South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control
Encyclopedia
The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SC DHEC or DHEC) is the government agency
responsible for public health
and the environment
in the U.S. state
of South Carolina
. It was created in 1973 from the merger of the South Carolina State Board of Health and the South Carolina Pollution Control Authority.
The agency's commissioner manages the day-to-day operations of the agency, while the Board of Health and Environmental Control is responsible for supervising DHEC's operations. Each of the board's seven members is appointed by the governor
with the advice and consent
of the South Carolina Senate
.
Besides offices in Columbia
(South Carolina's capital city), DHEC operates health and environmental regional offices, as well as local health departments and clinics, to ensure that the many programs and services the agency provides meets the needs of local areas. Some services are available to all; some have eligibility requirements. Many are free, while others may carry a small charge to help cover expenses. Because each region has a custom mix of services, each local DHEC office may have a differing array of services available.
Government agency
A government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...
responsible for public health
Public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...
and the environment
Natural environment
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. It was created in 1973 from the merger of the South Carolina State Board of Health and the South Carolina Pollution Control Authority.
The agency's commissioner manages the day-to-day operations of the agency, while the Board of Health and Environmental Control is responsible for supervising DHEC's operations. Each of the board's seven members is appointed by the governor
Governor of South Carolina
The Governor of the State of South Carolina is the head of state for the State of South Carolina. Under the South Carolina Constitution, the Governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the South Carolina executive branch. The Governor is the ex officio...
with the advice and consent
Advice and consent
Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts, describing a situation in which the executive branch of a government enacts something previously approved of by the legislative branch.-General:The expression is...
of the South Carolina Senate
South Carolina Senate
The South Carolina Senate is the upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly, the lower house being the South Carolina House of Representatives...
.
Besides offices in Columbia
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
(South Carolina's capital city), DHEC operates health and environmental regional offices, as well as local health departments and clinics, to ensure that the many programs and services the agency provides meets the needs of local areas. Some services are available to all; some have eligibility requirements. Many are free, while others may carry a small charge to help cover expenses. Because each region has a custom mix of services, each local DHEC office may have a differing array of services available.
Responsibilities
DHEC staffs:- respond to environmental emergencies 24 hours a day;
- perform lab tests to identify virusVirusA virus is a small infectious agent that can replicate only inside the living cells of organisms. Viruses infect all types of organisms, from animals and plants to bacteria and archaea...
es, hazardous chemicals and other health threats; - inspect restaurantsHealth inspectorA health inspector is a public employee who investigates health hazards in a wide variety of locations, then will take action to mitigate or eliminate the hazards...
; - counsel patients on family planningFamily planningFamily planning is the planning of when to have children, and the use of birth control and other techniques to implement such plans. Other techniques commonly used include sexuality education, prevention and management of sexually transmitted infections, pre-conception counseling and...
; - fund diagnostic exams and treatment for children with special needsSpecial needsIn the USA, special needs is a term used in clinical diagnostic and functional development to describe individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. For instance, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International...
; - oversee treatment of tuberculosisTuberculosisTuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
patients; - provide birthBirth certificateA birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a child. The term "birth certificate" can refer to either the original document certifying the circumstances of the birth or to a certified copy of or representation of the ensuing registration of that birth...
and death certificateDeath certificateThe phrase death certificate can describe either a document issued by a medical practitioner certifying the deceased state of a person or popularly to a document issued by a person such as a registrar of vital statistics that declares the date, location and cause of a person's death as later...
s; - inform the public about health and environmental issues;
- immunizeImmunizationImmunization, or immunisation, is the process by which an individual's immune system becomes fortified against an agent ....
children for entry into school; - offer sickle cellSickle-cell diseaseSickle-cell disease , or sickle-cell anaemia or drepanocytosis, is an autosomal recessive genetic blood disorder with overdominance, characterized by red blood cells that assume an abnormal, rigid, sickle shape. Sickling decreases the cells' flexibility and results in a risk of various...
testing and counseling; - advise industry on ways to minimize solid and hazardous wasteWasteWaste is unwanted or useless materials. In biology, waste is any of the many unwanted substances or toxins that are expelled from living organisms, metabolic waste; such as urea, sweat or feces. Litter is waste which has been disposed of improperly...
; - help schools and restaurants provide low-fatDiet foodDiet food refers to any food or drink whose recipe has been altered in some way to make it part of a body modification diet...
menus; - monitor the quality of public water supplies;
- provide home health careHome careHome Care, , is health care or supportive care provided in the patient's home by healthcare professionals Home Care, (also referred to as domiciliary care or social care), is health care or supportive care provided in the patient's home by healthcare professionals Home Care, (also referred to as...
services; - advise legislators on health and environmental consequences of proposed laws;
- monitor emissions from industrial sources;
- counsel HIVHIVHuman immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
/AIDSAIDSAcquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
patients and staff the AIDS hotline; - inspect waste managementWaste managementWaste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal,managing and monitoring of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics...
and treatmentWaste treatmentWaste treatment refers to the activities required to ensure that waste has the least practicable impact on the environment. In many countries various forms of waste treatment are required by law.-Solid waste treatment:...
facilities; - work to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseaseSexually transmitted diseaseSexually transmitted disease , also known as a sexually transmitted infection or venereal disease , is an illness that has a significant probability of transmission between humans by means of human sexual behavior, including vaginal intercourse, oral sex, and anal sex...
s; - issue environmental permits;
- inspect hospitals and nursing homes;
- evaluate and issue Certificates of Need for new or expanding health care facilities;
- identify infants and toddlers with developmental delays through BabyNet;
- talk with students interested in health and environmental careers;
- analyze data on births and deaths to assess the state's health status;
- promote rabiesRabiesRabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis in warm-blooded animals. It is zoonotic , most commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post-exposure prophylaxis is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms...
clinics in cooperation with local veterinarians; - advocate health services for the needy;
- educate children about cavitiesDental cariesDental caries, also known as tooth decay or a cavity, is an irreversible infection usually bacterial in origin that causes demineralization of the hard tissues and destruction of the organic matter of the tooth, usually by production of acid by hydrolysis of the food debris accumulated on the...
and other dental problems; - investigate pollution allegations;
- patrol shellfishShellfishShellfish is a culinary and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater environments, some kinds are found only in freshwater...
beds; - track underground storage tanks for possible pollution;
- certify emergency medical servicesEmergency medical servicesEmergency medical services are a type of emergency service dedicated to providing out-of-hospital acute medical care and/or transport to definitive care, to patients with illnesses and injuries which the patient, or the medical practitioner, believes constitutes a medical emergency...
staff and their equipment; - authorize hazardous waste transport;
- ensure attention to the health needs of minorities;
- permit and inspect public pools, water parks, spaSpaThe term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy. Spa towns or spa resorts typically offer various health treatments. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are...
s, and natural swimming areas; - implement programs to prevent tobacco use;
- recruit health care workers for rural areas;
- provide nutrition counseling and food supplements through the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and ChildrenSpecial Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and ChildrenThe Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children is a Federal assistance program of the Food and Nutrition Service of the United States Department of Agriculture for healthcare and nutrition of low-income pregnant women, breastfeeding women, and infants and children...
(WIC); - evaluate compliance with air and water standards;
- ensure access to health services for migrant health workers;
- evaluate activities affecting wetlandWetlandA wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s; - provide education and injury preventionInjury preventionInjury prevention are efforts to prevent or reduce the severity of bodily injuries caused by external mechanisms, such as accidents, before they occur. Injury prevention is a component of safety and public health, and its goal is to improve the health of the population by preventing injuries and...
programs; - inspect for environmental leadLeadLead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
if screening tests show elevated levels; - license facilities that use or store radioactiveRadiationIn physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...
materials; - provide funding education and technical assistance for recyclingRecyclingRecycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
programs; - inspect dairiesDairyA dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
and soft drinkSoft drinkA soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains water , a sweetener, and a flavoring agent...
plants; - issue air quality advisories for specific areas of the state;