SPA5 - West Area Health Office - Frequently Asked Questions
6 FAQ(s) have been entered for this Program.
What is the West Service Planning Area 5?
Answer: In 1994, the Board of Supervisors ordered all County departments to reorganize along the same geographic boundaries, creating 8 Service Planning Areas (SPAs), in order to improve communication and coordination between County departments with local cities. On January 20, 1998, Los Angeles County Department of Health Services restructured Public Health in accordance with this order. Each SPA is made up of one or more of the 24 Health Districts within Los Angeles County. The West Area Health office-SPA 5 is one of those 8 Service Planning Areas and consists only of the West Health District. The West SPA includes Bel Air, Beverly Hills, Brentwood, Culver City, Ladera Heights, Malibu, Mar Vista, Marina del Rey, Pacific Palisades, Playa del Rey, Santa Monica, Venice, West Los Angeles, and Westchester.
What professionals make up the West SPA 5 team?
Answer: The Area Health Office coordinates a multidisciplinary team that provides expertise in Public Health Nursing, Medical Management, Epidemiology, Health Education, Public Health Investigation, Public Health Registrar, and Quality Management.
What are the public health services provided within the West Service Planning Area?
Answer: We offer HIV and Sexually Transmitted Diseases counseling, testing, health information, diagnosis, and referral as well as STD treatment. The West SPA Public Health Investigators and Nurses will examine certain reportable communicable diseases and provide services to assure the completion of TB treatment for TB patients and their contacts living in the West SPA.
I am concerned about Tuberculosis, what should I do?
Answer: We provide referral for TB screening and treatment to the public health center closest to your place of residence. To obtain information on TB, you may contact the TB Control Program Web site or call (213) 744-6160.
Links: Tuberculosis Control Program
What is a foodborne illness?
Answer: Food can become contaminated with a variety of germs. After eating contaminated food, people can develop symptoms often mistakenly referred to as "food poisoning" which at times can potentially be a life-threatening disease. Food supplies in the U.S. are extremely safe but an estimated 76 million Americans get sick with more than 300,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths from foodborne illnesses each year.
Links: Foodborne Illnesses
Links: CDC Foodborne Illnessess
I am concerned about Sexually Transmitted Diseases, what should I do?
Answer: We offer free STD counseling and testing on Tuesdays (morning and afternoon sessions) at Burke Health Center in Santa Monica. You can contact the STD program for additional clinic sites or to obtain information. HIV information and resources can be found at the OAPP (AIDS Program) and HEP (HIV Epidemiology) program sites.
Links: Sexually Transmitted Disease Program
Links: AIDS Program Office