 |
Tuberculosis Cases on Cruise Line |
|
|
Disease Detectives Investigate Pertussis |
|
|
Immunization Week |
|
|
National Association of Local Boards of Health
(NALBOH) |
|
|
Open Meetings Act and Public Information Act
Training |
| |
|
|
|
Office of Public Information
Updates |
|
Mammogram screenings |
|
Lake Madeline water quality |
|
District’s
Animal Services Manager |
|
BP unit start-up scheduled |
|
Puppies taken to the Joe Vickery Animal Shelter |
|
Probable Pertussis case |
|
Gold Ribbon Awards |
| |
|
|
|
4C’s Clinic Updates |
|
Contracted psychiatrist |
|
4C’s Counselor Vacancy |
| |
Texas City Clinic Renovation |
|
Clinic Leadership Team |
|
Medical Records Pilot Project |
|
Contracts with new HMO’s |
|
|
|
|
Office of
Environmental Health Services Updates |
|
Animal Services Manager |
|
Trash Bash |
|
High Island Homeowner’s Association |
|
Lake Madeline Update |
|
|
|
|
Office of Community Health Programs
Updates |
|
HIV Administrative Services |
| |
The
Senior Health Advisory Council |
| |
Women, Infant's and Children Program
(WIC) |
|
Immunization Services |
|
|
|
|
Office of Emergency Medical
Services Updates |
|
Mainland Expansion Progress |
|
Mainland Medical Center service
expansion |
|
Contact with Nursing Home Administrators |
|
CQI Program Update |
|
On the Job Injury Report |
|
Performance
Based Compensation Plan |
|
|
|
|
Emergency Preparedness
|
| |
Texas Pandemic Influenza Summit |
| |
Houston Galveston Area Council (HGAC) |
| |
Galveston County Health Fair |
| |
Statewide hurricane exercise |
| |
Galveston County Emergency Response
Collaborative |
| |
SNS exercise in Montgomery County. |
| |
Houston Galveston Area Council (HGAC) |
| |
Animal issues
in disaster planning |
| |
|
|
Epidemiology Updates |
| |
Rabid Bat |
|
Influenza Update |
| |
In-Service/Health Fair |
| |
Legionnaire’s
Disease In-service |
| |
Dickinson ISD In-service |
| |
San Jacinto
Elementary Health Fair in Galveston |
| |
|
|
|
Operational Updates |
| |
Funding for case manager |
| |
Molina HealthCare of Texas |
| |
Texas Children’s Health Plan |
|
Community Health Choice |
| |
Delta Dental |
| |
|
| |
|
|
Tuberculosis Cases on Cruise Line |
|
|
On March 2, 2006, a crewmember from a cruise line was admitted
to UTMB and diagnosed with active tuberculosis (TB). CDC and the cruise line
compiled a line list of close contacts. The Health District’s Tuberculosis
Services provided supplies and equipment to test 250 contacts for TB. Health
District staff gave an in-service to medical personnel on the cruise line for
correct administration of skin tests and reading of the skin test results. TB
program and lab staff conducted 3 TB clinics to obtain medical history, TB risk
assessments, X-rays, and lab work for 154 individuals onboard cruise line.
For more information, please contact Susan Studebaker, Director of Community
Health Programs, at 409
-938-2291, email
sstudebaker@gchd.org or Dana Wiltz-Beckham, DVM, Chief Epidemiologist, at
409
-938-2322 or email dbeckham@gchd.org. |
| Disease Detectives Investigate Pertussis |
|
|
For the month of March, there have been two Pertussis cases reported in
Galveston County, a 2 month old male infant and 16 year old female. Both cases
were investigated and revealed the 2 month old as a confirmed case and the 16
year old as a probable case. All contacts to index case were identified and
given prophylaxis by their health care providers. Pertussis or Whooping cough
is a highly communicable vaccine preventable disease that is transmitted from
person to person through coughing or sneezing of a person infected with the
bacterium. Since January 2006, there have been 3 cases of pertussis in
Galveston County. In 2005, there were a total of 11 cases. For
more information, please contact Dana Wiltz-Beckham, DVM, Chief Epidemiologist,
at (409) 938-2322 or email
dbeckham@gchd.org.
|
| Immunization Week |
|
|
Plans are in being developed for
April 22-29; National Infant Immunization Week activities based on feedback from
the Immunizations Advisory Council. Donations and volunteers are being
recruited for a variety of community events and activities to promote childhood
immunizations as well as make vaccines available for free during this week.
Outreach sites were chosen based on the needs identified by the
Immunization Advisory Council (O’Connell High School), mapping Galveston County
VFC providers (Hitchcock-Santa Fe area), and review of the ImmTrac list of
children with delinquent immunizations (League City-Dickinson area).
Board member, Dr. Ben Raimer,
will submit a guest column promoting immunizations.
For more information, you can view on the
Health District’s website at
http://www.gchd.org/councils/immevents.htm or contact June Gonzales,
Immunization Program Manager, at 409-938-2244 or email
jgonzales@gchd.org. |
|
National Association of Local Boards of Health (NALBOH) |
|
|
The Health
District was selected to present at the upcoming NALBOH conference in San
Antonio to be co-located with meetings of the National Association of City &
County Health Officers in July. Dr. Guidry, Brian Rutherford and board member,
Mary Anne Holcomb will present on the Galveston County Rita Experience and share
best practices and lessons learned with a forum of board members and health
officials across the nation. The goal of the conference is to showcase
successful local efforts to engage the community in public health.
For more information, please contact Harlan
“Mark” Guidry, MD, MPH, Chief Executive Officer, at 409-938-2401 or email
mguidry@gchd.org |
|
Open Meetings Act and Public
Information Act Training |
|
|
Effective
January 1, 2006, elected and appointed public officials are required by new
state law to receive training in Texas open government laws. It was mandated
during the 79th Texas Legislative Session that the Attorney General
establish the formal training necessary to ensure that all elected and appointed
government officials have a good command of both open records and open meetings
laws. The Office of Attorney General has video training courses that have been
ordered. Once the videos arrive, United Board of Health & 4C’s Governing Board
members will be contacted to discuss training sessions.
For more information, please contact Pisa
Lewis, Executive Assistant, at (409) 938-2401 or email
plewis@gchd.org. |
| Office of Public
Information
For more information please
contact Kurt Koopmann, Public Information Officer, at
409.938.2211, email
kkoopman@gchd.org
|
|
|
Dates for upcoming mammogram
screenings were submitted to the Community Bulletin Board in the
Galveston Daily News with
eligibility guidelines. These sites are submitted to the newspaper on a
monthly basis. Additional information on the availability of mammograms can
be found on the District’s web site at
http://www.gchd.org/chn/dfeet.htm.
A call was received from Galveston
Daily News reporter Kelly Hawes on March 2nd
requesting an update on the Lake Madeline water quality
investigation. Ronnie Schultz, Director of Environmental Health Programs
and the District’s Public Information Officer both participated in the
interview. Plans to monitor and test water from Lake Madeline were
outlined. The article printed on March 6th can be found at
http://www.gchd.org/press/2006/03LakeMadelineDNews.htm.
Galveston Daily News reporter T.J. Aulds contacted the Office of
Public Information on March 2nd with questions about the
resignation of the District’s Animal
Services Manager. It was confirmed that a resignation had been
received and necessary steps taken to insure continuation of improvements
and services in the area of animal services both in the field and at the
Joe Vickery Animal Shelter. The following news story was published on
March 4th
http://www.gchd.org/press/2006/03AnimalShelterDirResignsDNews.htm.
The District was contacted by the Galveston Daily News working on a story concerning the
BP unit start-up scheduled for
their Texas City facility. Ronnie Schultz was asked if BP is providing the
District with needed information. Schultz explained that BP is required to
submit paperwork and reports to TCEQ and they always provide us with a
courtesy copy. Ronnie stated that overall the industries in Texas City are
very good at providing the District with information. The
News has recently run a series
of reports on BP but has not used the information provided.
The Galveston Daily News
contacted the District on March 17th concerning a lady in Texas
City that faces having a lien placed on her property if she does not clean
her yard. The Texas City Police Department had informed the reporter that
animals were taken from the home at their request and Public Information
confirmed that five puppies had been taken to the Joe Vickery Animal Shelter from the home.
http://www.gchd.org/press/2006/03TxCityLawnDNews.htm.
Public Information assisted in the development of a parent friendly
letter to be distributed through a local school district where a probable
Pertussis case had been
diagnosed. The letter contained information on Pertussis and links to
online fact sheets.
Food service establishments receiving Gold Ribbon Awards were the
subjects of a press release issued March 28th. Annually
District sanitarians select those operators considered to be exemplary and
present them with the award. The press release can be found at
http://www.gchd.org/press/2006/04goldribbon.htm.
|
| 4C’s
Clinic Updates
For more information, please contact Patrick
Butler, Interim 4C’s Business Manager at
(409) 949-3406 or email
pbutler@gchd.org or Pam Jahnke,
RN, Strategic Plan Evaluator at (409) 938-2256 or email pjahnke@gchd.org. |
|
|
On March 7, 2006 4 C's staff began meetings with a
contracted psychiatrist from the
Gulf Coast Center MHMR. Dr. Dion Owens provided expert consultation for a
number of 4 C's patients with mental health and/or substance abuse conditions.
The CEO, Medical Director, 4 C's counselor, Strategic Plan Evaluator and a case
manager were present to discuss interdisciplinary approaches to meeting
patients' needs. We plan for Dr. Owens to meet with this group every two weeks
to consult on cases. Funding is provided by the Hogg Foundation grant.
4C’s Counselor Vacancy
- the 4C’s counselor position will be vacant in mid-April. The Medical
Director has prepared a correspondence to exiting patients and clinic
leadership. Case managers will assess their needs in the transition period
until a new Counselor is hired and counseling appointments can be
resumed. Other community resources will be used as needed. A quick and
aggressive search for a qualified replacement has begun.
Texas City
Clinic Renovation – Executive staff met with Bay Architect’s and
the architectural drawing are close to being finalized with only minor
changes being suggested. The next steps with the architectural contractors
are to finalize the drawings, and evaluate contractors and construction
timelines.
Clinic Leadership Team
Meetings have been rescheduled to the 1st and 3rd
Tuesday of each month at 2:00 pm to assist our growing OB/Family Planning
patients. Clinic schedules have been designed to accommodate Walk-in
patients as well as OB/Family Planning patients.
Medical Records Pilot
Project - In early May, the 4C’S Clinic will be
implementing a Medical Records Pilot Project that will include redesigning
the flow of medical records and centralizing the location of records and
data entry clerks.
Contracts with new HMO’s
- 4C’S clinic is now accepting Amerigroup Insurance. Effective 9/1/2006 we
will accept Molina Healthcare Insurance |
| Office of
Environmental Health Services Updates
For more
information, contact Ronnie Schultz, Director of Environmental
Health Services, at 409.938.2214 or email:
rschultz@gchd.org
|
|
|
Animal Services Manager – On March 9, 2006, Michele Reynolds, Animal
Services Manager, tendered her resignation with the Health District. She
departed to pursue career opportunities out of state. Ms. Reynolds was
commended for her dedication to improving the operation of the Animal Services
Division and working toward meeting the goal’s established for animal services
in Galveston County. A job announcement was immediately published and
distributed across the state and advertised in two newspapers seeking a
qualified candidate to fill the vacant position. The staff and management
remains committed to continuing our mission that was developed over two (2)
years ago to improve animal services.
Trash Bash –
The thirteenth annual River’s, Lakes, Bays and Bayous Trash Bash was
held at Rainbow Park in Texas City on Saturday, March 25th. 670
cleanup volunteers registered to help clean up trash on the Texas City Dike.
Following the cleanup, volunteers were treated to food, entertainment, and
giveaways for a job well done. As part of the Trash Bash festivities, an
environmental exposition provided valuable information to the volunteers on many
environmental issues and services available to assist in the protection of the
environment and the wildlife that inhabits it.
High Island
Homeowner’s Association – Marty Entringer, Consumer Health Services
Manager, attended the High Island Homeowner’s Association meeting to discuss the
recent survey letter issued by the Health District requesting information on
homeowner’s current sewage handling methods including information about
residents that are currently connected to the non-compliant collection and
treatment system. The attendees were very concerned that the Health District
was going to disconnect them from the non-compliant system and leave them with
no method of waste treatment. Marty explained that the survey was the first
step in identifying households on the non-compliant system and homeowners would
be provided ample time to resolve this issue. In addition, the Health District
has planned a door-to-door survey of the High Island area for final
determination on the number of households connected. Following the gathering of
this data, the District will continue to work with the County Commissioner’s
Court, the High Island School District and the Bolivar Special Utility District
seeking the most cost effective and most efficient waste handling system or
systems for the High Island area.
Lake Madeline
Update - The Galveston City Council has requested a briefing on Lake
Madeline. The public briefing will occur during a workshop on April 13th
at the City of Galveston City Hall. The exact time of the briefing has
not been determined. Mr. Ronnie Schultz and Dr. Guidry will attend to discuss
Health District findings and plans for on-going assessments and possible
neighborhood health advisories as needed. |
| Office of Community
Health Programs
For more information please contact Susan Studebaker, RNC,
Director of Community Health Programs at
409.938.2456, email
sstudebaker@gchd.org
|
|
|
HIV Administrative Services:
Fannie Cotton, a 7-year employee of the district, was appointed HIV Services
Program Manager on February 28. Since that time, she has been provided
technical assistance by the DSHS Regional Office and has met with
representatives from all of the subcontracting agencies. She is preparing to
perform site audits in April to assure contract compliance.
The
Senior Health Advisory Council
met on March 13, 2006. The Council plans to play an active role in the Senior
Expo to be held at the Mall of the Mainland on May 4th. This event is expected
to draw approximately 1,200 participants. In addition, the advisory council is
supporting the Walk Across Texas activity among seniors in the county. Members
will assist senior citizen centers and other senior groups to promote
participation in this program which encourages physical activity.
Women, Infant's and Children Program (WIC): On March 1, 2006, WIC
celebrated National Nutrition Month: Stepping up to Better Health, was the
theme for this year’s celebration. Staff kicked off the celebration which
included adult and children's activities, food demonstrations using WIC foods,
and Iron testing. 3 guest speakers who provided their expertise on physical
fitness, the signs to look for in determining if your child is learning
and developing properly, and the USDA's recommendations for healthy eating.
Immunization Services staff
continued planning activities for National Infant Immunization Week, April 22-
29. The staff also hosted the last of 4 weekly EpiVac satellite conferences on
March 2. An average of 10 people attended each class in the series which is
offered as an annual update on immunizations. Immunization record reviews were
completed on 6 day care and 5 Head Start facilities as requested by DSHS and the
annual Immunization Interlocal Agreement application was written and submitted
in March. |
|
Office of Emergency Medical Services:
For more information, please contact Michael E. Carr, JD,
Director of Emergency Medical Services, Galveston Area Ambulance Authority
at 409-765-2512 or email mcarr@gchd.org |
|
|
Mainland Expansion Progress
– GAAA continues its ramp up for mainland transfer operations. In the last
month staff members have attended two job fairs in the community. To date, 5
new paramedics have been hired and 9 are in the process. Mainland Medical
Center service expansion -- GAAA is working with MMC in their efforts
to provide emergency cardiac catheterization of certain heart attack patients.
According to the plan, a Mobile Intensive Care Unit ambulance will be dispatched
to the hospital whenever an emergency catheterization is to be performed. The
crew will stand by and be prepared to transport the patient to Clear Lake
Regional Hospital for heart surgery, should the need arise. Exercises and
drills will begin in May to test the process.
Contact with Nursing Home Administrators
-- During late February and early March, the EMS Director met individually with
the Administrators for mainland nursing homes affected by the Medic One EMS
coordination program. Nursing home providers expressed concerns about increased
costs for transfers of patients under the new system. The nursing homes have
agreed to provide detailed information about the history of transports so that
appropriate fees for services can be developed. The nursing homes are also
concerned about evacuation of their residents in the event of a mandatory
evacuation being called by state officials. GAAA has committed to working with
the nursing homes to assure that all residents will be transported out of the
area in case of evacuation.
CQI Program Update
– In the last Program Business Meeting, GAAA staff completed the Continuous
Quality Improvement program for the 2006 calendar year. The program addresses
critical values in patient care and assesses the performance of staff. The new
program also includes a patient satisfaction survey form to be completed by
patients to elicit feedback on their experience in receiving treatment from EMS
crews. These forms will be offered to patients at the time of service, as well
as distributed to a sample of patients on a periodic basis. The staff also
reviewed the statistics for calendar year 2005. Highlights include 93% success
rate on intravenous access for patients and successfully meeting contractual
response time requirements for the year.
On the Job Injury Report
-- Staff members reviewed a preliminary report about on the job injuries among
GAAA employees. The number of incidents and the associated cost has risen
significantly in 2005. The HR Director will review the reports to assess total
costs involved with OJI’s and to detect any trends that may be contributing to
the increase.
Performance Based
Compensation Plan – District staff are continuing work on the
performance based compensation plan for GAAA field employees. The plan will
provide a structured method for employees to demonstrate competence at higher
levels of skill and then receive promotion/compensation for those
proficiencies. The plan is expected to be completed during April. |
| Emergency Preparedness:
For
additional information on any of these topics, contact Brian Rutherford, Public
Health Planner at (409) 938-2275 or email
brutherford@gchd.org |
|
|
Texas Pandemic Influenza Summit
- On March 27th, the Public Health Planner attended the Texas Pandemic Influenza
Summit in Austin. The summit was hosted by the Texas Department of State Health
Services. Speakers included Texas Governor Rick Perry, the US Secretary of the
Department of Health and Human Services, Michael Leavitt, and subject matter
experts from the CDC, USDA and the private sector. The focus of the summit was
to encourage planning among healthcare agencies, government offices, schools,
and businesses for an influenza pandemic.
Houston Galveston Area Council (HGAC)
- On March 1st
the Public Health Planner attended a meeting at the HGAC to discuss lessons
learned in the evacuation of hospitals. The meeting was held in coordination
with the Governor's Hurricane Evacuation Task Force to identify issues and make
recommendations as a result of Hurricane Rita. The meeting was attended by
hospital administrators, emergency managers, public health and others. Several
issues were discussed including the need for a system to track patients and the
need to prearrange evacuation plans with sister cities up north to receive
patients. On March 15th a similar meeting was held at HGAC to discuss issues
with the evacuation of nursing homes. The information will be used to develop
recommendations and plans for improvement for the region.
On
Saturday, March 4th, Public Health Preparedness staff participated in the
Galveston County Health Fair held at
the Academy Store on Galveston Island. Staff informed attendees about the
Medical Reserve Corps and provided information about personal preparedness for
hurricanes and other disasters.
On
March 8th, the Public Health Planner attended a meeting in Houston to discuss
the upcoming statewide hurricane exercise.
The exercise will take place on May 2 - 5 and involve a catastrophic hurricane
and a weapon of mass destruction. The exercise will focus on evacuation and
sheltering of evacuees. The Health District will participate in this exercise by
coordinating the health and medical response activities for Galveston County.
The
Galveston County Emergency Response
Collaborative met on March 9th. The group discussed needs related to
pandemic flu planning in Galveston County, the dates and objectives for the
upcoming hurricane exercise, and how to coordinate planning for the upcoming
deployment of Chempack. The Chempack program will stage chemical antidotes in
Galveston County so they will be available in the event of a terrorist attack
involving chemical agents. On
March 14th, the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) Coordinator participated in a
SNS exercise in Montgomery County.
The purpose of the exercise was to evaluate Montgomery County's ability to
distribute medications to a large population in a short time frame. The SNS
Coordinator worked with other coordinators in the region to evaluate the
exercise and take the lessons learned from this exercise to improve our own
planning for SNS.
On
March 21st the Public Health Planner attended a meeting at the
Houston Galveston Area Council (HGAC)
hosted by Texas Homeland Security Director, Steve McGraw, and Chief of the Texas
Division of Emergency Management, Jack Colley. The meeting was represented by
elected officials from all over Southeast Texas, emergency managers, public
health representatives and others. The purpose of the meeting was to outline
changes in disaster planning for Texas. Some of the changes at the state level
included: developing partnerships in emergency planning with the private sector
such as Wal-Mart and Home Depot, signing agreements with bus, ambulance
services, and rail road companies to provide assistance in evacuations, and
the adoption of a regional emergency planning system as outlined by the Governor
in his recent Executive Order. The
Health District and the Galveston County Office of Emergency Management teamed
up to host a meeting to discuss animal issues
in disaster planning on March 24th. The newly formed committee was
represented by City of Galveston, City of League City, Habitat for Horses, the
Galveston County Agricultural Extension Agent, the Galveston County Office of
Emergency Management, as well as Health District staff from Public Health
Preparedness, Environmental, and Epidemiology programs. The group discussed
issues that needed to be addressed in a plan including evacuation of animals,
disposal of dead animals, and maintaining contact lists of animal resources in
the county. The group will continue to meet in the coming days to develop a
county plan for animal issues |
|
Epidemiology Updates:for additional
information, contact Dana Beckham, DVM, at 409-938-2322 or email dbeckham@gchd.org |
|
|
Rabid Bat -
On March 13, 2006, a bat found on the ground in the City of Dickinson tested
positive for rabies. The rabies investigation revealed no human or animal
contact with bat. There have been 5 cases of rabies in animals (bats) in
Galveston county within the last 5 years (2001 three cases; 2005 one case; and
2006, one case).
Influenza Update
- There have been 39 Influenza A cases reported to the Health
District in Galveston County for the year 2006. Overall, flu activity level for
Texas is widespread and continues to decrease across the state.
In-Service/Health Fair - Heights Elementary Health Fair in Texas
City - The epidemiology staff participated in the Heights Elementary
Health Fair in Texas City on February 24th, 2006. The health fair theme was
"Prevention and Various Diseases". There were over 28 providers and 250
participants included teachers, parents, grandparents and other members of the
community. The epidemiology staff provided information on vaccine preventable
diseases and services GCHD offered (4C's clinics, WIC, Community Health Nursing,
and Immunizations).
Legionnaire’s
Disease In-service - On
March 14, 2006, an in-service on Legionnaire’s disease was provided to 14 crew
members of a tugboat docked at the Port of Galveston in Galveston waters. One
crew member was recently diagnosed with Legionnaire’s disease. Legionnaire’s
disease (legionellosis) is a condition caused by bacteria that is found
naturally in the environment, usually water. Symptoms can range from pneumonia,
cough, muscle aches, chills and fever. Each year, between 8,000 and 18,000
people are hospitalized with Legionnaires' disease in the U.S; Galveston County
has had 5 cases since 2001. Dickinson ISD In-service
- In-service for 10 Dickinson ISD nurses was provided on March 23,
2004. Training covered disease reporting, childhood immunizations and the role
of Health District Programs in academia.
San Jacinto
Elementary Health Fair in Galveston
- The epidemiology staff participated in the San Jacinto Elementary
Health Fair in Galveston on March 28th, 2006. Information on lead poisoning,
sources of lead, prevention methods, nutrition, and how lead affects children
was distributed to participants at the health fair. |
|
Operational Updates:
For more information, contact W. Jay Holland, III, Chief Operating Officer,
at (409) 938-2401 or email jholland@gchd.org or Kathy Barroso, Chief
Financial Officer, at (409) 938-2457 or email kbarroso@gchd.org. |
|
|
Local hospital funding for a case manager will expire March 31st. A letter was sent
by CFO to UTMB and MMC requesting continued funding of the position which is
shared proportionately between the two hospitals and the health district. Since
January 2005 through February 2006, the position has resulted in 1040 hospital
and ER patients being referred for a medical home and 502 appointments having
been made and kept in the 4 C's Clinic.
Medicaid Managed Care contract with
Molina HealthCare of Texas was
negotiated and signed. This contract has an effective date of September 1,
2006, and covers client services to Medicaid
and CHIP patients.
Medicaid Managed Care contract has been negotiated
with Texas Children’s Health Plan
and staff is working to complete the required paperwork/credentialing prior to
contract signing and start up. Once the documentation is complete, clients will
be assigned under both Medicaid and CHIP.
Negotiations with Community Health Choice,
the last Medicaid HMO awarded a contract by HHSC with whom the Clinics do not
have a contract, will begin soon.
On the Dental side, staff is working to complete the
paperwork/credentialing prior to contract signing and start up with
Delta Dental. This contract will
cover dental services to CHIP
clients. |
