About Us

Services Provided

The Florida Department of Health in Orange County (DOH-Orange) is organized into a number of program areas that focus on surveillance, prevention, detection, and treatment health and environmental issues within the county. Major services provided by DOH-Orange include:

Infectious Disease Services

• HIV/AIDS Surveillance
• Prevention and Patient Care
• Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD)
• Tuberculosis Control (TB)
• Epidemiology and Disease Control
• Hepatitis

Clinical and Nutrition Services

• School Health
• Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women
• Infants and Children (WIC)
• Refugee Health
• Family Planning
• Immunizations
• Pharmacy
• Dental

Environmental Health Services

• Food Hygiene
• Drinking Water Treatment and Distribution Facilities
• Biomedical Waste
• Tattoo and Body Piercing
• Public Swimming Pool and Bathing Places Inspections
• Group Care Facilities Inspections
• Mobile Home Parks
• Sanitary Nuisance
• Indoor Air Quality
• Tanning
• Onsite Sewage and Disposal Systems
• Well Surveillance
• Water Well Construction
• Rabies Control
• Tattoo Artist Licensure

Emergency Preparedness and Response

• All Hazards Planning
• Health and Medical
• Special Needs Shelters
• Medical Reserve Corps
• Cities Readiness Initiative

Wellness Programs

• Tobacco Free Florida
• Healthiest Weight Initiative
• Mental Health
• Violence and Injury Prevention

Integrated Florida Department of Health

DOH-Orange is one of 67 county health departments under the governance of the Florida Department of Health. Although DOH-Orange is part of a state agency, it maintains a very strong partnership with Orange County Government.

DOH-Orange is responsible for protecting, promoting, and improving the health of the county’s 1.2 million residents and over 59 million annual visitors.

Organization

DOH-Orange leads the local public health system in providing the ten essential services of public health. The local public health system encompasses a complex series of relationships between all of the entities that affect the health of the community.

The Florida Department of Health works to protect, promote, and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county, and community efforts.

To be the healthiest state in the nation.

Our Values

I - Innovation

We search for creative solutions and manage resources wisely.

C - Collaboration

We use teamwork to achieve common goals and solve problems.

A - Accountability

We perform with integrity and respect.

R - Responsiveness

We achieve our mission by serving our customers and engaging our partners.

E - Excellence

We promote quality outcomes through learning and continuous performance improvement.

Staffing

A wide variety of professional and paraprofessional public health staff provide services within the program areas, including board certified physicians, registered nurses, advanced registered nurse practitioners, dieticians, epidemiologists, dentists, pharmacists, health educators, disease intervention specialists, sanitarians and environmental engineers, and various other health care workers.

Robert D Karch, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.A.P.

Health Officer and Director

Robert D. Karch, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.A.P. was appointed health officer and director of the Florida Department of Health in Orange County by the Florida State Surgeon General and the appointment’s approval was confirmed by the Orange County Board of County Commissioners on July 26, 2022.    

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Funding

DOH-Orange services are funded through a combination of federal, state and, local funding sources. Local funding sources include: local grants, fees, and Orange County Board of County Commission funding.