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HomeMy WebLinkAboutM041813JEFFERSON COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH MINUTES Thursday, April 18 2013 Jefferson County Public Health, 615 Sheridan Street, Port Townsend, WA 98368 Board Members Phil Johnson, County Commissioner District #1 David Sullivan, Vice Chair, County Commissioner, District #2 John Austin, County Commissioner, District #3 Roberta Frissell, citizen at large (County) Catharine Robinson, Port Townsend City Council Sheila Westerman, Citizen at large (City) Jill Buhler, Chair, Hospital Commissioner, District #2 Staff Members Thomas Locke, MD, MPH Health Officer Jean Baldwin, Public Health Services Dir Julia Danskin, Nursing Services Director Jared Keefer, Env. Health Services Dir Chair Buhler called the meeting of the Jefferson County Board of Health to order at 2:30 PM. A quorum was present. Members Present: Jill Buhler, David Sullivan, John Austin, Sheila Westerman, Catharine Robinson Staff Present: Dr. Thomas Locke, Jean Baldwin, Jared Keefer, Veronica Shaw, Julia Danskin Members Excused: Phil Johnson, Roberta. Frissell APPROVAL OF AGENDA Member Austin requested that approval of Sam Markow's reappointment to the Substance Abuse Advisory Board be added as item 8 under New Business. Member Austin moved to approve the agenda of the April 18, 2013 BOH meeting as amended. Member Westerman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Member Austin moved to approve the minutes of the March 21, 2013 BOH meeting. Member Sullivan seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. OLD BUSINESS and INFORMATIONAL ITEMS Healthcare Preparedness Network Newsletter Julia Danskin discussed the Healthcare Network newsletter which was included in the agenda packet. She stated that the Healthcare Network meets quarterly to discuss ways for the healthcare system to prepare for emergency response. The newsletter discusses activities that have taken place in the Region 2 Healthcare Preparedness Network in the past 3 months. Hazardous Waste and Toxics Reduction Program Jared Keefer, Environmental Health Director, stated the Department of Ecology publication was included in the agenda packet to familiarize the Board with what the Hazardous Waste and Toxics Reduction Program does and who they partner with for local toxic and hazardous waste reduction in Jefferson County. Mr. Keefer stated they assist small businesses to move toxic waste out of the normal waste stream and dispose of it in a MRW (Moderate Risk Waste) facility. Additionally, businesses are encouraged to use less hazardous or non -hazardous alternatives to toxic materials. Early Learning Regional Coalition Funding Julia Danskin announced the Early Learning Regional Coalition Funding was established to coordinate a statewide early learning system to ensure children are ready to start school. Relationships have been built with schools, childcare providers, libraries and others to help prepare children for kindergarten. The article (included in the agenda packet) highlights some of the work being done in our region. Board of Health Correspondence A copy of the letter thanking Mary Selecky for her 15 years of service to Washington State was included in the agenda packet. Chair Buhler thanked Dr. Locke for his work on the letter. Member Westerman requested a change in the sentence in the second to last paragraph of the last page to read "struggling against odds and seemingly insurmountable challenges has always been the challenge of public health officials." NEW BUSINESS AmeriCorps Volunteer School Based Health Clinic Report AmeriCorps student, Ryann McChesney presented a report to the Board on the School Based Health Clinics. She reported that last year they saw almost 40% of the students in the two schools for either physical or mental health issues. She feels the clinics are providing safe, affordable and convenient care to high school students and are teaching the students how to use the healthcare system and take responsibility for their own care. She also expressed how important the location of the clinics are for a unique coordination of care and follow up with the students. It also allows them to spend time talking with students and get the students connected with other resources. Enviro Stars Recipient Jared Keefer announced Tyler Fordham, DDS has been awarded an Enviro Star award. The award has been included for the Board Chair's signature. 2012 Performance Measures Reports: Communicable, Population & Prevention, Family Health Services and Targeted Clinical Health Services Lisa McKenzie, Communicable Disease Coordinator, reported on the 2012 Communicable Disease Performance Measures Report which was included in the agenda packet. Ms. McKenzie highlighted the vaccine assistance program on page 6 of the report which provides free vaccine to people who do not have healthcare insurance. She stated that in 2012 there was a focus on getting more of the Pertussis vaccine to uninsured people who were caretakers of infants. In 2011 they gave 14 doses of the free vaccine and in 2012 they gave 35 doses through the GIFT program and another 173 doses were given through a State purchased vaccine. There are also programs for free HPV vaccine and free Hepatitis A & B vaccine. Ms. McKenzie also stated they educated Jefferson Healthcare on the Sanofi/AmeriCares program because one of the vaccines they provide is the Rabies Vaccine which is very expensive. Next Ms. McKenzie highlighted the section on technical assistance to the clinics for the vaccine program. She stated Jane Kurata who is the vaccine program manager has spent a lot of time with clinics training vaccine managers, answering questions and trouble shooting, and has also provided training on the State immunization registry. Ms. McKenzie then discussed the section on Cryptosporidiosis surveillance. Finally, Ms. McKenzie pointed out the section of the graph which shows a decline in the immunization doses provided by JCPH to children; this is due to a shift to primary healthcare providers. Dr. Locke discussed a provider advisory to alert providers of tick testing results. He stated that the Washington State Department of Health has had a program to identify species of ticks for some time. The vector for Lyme Disease, Ixodes pacificus, is widespread in Washington State and on the Olympic Peninsula. In the past 2 years, funds have been available to determine whether ticks are infected with specific tick borne infections. Out of over 500 ticks tested, four tested positive for Lyme Disease, three of which were from Mason County and one from Clallam County. Providers were given information on evaluating tick bites and the signs, symptoms, and treatment for Lyme Disease. Julia Danskin gave a report on the Population and Prevention 2012 Performance Measures. She noted that the school drug and alcohol program has shrunk over the years, but it is still continuing. The strategic planning process from last year can be found on the County website. She also stated the Life Skills class at Blue Heron came out of the strategic planning process. Julia Danskin announced that she will have Yuko Umeda report on the Family Health Services Performance Measures at a later date. Ms. Baldwin reported that there was a Nurse Family Partnership (NFP) planning session held on April 9th with representatives from Kitsap County, the Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, and the Thrive by Five program to prepare a one year plan for NFP in our region. They looked at the last 13 years of data to identify strengths and weaknesses of the program. Ms. Danskin stated she will bring back updated performance measures for 2011. Finally, Julia Danskin discussed the Targeted Clinical Health Services 2012 Performance Measures. She stated she will arrange for Susan O'Brien to come in and discuss the program. Ms. Danskin pointed out that several of the measures are decreasing due to several factors; Breast and Cervical services will be going to private providers, the unduplicated clients seen has decreased because PAP tests are now only required every three years. Annual exams are still recommended but some clients only come in when their PAP test is due. End of Year Public Records Report A copy of the 2012 Public Records Request Report included in the packet, indicated the total number of copies provided and total employee hours resulted in a direct program cost of $13,746.37. Mr. Keefer mentioned the plan for Environmental Health is to scan and put documents of public interest on the County website to reduce the amount of document requests. Oral Health Access: Smile Mobile and ABCD Implementation Clallam/Jefferson Counties Julia Danskin reported the Smile Mobile will be at the Chimacum Schools May 9th through May 17th. Ms. Danskin also announced VIMO (Volunteers in Medicine in the Olympics) has received a grant from the Washington Dental Service Foundation to hire a program coordinator to link Clallam and Jefferson County dentists with children who need their services. ABCD (Access to Baby and Child Dentistry), is a program which recruits dentists to be specially trained in serving children age six and under. Electronic Medical Record (EMR) and Permit Plan Infrastructure Issues Veronica Shaw reported that a new EMR has been implemented; however they have not yet implemented the immunization piece of the system because it requires an HL7 Interface which would link JCPH to the Washington State Immunization Information System. Ms. Shaw also reported the schools have struggled with the new system and have decided not to run the new EMR system in the schools. They have gone back to paper charts. This is due to the poor performance of the wireless connection between the schools and JCPH. She stated they have provided several proposed solutions to the problem, but nothing has been implemented yet. Ms. Baldwin announced that because the system is so slow they are seeing reduced productivity, lost revenue, and staff not being able to do their jobs. Ms. Baldwin asked that all partners from the City, the Hospital, the County and the school districts work together as a team to make sure the problem is addressed as soon as possible. Member Sullivan will follow up with Team Jefferson on when the high speed internet upgrades will be completed and will ask someone from Team Jefferson to come and give an update. Member Robinson will get an update from the City of Port Townsend. Jared Keefer reported that the Permit Plan system which had not been updated in a long time was recently updated on a grant (written by Linda Atkins others) to put in tech support. The system provides more time tracking options, productivity tracking, tracking work flow of a permit and upgraded billing capacity. This system allowed a number of data bases to be consolidated into one. Finally Mr. Keefer stated the system is almost complete, the Solid and Hazardous Waste Group will be completed next. Legislative Update Dr. Locke stated that the Legislative Session is in its final weeks and the House and Senate budget that are very different from one another and they are trying to find common ground. Dr. Locke also announced the bill that would clear up a long standing dispute between health officers and the State Board of Pharmacy over use of standing orders successfully passed the House but died in a Senate Committee. Substance Abuse Advisory Board Reappointment Member Austin moved to reappoint Sam Markow to the Substance Abuse Advisory Board. Member Sullivan seconded the motion. The Motion passed unanimously. ACTIVITY UPDATE Jared Keefer reported the funding has been cut in half by Department of Ecology for biotoxin monitoring of lakes. Because of the funding cuts, they will not be doing weekly monitoring of Gibbs, Leland and Anderson Lakes. If they see a bloom they will most likely recommend closure based on past history, but they will not have the data to back up their decision. Department of Ecology only wants them to do monthly sampling of the lakes. Mr. Keefer stated he is working with the County Administrator to see if there are financing options in the budget to allow for more frequent testing. Jared Keefer announced they are in the permitting process at DCD to install one, possibly two, vault toilets along the Quilcene River. This is in response to past unsanitary practices by fisherman during the fishing season which resulted in a shell fish harvest area closure. The vault(s) would be funded by State Department of Health through the Water Quality division. DOH is eager to see the project to completion prior to the 2013 fishing season opening. Mr. Keefer stated the next question is going to be who will fund the maintenance of the toilets. None PUBLIC COMMENT AGENDA PLANNING CALENDAR Jared Keefer stated they are cleaning up the Environmental Health fee schedule by breaking out fees to make the fee schedule more understandable to the public. Member Westerman suggested having a public comment period at the beginning of the BOH meeting as well at the end of the meeting. Chair Buhler suggested adjusting the public comment period for each meeting. Member Robinson likes the option to have public comment at the beginning of the meeting. Jean Baldwin announced she will be out of the office and any calls should be directed to Dr. Locke or Jared Keefer. Next Board of Health meeting will be held on May 16, 2013 from 2:30 — 4:30 p.m. at Jefferson County Public Health, 615 Sheridan St., Port Townsend, WA 98368 ADJOURNMENT Chair Buhler adjourned the BOH meeting at 4:30 PM. JEFFERSON COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH Excused 04LIIA GW�/( Phil Johnson, Member Zill Buhler, Cj�air Excused -,,,► Roberta Frissell, Member Davi SulliUem Catharine Robinson, Member J Austi � 4A L'�' 0 &'*y", -- Sheila Westerman, Member Respectfully Submitted: Stacie Reid