What we do

We work with the Department of Health, our stakeholders and the community to deliver on a range of public health initiatives and responsibilities, including health promotion, disease prevention and responsibility for managing communicable diseases and notifiable medical conditions across our catchment.

Our catchment area covers about 1.8 million residents across 11 local government areas: Bayside, Cardinia Shire, Casey, Frankston, Glen Eira, Greater Dandenong, Kingston, Monash, Port Phillip, Stonnington and Mornington Peninsula Shire.

We partner with local councils, healthcare providers, peak bodies and community groups to co-design and lead public health initiatives.

Our team provides:

• Health Protection – operating across the SEPHU catchment, we are responsible for the management of 81 notifiable medical conditions, including working with communities to ensure a quick response to outbreaks.
• Health Promotion – enabling individuals and groups to improve their health via education and empowerment.
• Disease Prevention – reducing the risk of disease or injury before it occurs.
• Communication and community engagement –building relationships based on trust as we work collaboratively with the community and stakeholders to improve health and well-being outcomes. Focus areas include targeted engagement with priority population groups, capacity building, strategy development, health equity-related projects, and developing relationships and strategic partnerships.
• Research – improving health outcomes through research and evidence is an important part of our work.

Our public health priorities are detailed in our South East Public Health Unit Strategy 2024-2029 and our Population Health Catchment Plan 2023-2028.