It is important for the public health department to know about cases of shigellosis. It is important for clinical laboratories to send isolates of Shigella to the City, County or State Public Health Laboratory so the specific type can be determined and compared to other Shigella. If many cases occur at the same time, it may mean that a restaurant, food or water supply has a problem which needs correction by the public health department. If a number of cases occur in a day-care center, the public health department may need to coordinate efforts to improve handwashing among the staff, children, and their families. When a community-wide outbreak occurs, a community-wide approach to promote handwashing and basic hygiene among children can stop the outbreak. Improvements in hygiene for vegetables and fruit picking and packing may prevent shigellosis caused by contaminated produce. Some prevention steps occur everyday, without you thinking about it. Making municipal water supplies safe and treating sewage are highly effective prevention measures that have been in place for many years. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/shigellosis_g.htm#What%20can%20a%20person%20do%20to%20prevent%20this%20illness