Disease Prevention
Select a Topic for Prevention Information:
Brief Summary
HIV is a virus. Viruses such as HIV cannot grow or reproduce on their own, they need to infect the cells of a living organism in order to replicate. The human immune system usually finds and kills viruses fairly quickly, but HIV attacks the immune system itself - the very thing that would normally get rid of a virus. The condition that is referred to as AIDS is caused by HIV damaging the immune system cells until the immune system can no longer fight off other infections that it would usually be able to prevent.
HIV is found in the blood and the sexual fluids of an infected person, and in the breast milk of an infected woman. HIV transmission occurs when a sufficient quantity of these fluids get into someone else's bloodstream. Today, more tools than ever are available to prevent and combat HIV. Limiting your number of sexual partners, getting tested, never sharing needles, and using condoms correctly and consistently are some ways to aid in HIV prevention. UDOH offers Training Courses and resources to help educate the public about HIV and prevention techniques. For more information, or to contact UDOH, see below.
HIV Education and Training
If you need HIV/AIDS educational materials or a speaker on HIV/AIDS, please contact us:
- Phone: 801-538-6194 or Email: hbush@utah.gov
We offer HIV/STD Hep C Training Courses that provide factual, prevention, transmission, testing and treatment information free for the public. See below to sign up.
Steps for sign-up
- Click here to check out our courses.
- Contact UDOH for time/place: 801-538-6191.
- Or send an Email: pmontagu@utah.gov.
- Important - Fill out the registration form below before attending.
- Registration Form
Contact Us
Resources
Brief Summary
There are a number of prevention strategies for STDs. By getting the most recent HPV vaccinations, reducing the number of sex partners you have, being sexually active with only one partner. These and other prevention steps can help reduce your ability to contract ST's. For more information and resources on STDs, see below.
Resources
STD Education and Training
If you need STD educational materials or a speaker on STDs, please contact us:
- Phone: 801-538-6194 or Email: hbush@utah.gov
We offer HIV/STD Hep C Training Courses that provide factual, prevention, transmission, testing and treatment information free for the public. See below to sign up.
Steps for sign-up
- Click here to check out our courses.
- Contact UDOH for time/place: 801-538-6191.
- Send an Email: pmontagu@utah.gov.
- Important Fill out the registration form below before attending.
- Registration Form
Contact Us
Brief Summary
Hepatitis C is a liver disease that results from infection with the Hepatitis C virus. It can range in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness. Hepatitis C is spread when blood from a person infected with the Hepatitis C virus enters the body of someone who is not infected. Most people become infected with the Hepatitis C virus by sharing needles or other equipment to inject drugs. People have also become infected with the Hepatitis C virus from body piercing or tattoos that were done in prisons, homes, or in other unlicensed or informal facilities. In rare cases, Hepatitis C may be sexually transmitted. Babies born to mothers with Hepatitis C can get infected during childbirth.
In 2012, CDC started recommending Hepatitis C testing for everyone born from 1945 – 1965. While anyone can get Hepatitis C, up to 75% of adults infected with Hepatitis C were born from 1945 - 1965. The reason that baby boomers have high rates of Hepatitis C is not completely understood. Most boomers are believed to have become infected in the 1970s and 1980s when rates of Hepatitis C were the highest. Before 1992, when widespread screening of the blood supply began in the United States, Hepatitis C was also commonly spread through blood transfusions and organ transplants.
Resources
(To print booklet: print out pages one sided, then reverse every other page 180 degrees, copy 1-to-2 sided, fold down the middle and staple)
Hepatitis C Training and Education
If you need Hepatitis A,B, or C educational materials or a speaker on Hepatitis C or Viral Hepatitis, please contact us:
- Phone: 801-538-6194 or Email: hbush@utah.gov
We offer HIV/STD/Hepatitis C Training Courses that provide factual, prevention, transmission, testing and treatment information free for the public. See below to sign up.
Steps for sign-up
- Click here to check out our courses.
- Contact UDOH for time/place: 801-538-6191.
- Send an Email: pmontagu@utah.gov.
- Important - Fill out the registration form below before attending.
- Registration Form
Contact Us
Brief Summary
Syringe Excahange Programs (SEPs), also known as syringe services programs (SSPs), needle exchange programs (NEPs), and needle-syringe programs (NSPs), are community-based programs that provide access to sterile needles and syringes free of charge. The programs also facilitate safe disposal of used needles and syringes. SEPs are an effective component of a comprehensive, integrated approach to HIV and hepatitis C prevention among people who inject drugs. Most SEPs offer other prevention materials and services, such as HIV/HCV education; overdose prevention, including Naloxone distribution; referral to substance abuse treatment programs; and counseling and testing for HIV and hepatitis C.
Syringe exchange programs became legal in Utah on March 25, 2016, the day Utah Governor Gary Herbert signed House Bill 308 into law. The bill went into effect May 10, 2016, and states that agencies in Utah "may operate a syringe exchange program in the state to prevent the transmission of disease and reduce morbidity and mortality among individuals who inject drugs and those individuals' contacts." HB 308 does not fund syringe exchange programs in Utah, it only provides guidelines and reporting requirements and follows the restrictions of federal funding.
Through the Syringe Exchange law, the Utah Department of Health has been written an Administrative Rule will be recorded by November 10, 2016, at that time agencies throughout Utah may enroll their Syringe Exchange Programs with UDOH. The rule will require agencies conducting SEP to register with UDOH and provide quarterly reports of activities to UDOH, as indicated by the rule and the statute, to be analyzed and then report annually to the Utah State Legislature, showing effectiveness and sustainability of the program. UDOH will provide support, technical assistance, training and guidance to all Utah SEPs and will apply for, and distribute, funding as available.
Utah SEP Resources and Forms
Utah Syringe Exchange Law
- Utah Health Code: Syringe Exchange and Education
- Utah Syringe Exchange Administrative Rule
- Utah Syringe Exchange Administrative Rule Guidance (coming soon)
Forms
- Utah Syringe Exchange Program Enrollment Form
- Utah Department of Health Syringe Exchange Supply Request Form
- Utah Syringe Exchange Quarterly Report Form
Optional Forms and Resources
- SEP Participant Enrollment Form
- SEP Client ID Card
- SEP Event Log Form
- UDOH SEP Supplies Order Form
- Utah Syringe Exchange Best Practices Handbook (coming soon)
- Utah Determination of Need for Syringe Exchange Services Approval Letter
- Utah Syringe Exchange Network
Educational Materials and Referrals
- Salt Lake City Homeless Services Resource Guide
- More Coming soon
Opiate Overdose Prevention
- UDOH - Prevention Drug Overdose
- UDOH - Naloxone
- Stop the Opidemic
- Use Only As Directed
- Utah Naloxone
Syringe Exchange Resources and Links
Federal Resources
- Syringe Services Programs - Federal Guidance (HHS, CDC, HRSA, SAMHSA)
- CDC- HIV and Injection Drug Use
December 2016 Vital Signs Fact Sheet - CDC- Syringe Services Programs: Assessing Local Drug Use
- CDC- Developing, Implementing, and Monitoring Programs
- CDC -Syringe Service Programs for Persons Who Inject Drugs in Urban, Suburban, and Rural Areas — United States, 2013 (MMWR December 11, 2015)
- CDC - Injury Prevention & Control: Opiod Overdose
- HHS - Opioids: The Prescription Drug and Heroin Overdose Epidemic
- HRSA - AETC: Syringe Services Programs (Needle Exchange)
National Resources
- amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research fact sheets:
- Federal Funding for Syringe Services Programs: Saving Money, Promoting Public Safety, and Improving Public Health
- The Importance of Syringe Exchange Programs
- Public Safety, Law Enforcement, and Syringe Exchange
- The Effectiveness of Harm Reduction in Preventing the Transmission of HIV/AIDS
- Harm Reduction Coalition
- National Association of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD)
- North American Syringe Exchange Network (NASEN)
- Syringe Access Fund (AIDS United)