Malden, Massachusetts City Seal

City of Malden
200 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148
(781) 397-7000

Departments > Board of Health Clinic

Board of Health Clinic

Board of Health Clinic

Kathleen Coughlin, R.N., BSN
200 Pleasant Street
Room 517
Malden, MA 02148
781 397 7052
Fax: 781 397 7356
Maria Tamagna, R.N.
200 Pleasant Street
Room 517
Malden, MA 02148
781 397 7052
Fax: 781 397 7356
 
 
                      
                  

 

 Welcome to the Malden Board of Health Clinic!

 

 

The Malden Board of Health is a statutory board created pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 111, Section 26 and Chapter 41, Section 1. The Board of Health and its staff act for both the State and City to enforce the laws and regulations governing health and sanitation. The Board of Health provides clinical, inspectional and data collection services. The goal of this office is to promote and protect the health, welfare and safety of Malden residents, and enforce the laws and regulations governing health, environment, housing and sanitation.

The Board of Health runs a public health clinic that is staffed by one full time nurse and one part time nurse.  We offer a variety of health services to the local community. 

 

Core Clinic Programs

 
 
   

 

We work with the local school board to coordinate required immunizations for incoming students.  The clinic also runs seasonal flu workshops. 

Other services provided include lead testing for children under 6, blood pressure screenings, and TB prevention screening for high risk individuals, such as new residents and people working in close contact with infected patients.  The clinic is also part of a HIV/AIDS task force that addresses HIV cases in the City.

All services are confidential and are provided free of charge.  The nurses can also recommend further health resources in the community if needed.  To schedule an appointment, please call the clinic at (781) 397-7052.

 

Clinic Hours and Directions:

 
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday          8am-4pm
Tuesday                                              8am-7pm
Friday                                                 8am-12 noon

 

The clinic is located in the Malden Government Center, just across the street from the Malden Center T-Stop on the Orange Line.

By car

  

Communicable Disease Control

Pertussis Hepatitis C Hepatitis A Tuberculosis
HIV/AIDS  Other    

 

Pertussis

Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, is a bacterial infection that is vaccine preventable.  Although whooping cough can be uncomfortable and inconvenient for older age groups, it can be very dangerous for infants too young to have completed the childhood series of protective vaccination.  These children are at risk of exposure from an infected parent or sibling, so preventing disease in the older age groups is important. 

Department of Public Health Fact Sheet

 

                    Hepatitis C                    

Hepatitis C is a virus that can cause the liver to become inflamed.  Unlike Hepatitis A and B, Hepatitis C has no vaccine.  It is mainly transmitted through exposure to blood, such as drug injections, equipment sharing, needle injuries in healthcare settings, and before 1992, through blood transfusions. 

It is estimated that more than 100,000 people in Massachusetts have chronic Hepatitis C, and some of them are at risk of liver scarring, liver failure, and liver cancer[1].  Most newly diagnosed cases are in older adults, but an increasing number of newly diagnosed cases are being reported in adolescents and young adults.  Untreated people with Hepatitis C and those not responding to treatment face the prospect of lifelong chronic infection and the need for ongoing healthcare services. 

Hepatitis C Fact Sheet

Department of Public Health Hepatitis C Fact Sheet

Preventing Bloodborne Diseases (HIV, Hep B and C)

 


[1]Massachusetts Department of Public Health.  Health of Massachusetts.  Boston, MA; April 2010. 

 

 Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A is mainly spread through eating contaminated food and is usually a short lived infection.  It affects the liver, but often has little or even no symptoms.  It does not lead to long term infection, but causes fever, tiredness, loss of appetite, stomach pain, nausea, diarrhea and jaundice.  The virus is passed by the fecal-oral route and outbreaks occur through poor hygiene, food contamination, and intimate contact. 

Recent universal immunization of children against Hepatitis A has been largely responsible for overall declines in incidence.  However, three “outbreaks” have occurred in recent years, with the latest one occurring in 2005[1].  These outbreaks show the continued need for prevention efforts, such as educating food workers and others about proper hygiene and safe food handling. 

Department of Public Health Hepatitis A Fact Sheet

 
Hepatitis A Fact Sheet
 

 


[1]Massachusetts Department of Public Health.  Health of Massachusetts.  Boston, MA; April 2010. 

 

Tuberculosis (TB)

TB can be found in any part of the body, but it usually affects the lungs.  The most common symptoms of TB are coughing, fever, loss of appetite, weight loss, weakness, night sweats, and fatigue.  While the immune systems of most TB infected people can control the organism, so that it remains in a dormant, asymptomatic state, some individuals develop an active form of the illness, resulting in the symptoms listed above and the risk of transmitting TB to others.   
More than 80% of the cases reported in 2008 were among people born in countries where infection in early life is common.  These individuals come from more than 50 different countries, and have different cultures and languages[1].  TB can be treated successfully and cured, and causes few deaths.  When a dormant or latent infection is identified by skin test screening, treatment can prevent active TB, and thereby prevent the infected person from someday becoming infectious. 
 
Department of Public Health TB Fact Sheets

TB Patient Information Series

Massachusetts TB Clinic Schedule

 


[1]Massachusetts Department of Public Health.  Health of Massachusetts.  Boston, MA; April 2010. 

 

HIV/AIDS

Infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is transmitted through unprotected sex and the type of blood contact that comes with sharing contaminated injection equipment.  Since the beginning of the epidemic, 29,797 persons have been reported with HIV/AIDS in Massaschusetts. 
 
The number of people living with HIV/AIDS increased 38% between 1999 and 2007, and new HIV infection diagnoses exceeded the number of deaths each year.  Between 2001 and 2006, newly reported HIV infections decreased by more than 25%, showing the effectiveness of both prevention programs focused on HIV-risk behaviours and widespread treatment of HIV-infected individuals with antiviral medications[1].  However, the disease remains a serious problem in Malden, and an HIV/AIDS task force has been formed to address the issue.

Preventing Bloodborne Diseases (HIV, Hep B and C)

HIV Basics: HIV Questions and Answers brochure

Counseling and Testing: HIV Questions and Answers brochure

 


[1]Massachusetts Department of Public Health.  Health of Massachusetts.  Boston, MA; April 2010,  p102-105

 

Other

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health website contain fact sheets covering many other diseases not listed here.  They are available in various languages.

 

Adult Immunizations

National adult schedules

  

Travellers’ Health

Protection against mosquitoes and ticks

Travellers’ diarrhea

 

Childhood Immunizations

The clinic offers all the immunizations required by schools in Massachusetts.  All children entering the school system are required to have a series of shots before beginning school.  More information about the shots and the schedule are in the following links. 

Massachusetts School Immunization Requirements 2010

Massachusetts Department of Public Health state specific childhood immunization guidelines

National childhood and adolescent schedules, including catch-up schedules

 

 Blood Lead Level Screening

Elevated blood lead levels in children can cause harm to their brain, kidneys, and nervous system.  Lead-based paints were banned for use in housing in 1976, but many older homes still contain lead paint.  Deteriorating paint can result in lead dust contaminating a home. Children can be exposed through normal hand to mouth activity.

Every child in Massachusetts must be tested for lead exposure between the ages of 9 months and 12 months, and again at the ages of two and three years.  If a child has an elevated blood lead level, the child’s health care provider can prescribe treatment. 

Massachusetts consistently has the highest childhood lead poisoning screening rates in the country.  Despite the reduction in overall state rates, 95% of MA children with lead poisoning live within fourteen high risk communities[1].

Preventing lead poisoning in children- tips for parents

Massachusetts Department of Public Health Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program

All About DeLeading brochure (Spanish)

 


[1]Massachusetts Department of Public Health.  Health of Massachusetts.  Boston, MA; April 2010. 

 

Community Well Being

Asthma and Allergies
 

 

Asthma and Allergies

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways.  The airways become constricted due to swelling and excessive mucous production in response to exposure to environmental triggers. 
 
Asthma is the most common chronic disease in children in the United States, and Massachusetts has one of the highest rates of childhood asthma in the country.  The percentage of adults affected by the condition in 2007 was 9.9%, while the percentage of children affected was 10.5%[1].  Acute asthma attacks can be triggered by indoor and outdoor air pollutants and allergens such as mold and dust mites.  Reducing harmful exposures in the places where people with asthma spend most of their time—home, school, work, and neighborhoods--are necessary to control and prevent asthma. 
 

Asthma and Your Environment brochure

 


[1]Massachusetts Department of Public Health.  Health of Massachusetts.  Boston, MA; April 2010.