Thank you for taking the time to visit this site and review the highlights of our efforts to build a healthier Nashville! Your interest in public health is important.

Nashville has a strong legacy of public health service dating back to 1850, when inspectors were hired to control smallpox and cholera. Since that time we have continued to fight infectious diseases from syphilis and tuberculosis to HIV and West Nile virus, and we have also grown and adapted to address many other aspects of public health.

Whether it is helping ensure children are healthy and immunized against disease, preventing the spread of tuberculosis, linking our most vulnerable people to medical care, protecting senior citizens from the flu, or improving air quality—we succeed on many fronts, as I hope you can see as you peruse our site.

When we succeed, it is easier for everyone, everywhere to be healthy. You can avoid vaccine preventable illnesses, breathe clean air, and eat safe food without giving it a second thought. As we work with partners to address modern-day plagues such as physical inactivity/obesity and tobacco-related disease, we are envisioning a city where people can eat healthy, move more, and avoid tobacco smoke without a second thought as well.

We are grateful for the support we continue to receive from the Mayor, members of the Metro Council, other elected officials, members of the Board of Health, and every citizen, agency, and organization that takes initiative to make the city healthier. I encourage you to take some time to learn about public health in Nashville and feel free to contact us to see how together we can create healthy conditions throughout metropolitan Nashville.

William S. Paul, M.D., M.P.H.

Director of Health