| The Executive Report is a monthly summary of key activities and
significant happenings in the Health District overall. This summary of
activities and/or happenings may involve: one of many different
public health
programs, the
Galveston Area
Ambulance Authority (GAAA), the
4C's
federally-funded community health clinics (CHC's), and/or
collaborate efforts among community health partners.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact:
Pisa Lewis , Executive Assistant,
at 409 938-2401, by email:plewis@gchd.org;
or Kurt Koopmann, Public Information Officer,
at 409-938-2211,
by email:kkoopman@gchd.org.
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| December 18 , 2003 |
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Archives |
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Health District
Accomplishments for 2003 |
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Strategic
Health Plan Adopted |
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Influenza
Update |
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Training
to Provide Smallpox Vaccinations |
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Update on
Santa Fe Shigellosis Outbreak |
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TB Contact
Investigation in High School |
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Update on
Breast Cancer Programs |
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4C’s
Clinic Updates |
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4C's Clinic Grant
Status of Recruitment Efforts
Ready Provider Program
Current 4C’s Clinic Trends
Registration Initiative
Outcome of UTMB Telemedicine Educational Program
Provider Team Meeting
Microbiology Specialist Gen Probe Study |
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Operational Updates |
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Volunteer Policy
Salary Adjustments
HIV HOPWA
EMS Workers' Compensation
Upgrading Voice Mail System
Registering seniors at La Marque and Galveston sites |
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Alleged Case of Illegal
Dumping |
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Zephyr Update |
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Galveston
EMS Medals of Valor |
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Other Public Information
Reports |
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Recommended hand washing
procedures
Canadian Broadcasting Network
Jesse Tree |
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|
Kemah
Holiday Jamm |
| Health District Accomplishments
for 2003 |
| |
At the last executive team
meeting of the Galveston County Health District, members
looked back over the past year and listed accomplishments
of the Health District. The list grew to 50 items.The
broad categories included: Board Participation and Policy
Development; Leadership and Health Planning; Improvements
in Public Information and Public Relations; Public Health
Security Improvements; 4C’s Clinic Improvements;
Increased Community Outreach Services and Collaborations;
Business Improvements and Human Resources Improvements.
The list of accomplished will be available on the Health
District website in the near future. |
| Strategic Health Plan Adopted |
| |
With adoption
of the Strategic Health Plan by the Governing Board on
November 20th and the United Board of Health on December
11th, the Health District is ready to work with community
partners to meet the public health challenges identified
in the health priorities. The strategic health plan will
provide a blueprint for planning and coordination of activities
in the health district for the next 7 years. Specific
activities and timelines will be added as GCHD staff identifies
ways to best achieve the goals and objectives listed in
the plan. Thanks to all those who participated in the
planning process by attending meetings, offering facilities
to meet in, and providing valuable comments, suggestions
and support. The complete plan has been posted on the
website and will distributed to community leaders early
in the new year. For more information, please contact
Brian Rutherford, Health District Planner, at brutherford@gchd.org
or at 409.938.2275. |
| Influenza Update
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| |
The District's flu campaign
was a success with 6750 vaccination given in the community.
In addition to those receiving vaccinations at GCHD Immunization
clinic sites citizens also received this years vaccine
at 38 additional community sites. According to Chuck Chambers,
GCHD Epidemiologist, Galveston County flu cases began
to occur by the third week in October. At the current
time a total of 187 confirmed cases have been reported
to the Health District from area hospitals and the 4C’s
Clinic. All cases were type A influenza for the period
10/23 - 11/19/03. Although the Galveston County flu outbreak
subsided before Thanksgiving, another strain of influenza
could circulate before the next spring. As of December
15th there are 198 doses of vaccine remaining in the District.
Persons in high-risk population are targeted for the last
remaining doses of vaccine. For more information, please
contact Chuck Chambers, MPH, Epidemiologist, at cchambers@gchd.org
or 409.765.2514 or Shirley Carr, RN, Community Health
Nursing, at scarr@gchd.org
or 409.949.2456. |
Training
to Provide Smallpox Vaccinations |
| |
During the month of
December, 30 individuals were trained to provide smallpox
vaccinations. Participants in the training included
school nurses, emergency medical technicians, pharmacists,
a physician and others. This training, coordinated through
the Community Health Nursing, Immunization, and the
Public Health Preparedness programs, is being conducted
so there will be health care and public health teams
trained and ready to respond should a smallpox outbreak
occur in Galveston County. For more information, please
contact Brian Rutherford, Health District Planner, at
brutherford@gchd.org
or at 409.938.2275. |
| Update
on Santa Fe Shigellosis Outbreak
|
| |
From September 14, 2003
through November 21, 2003, the Health District received
reports of the diarrheal disease shigellosis for 17
students of a Santa Fe elementary school and 3 of their
family members. Health District staff contacted families
of all cases to advise them on measures to prevent person-to-person
spread and disseminated health advisories to school
attendees and the medical community. Good hand washing
practices has been emphasized. No new cases with onsets
since November 21, 2003 have been reported as of December
15, 2003. For more information, please contact Chuck
Chambers, MPH, Epidemiologist, at cchambers@gchd.org
or 409.765.2514. |
| TB Contact Investigation
in High School |
| |
The TB staff provided
(95) skin tests for students at a local high school
who were identified as close contacts to a classmate
diagnosed with active TB. The health district sent out
147 letters to the parents of the identified contacts
verifying that a student had been diagnosed with TB
and the plans for follow-up of the contacts. Ninety-five
of the 147 contacts identified received the skin test.
Of the 95 contacts skin-tested, 62 were negative, twelve
(12) were positive and twenty-one (21) were not read.
Students with positive results will be further evaluated
in the TB Clinic or by their private providers. For
additional information, please contact Shirley Carr,
RN, Community Health Nursing, at scarr@gchd.org
or 409.938.2456. |
| Update on Breast
Cancer Programs |
| |
A review of the D'Feet
Breast Cancer program performed on 11/17/03 revealed
that 344 breast cancer screenings had been performed
during 2003. Of these, 57 women were noted to have abnormal
mammograms and seven (7) women had abnormal clinical
breast exams. One breast cancer was identified during
this period. A review of the program's quality improvement
measures indicated that the average number of days from
referral to complete diagnosis was 15 (goal is less
than 60) and the average number of days from diagnosis
to treatment was eight (8), the goal being less than
30 days. Through the Breast and Cervical Cancer Control
Program (BCCCP), women noted to have abnormal mammograms
or clinical breast exams can no longer be referred to
the UTMB Cancer Stop Program but will be referred to
UTMB for diagnostic testing through regular referral
channels. This will necessitate financial screening
through the UTMB Demand and Access Management Program
(DAMP). BCCCP staff is working with the regional BCCCP
case management coalition to address this and access
to care issues. For more information, please contact
Susan Studebaker, Deputy Director of Clinical Services,
at sstudebaker@gchd.org
or at 409.949.3406. |
| 4C’s Clinic
Updates |
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|
4C's Clinic Grant:
The 4C's Clinic Budget Renewal grant, the last year
of a five (5) year project period, was submitted to
HHS the last week of November 2003. This request seeks
federal funds in the amount of $1.58M as part of the
total clinic budget of $8.9M for the grant year 4/01/04
to 3/31/05. The grant request makes no changes in the
scope of services offered to the citizens of Galveston
county, accommodates salary adjustments made in FY 2003
through funding from Galveston County, and maintains
comparable staffing levels. For additional information
please contact Jay Holland, Chief Operating Officer,
at jholland@gchd.org
or at 409.938.2260. |
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Status of Recruitment
Efforts: Since the November 2003 Board meeting,
the 4C's Clinic has accepted the resignation of one
full-time LVN. Of the four open LVN positions, two LVN
positions have been filled. Applications continue to
be accepted and interviews have been scheduled for the
two remaining vacant positions. To date, 23 applications
have been received. Applications continue to be accepted
and interviews scheduled for the three vacant provider
positions. To date, a total of 32 applications have
been received. We are also in the process of credentialing
several part-time providers who will be on "stand-by"
should an unexpected need occur. For additional information,
please contact Kathrine Hall, Human Resources Director,
at khall@gchd.org
or call 409. 938.2230. |
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Ready Provider Program:
The Galveston County Health District has implemented
the "Ready Provider Program." This new staffing
concept is intended to assist in maintaining healthcare
services to patients of the 4C's Clinic who are routinely
served by full-time and part-time employed providers
(physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants)
on an as needed basis. The Health District's Human Resources
office will maintain a list of "Ready Providers,"
who have successfully completed the 4C's Clinic's credentialing
process, and will be called upon when there is a need
for additional providers (both physicians and mid-levels)
to provide patient care at either of the Health District's
clinic sites (on Galveston Island and in Texas City).
"Ready Providers" will be called upon to provide
patient care under contract with the Health District
during provider vacancies, extended leave, or times
of extended scheduled leave. For additional information,
please contact Kathrine Hall, Human Resources Director,
at khall@gchd.org
or call 409. 938.2230. |
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Current 4C’s
Clinic Trends: With the continued tracking of clinic
productivity, data shows that provider productivity
was 8.9 patients seen per clinic half-day for the month
of November, compared 8.7 in October, 8.1 in September
and 7.6 in August. The average number of patients being
triaged by the clinic nurses (combined total at both
clinics) was 51 with 61% being seen on the same day.
The number of patients seen each day at each site has
remained consistent through the month of November. However
the number of patients seen each day by each provider
has increased. For more information, contact Susan Studebaker,
Director of Clinical Services, at sstudebaker@gchd.org,
or call 409.949.3406 or contact Umair Shah, MD, MPH,
Medical Director, at ushah@gchd.org
or at 409.949.3406 |
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|
Registration Initiative:
A letter has been developed to give to those patients
who consistently do not provide Registration with the
required documentation needed in order to establish
eligibility for clinic services. The letter will list
the information needed from the patient in order to
complete the registration process, and will serve as
formal notification that the patient will be unable
to have access to 4C's services until the required information
has been received. For more information, contact Kathy
Barroso, Chief Financial Officer, at kbarroso@gchd.org
or at 409.938.2257. |
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Outcome of UTMB Telemedicine
Educational Program: The 4C’s medical care
team received an educational program on UTMB’s
Telehealth Center by Dr. Jeannette Hartshorn on December
10th. The morning consisted of learning about the global
context of the telemedicine program as well as hands-on
use of telemedicine devices and technologies to mimic
live telemedicine visits. In addition, a telemedicine
“live” question and answer session was conducted
with two remote Texas clinic sites. As an outcome, the
Health District will explore establishing a telemedicine
pilot program with UTMB for continuing education, grand
rounds, and specialty consultations. For more information,
contact Mark Guidry, MD, MPH, Chief Executive Officer,
at mguidry@gchd.org
or call 409-938-2401. |
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Provider Team Meeting:
On December 3rd, a meeting was held for the 4C's
physicians and nurse practitioners to discuss clinic
issues. The participants addressed the triage process
and registration. As a result of this meeting, participants
agreed to develop written guidelines for triage, explore
ways to educate the call center in its role, and explore
ways to expedite the registration process. For more
information, please contact Pisa Lewis, Customer Service
Specialist, at plewis@gchd.org
or call 409.938.2260. |
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Microbiology Specialist
Gen Probe Study: The study previously endorsed by
the Governing Board will be reactivated at the approval
of the Clinic Leadership Team in January 2004. The purpose
of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of new
diagnostic equipment and will not have an adverse impact
on patient care. Participating in the study is expected
to result in a cost-saving and will occur over a six-week
period of time. For more information, contact Umair
Shah, MD, MPH, Medical Director, at ushah@gchd.org
or at 409.949.3406. |
| Operational
Updates |
|
|
The Executive Team and
District Management Team have approved a Volunteer
Policy, which sets policy and guidelines for utilizing
volunteers and students. Volunteers help to improve
community awareness of public health issues and services
and using volunteers helps educate and train potential
future employees and is a cost effective means of addressing
workforce shortages. As adopted by both health Boards,
Human Resource policies will be approved by the Executive
Director and brought to the Board on an annual basis.
For additional information, please contact Kathrine
Hall, Human Resources Director, at khall@gchd.org
or call 409. 938.2230. |
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|
Salary Adjustments:
Human Resources and Executive Management have reviewed
the salary ranges for 4C's mid-level providers. Using
salary savings from the provider budget, salaries have
been adjusted for current mid-level providers, and a
new salary scale has been implemented for incoming mid-level
providers. These new ranges are based on a salary analysis
completed on similar organizations, and additional responsibilities
added to the mid-level provider job descriptions. For
additional information, please contact Kathrine Hall,
Human Resources Director, at khall@gchd.org
or call 409. 938.2230. |
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|
On
November 7, 2003, an addendum for the HIV HOPWA
(Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS) contract
was signed. This contract is for additional funding
for the current contract year of February 1, 2003 to
January 31, 2004, in the amount of $10,2228. The renewal
of the contract with Texas Department of Health was
signed on December 10, 2003. This is a contract for
maintenance of the existing services with an award amount
of $149,874.00. For additional information, please contact
Kathy Barroso, Chief Financial Officer, at kbarroso@gchd.org
or call 409.938.2257. |
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|
EMS Workers' Compensation:
TML Risk Pool, our workers’ compensation carrier,
notified The Health District that the EMS department
accounts for a high percentage of the overall claims
and costs associated with the Health District's workers'
compensation coverage. A meeting has been scheduled
among TML Risk Pool, Human Resources, and EMS to identify
loss prevention activities and improvements. For additional
information, please contact Kathrine Hall, Human
Resources Director, at khall@gchd.org
or call 409. 938.2230. |
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|
Upgrading Voice Mail
System: Digital Speech has been selected as the
contractor for the voice mail system in La Marque. Installation
and training of the system will take place the week
of January 12, 2004, with a target date to go live on
Monday, January 19, 2004. For more information, please
contact Mike Carr, Information Technology Director,
at mcarr@gchd.org or at 409-938-2399
. |
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|
The Senior Health Outreach
Program will begin registering seniors at the La
Marque and Galveston sites the first week in January.
The seniors who attended the Senior Health Fest were
given questionnaires and asked if they would like to
register for clinic services. These seniors will be
contacted and given appointments to register at either
the La Marque site or the Galveston site. For more information,
please contact Charles Kelly, Senior Health Coordinator,
at ckelly@gchd.org
or call 409.938.2295. |
| Alleged
Case of Illegal Dumping |
| |
In February 2001, an
alleged case of illegal dumping, was referred to the
Pollution Control Division by the Waste Section of the
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). An
employee of a small specialty chemical company located
in Texas City claimed that his employer asked him to
illegally dump industrial waste into an adjacent ditch
that flows to Galveston Bay. We immediately referred
the case back to the appropriate division within the
TCEQ. The TCEQ Criminal Investigation Team interviewed
the witness and determined that many of the allegations
were outdated and, therefore, could not be investigated.
The facts of the case were discussed between the two
(2) agencies. The Pollution Control Division did not
conduct a site visit of the facility, due to the fact
of the outdated allegations and the confusion over the
appropriate jurisdiction of the case. The employee was
eventually terminated and is now suing the company for
wrongful termination. The law firm representing the
chemical company has requested all of our records under
the Freedom of Information Act. For more information,
contact Ronnie Shultz, Pollution Control, at rshultz@gchd.org
or at 409.938.2251. |
| Zephyr
Update |
| |
On December 2, 2003,
a Galveston County jury agreed in a trial that Zephyr,
the German Shepherd responsible for inflicting serious
injury to an area jogger, should be euthanized. This
judgment still has to be reviewed by a Judge and we
expect the review to occur in mid January 2004. The
dog remains in the Joe Vickery, R.S. Animal Shelter,
pending legal resolution. For more information, contact
Marty Entringer, Environmental & Consumer Health,
at mentringer@gchd.org
or at 409.938.2300. |
| Galveston EMS Medals
of Valor |
| |
Galveston EMS presented
“Medals of Valor" to paramedics Trey Frankovich
and Conner Burdine at Friday's Christmas Awards Dinner.
On September 27, Frankovich and Burdine "climbed
through the rocks at 93rd Street and Seawall then swam
out 300 feet to rescue a drowned fisherman floating
in the very rough seas." Although the fisherman
did not survive, the paramedics were recognized for
their extra effort. Danny Weber, Jr. and Edwin Smith,
Jr. were named as co-Paramedics of the Year at the dinner.
Carlos Alexander was named Employee of the Year by EMS
administration; and Tamara Koleng was named Flight Paramedic
of the Year for "her outstanding work on rescue
flights offshore." Galveston EMS and the Galveston
Fire Department were presented "gold star"
merit awards in recognition of 60 percent "save
rates" in cardiac arrest victims suffering from
a condition called "ventricular fibrillation".
The two departments teamed up to restart the hearts
of 13 people this year, "A 60 percent save rate
is one of the highest in the nation." For more
information, please contact Greg Kunkel at gkunkel@gchd.org
or at 409.621.3141. |
| Other Public Information
Reports:
For more information, please contact Kurt Koopmann, Public
Information Officer, at kkoopman@gchd.org
or at (409) 938-2211. |
|
|
On November 18,
2003, the Health District distributed a press release
(http://www.gchd.org/press/2003/11handwashing.htm)
to local media encouraging citizens to follow recommended
hand washing procedures to prevent the spread of
disease. Proper hand washing can prevent the spread
of illnesses such as the common cold, influenza, and
other communicable diseases. The Galveston County Daily
News reported the information. |
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|
On
December 3, 2003 Frank Koller with the Canadian Broadcasting
Network interviewed Dr.Guidry. The interview was
conducted in the Galveston 4 C’s Clinic and will
be broadcast on Canadian national radio. The focus of
Mr. Koller’s questions centered on the impact
and implications of healthcare financing reductions
in Galveston County and Texas. An on-line record of
the story will be available after it has been broadcast. |
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|
District staff has been
working with the Jesse Tree on information to
be included in the newest community directory. Upon
publication there will be a section specifically listing
all of the services provided by the District. |
| Kemah Holiday Jamm
|
| |
This
year’s Holiday party will be held at the Kemah
Community Center on December 20, 2003, at 7:30 p.m.
There will be Service Awards presented along with the
newly developed “Star Performer Award” for
employees that have demonstrated exceptional performance
for the past year. There are great door prizes that
have been donated by Board members and District employees.
For more information, please contact Pisa Lewis at plewis@gchd.org
or at 409.938.2260 |
