new Mary Sand Clinic and opened the Environmental Support Building on Clower St. in Bartow.
-
Administration Building on Golfview Avenue in Bartow opened housing Administrative Offices for Environmental Health, Environmental Engineering, WIC, Nursing, Budget Office, Health Education, Vital Statistics, and MIS
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
