A nutrition
assistance program in Colorado is working to increase the amount of fruits and
vegetables in children’s diets by teaching them more about gardening, according
to a news release from the Colorado Department of Public Health and
Environment.
The statewide
program, called “Cooking up Healthy Options with Plants, launched in March in
child care centers and homes supported by the Colorado Child and Adult Food Care Program, a health department program that
provides nutrition assistance and education to care programs serving low-income
Coloradans.
“The CHOP program provides
children experience in growing their own food,” said Tanya O’Connor, nutrition
consultant for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
“Gardening will help these children experience the wonder and bounty of nature
while developing healthy eating habits for a lifetime.”
The CHOP
program aims to teach children the behaviors that lead to a healthier
lifestyle. In Jefferson County, 92 percent of children consume less than the
recommended amount of fruits and vegetables each day. One of every three
Jefferson County adults consumes less than one serving of fruit each day.
To change
this, the CHOP program includes gardening to its nutrition curriculum and
encourages participating day care centers and homes to plant gardens.
Each year during National Public
Health Week, April 3-9, 2017, Jefferson County Public Health (JCPH) honors some
of the people who work to prevent illness and promote health in our
communities.
While they may not have made public health their profession, the
work they do, partnerships they provide and their enthusiasm for making health
a priority in Jefferson County makes them the 2016 Public Health Champions.
This year, all the honorees share a common trait: heroism. They are everyday
superheroes, like police and firefighters. They provide childcare for
low-income families, believe housing should be affordable and healthy and make
food safety a top priority. They are business owners that believe in providing
a Thanksgiving meal to those in need.
An award ceremony hosted by JCPH, the Jefferson County Board of Health and the
Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners was held for these heroes —
these champions — 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Thursday, March 30, 2017 in the Lookout
Mountain Room of the Jefferson County Courts and Administration site, 100
Jefferson County Parkway, Golden, CO 80419.
JCPH is pleased to announce the
following 2016 Public Health Champions:
Ensuring Safe and Healthy
Childcare for Homeless and Low-Income Families Susan Dunn — Director, Renaissance Children’s Center
Renaissance Children’s Center (RCC) in Lakewood is one of the few childcare
centers in Jefferson County that primarily serves low-income and homeless
families. Susan Dunn, director of RCC, is a Public Health Champion for her work
to create a safe, stable and healthy environment for children who may otherwise
not have one.
Research shows that chronic exposure to stressors like food and housing
insecurities can have a profoundly negative impact on a child’s overall growth
and development. Under Dunn’s leadership, RCC strives to buffer these troubles.
Dunn and her staff recognize that sound, appropriate nutrition and
opportunities for physical activity in early childhood are key factors in
determining lifelong health outcomes.
Staff and parents converted the grassy area in front of the center into a
community garden, which supplies produce for the children’s snack and lunch.
The children can take extra produce to share with family. The community-wide
“5210 Jeffco” posters — which recommend five fruits and vegetables daily, two
or fewer hours of screen time, at least one hour of physical activity and zero
sugary beverages— are hung at RCC to educate both parents and children.
The RCC staff also teaches life skills, manners and problem solving, as these
children are more susceptible to learning disabilities, mental illness and
other health issues. RCC works in partnership with public health organizations
throughout the metro area, including JCPH, Culture of Wellness in Preschools
and Go Farm.
Assuring the Safe Dispensing of
Medication in a Public Health Emergency and Increasing Access to Immunizations
for Children and Teens Arvada Fire Protection District’s EMS Chief Dave Mitchell, EMS Captain
Robert Putfark and Firefighter/Paramedic Andrew Higgins
Arvada Fire Protection District partnered with JCPH on two important projects
in 2016.
Emergency Medical Services Chief Dave Mitchell worked with the JCPH Emergency
Preparedness and Response (EPR) program to ensure the county is prepared to
address and provide medication dispensing in a disaster. Arvada Fire became a
dispensing partner and volunteered to test a new process by the EPR program. In
just six weeks, Arvada Fire met with JCPH EPR many times, found resources to
staff an internal dispensing site and offered to become a site for the
community to receive medications in an emergency. These plans were tested
during an exercise called Operation Bubble Blast. Without Arvada Fire, this
important emergency preparedness activity could not have happened.
In addition to becoming a partner in preparedness, the Fire Protection District
partnered with JCPH for a Shots for Tots and Teens program. Firefighter and
paramedic Andrew Higgins approached JCPH with the idea in late 2015.
Emergency Medical Services Captain Robert Putfark, along with Mitchell and
Higgins, engaged in more than six months of planning for the clinics. Along
with public health nurses, they provided immunization training to all
paramedics, several of whom were at each clinic. Arvada Fire also contributed
funds for equipment and prizes for children.
The firefighters’ and paramedics’ interactions with families were amazing to
watch. Anxious children going into the immunization area came out smiling. They
made getting immunized a fun and rewarding experience for children, all while
supporting their preventive health care. In four clinics held in 2016, nearly
80 clients received about 200 immunizations.
Throughout both projects, Arvada Fire and these Public Health Champions
demonstrated superb attitude, flexibility and community spirit. Learn more about Operation Bubble Blast here:
Reducing the Toll of Tobacco in
Our Communities through Smoke-Free Housing Policies Jefferson County Housing Authority’s Henry Wehrdt, Senior Asset
Manager, and Leslie Ross, Housing Program Specialist
On February 1, 2016, subsidized housing property Green Ridge Meadows became
smoke and vapor-free. On November 1, 2016, seven more Jefferson County Housing
Authority (JCHA) properties did the same. Henry Wehrdt, senior asset manager at
JCHA, and Leslie Ross, JCHA housing program specialist, are Public Health
Champions for their work to protect the more than 1,200 residents at these
properties from the dangers of secondhand smoke and aerosolized emissions from
vaporizing devices, like e-cigarettes.
Wehrdt and Ross worked closely with JCPH’s Tobacco Prevention Initiative to
design a resident-engaged process to transition properties to being smoke and
vapor-free. Their commitment to supporting all residents in having smoke-free
environments is matched by their compassion for the challenges these policies
create for people who have smoked for many years and for whom housing
insecurity is already a concern.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that prohibiting
smoking in subsidized housing can yield annual cost savings of nearly $500
million, with the greatest majority of the savings going toward reducing health
care expenses related to smoking and secondhand smoke exposure. This data has
helped many housing providers make their buildings and properties smoke-free,
many without much concern that residents who can’t or don’t comply will be
evicted.
This wasn’t the case with Wehrdt and Ross at the Jefferson County Housing
Authority. They are very familiar with the impact of homelessness, as they
serve some of our county’s poorest. They understand the conflicting dilemmas of
residents with limited mobility or serious mental illness who have smoked for
many years in their apartments, just as they understand the struggles of a
family with an asthmatic child or parent with chronic obstructive pulmonary
disease who suffers because of a neighbor’s smoking. Their primary goal was to
find a way to implement a smoke-free policy that supports the people who smoke,
helps protect everyone’s health and improves community cohesion and housing
stability — and make eviction a last resort.
Ross and Wehrdt recently attended a resident celebration event, where both
residents who do and don’t smoke spoke about the successes of the process and
identified opportunities for improvement. According to a post-policy survey,
more than 13 percent of the residents who smoke or vape (and took the survey)
have quit since the policy went into effect November 1.
Advocating for the Health and
Safety of People who Inject Drugs in the County Lakewood Police Department — Chief of Police Daniel McCasky, Commander
Pat Heffner, Commander Rob Buchan, Sergeant Marc DiRezza, Agent Aaron Lowe,
Division Chief Steve Rickels, Commander Randy McNitt and Commander Mike Maestas
In an effort to decrease HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C transmission and to
better address the needs of people who inject drugs, JCPH started the Points
West Syringe Access Program in February 2016.
The program allows people who
inject drugs to exchange used syringes for new, sterile ones, and provides new
injection equipment, low-cost HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C testing and
education, as well as referrals to other services and more.
The Lakewood Police Department’s Chief of Police Daniel McCasky, Commander Pat
Heffner, Commander Rob Buchan, Sergeant Marc DiRezza, Agent Aaron Lowe,
Division Chief Steve Rickels, Commander Randy McNitt and Commander Mike Maestas
are 2016 Public Health Champions for embracing this important cause from the
beginning and always being the first to volunteer to help.
Lakewood Police was the first Jefferson County law enforcement agency to carry
Points West cards to hand out to those in need of services and the first to
train officers on responding to a suspected opiod overdose and equip officers
with naloxone, a life-saving medication that can reverse an opiod overdose. In
late 2016, officers were able to reverse several overdoses in the field.
These champions also helped to create three educational videos — two for
officer training and one as a Public Service Annoucement for Points West. Chief
McCasky and officers helped design and star in the videos, which are now being
widely shared and used among law enforcement and public health agencies in the
metro area.
The Lakewood Police Department is a strong advocate for Points West and
continues to find ways to partner with JCPH in addressing the complex needs of
people who inject drugs and promoting public health.
Supporting Local Food Access and
Increasing Food Security GoFarm — award accepted by Eileen Regan, founder and CEO, Kim Massey,
program manager of GoFarm to Seniors, and Anna Schott, program manager of
GoFarm to Families
GoFarm is a 2016 Public Health Champion for its work to increase the supply of
healthy food available from local sources at an affordable price.
GoFarm, based in Golden, operates a Local Food Share program. The organization
provides assistance to beginning local farmers and connects them to a local
market of consumers. Community members can purchase local produce and egg
shares for weekly pick-up and know their food was grown locally and
sustainably.
The Local Food Share program supports GoFarm’s grant-funded outreach programs,
GoFarm to Families and GoFarm to Seniors, both implemented in 2016. GoFarm to
Families supports healthy eating for young children and their families through
education and by increasing access and affordability of fresh produce. During
the growing season, families at participating preschools can purchase low-cost
produce boxes filled with fresh, local fruits and vegetables. The boxes also
include family-friendly recipes and information about where the produce was
grown.
GoFarm to Seniors focuses on increasing access to healthy food by providing
one-on-one, mobile application assistance for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program) enrollment. GoFarm to Seniors also partners with community
organizations to increase SNAP eligibility awareness, and promotes healthy
eating through cooking demonstrations and food distribution events.
In 2016, GoFarm’s second year of operation, the Local Food Share program
supplied more than 150 shareholders local produce. More than 1,100 produce
boxes were sold to families at four Jefferson County preschools and more than
100 produce boxes were distributed and eight cooking demonstrations were
provided to the residents of two affordable senior housing complexes in Golden.
In addition, more than 80 Jeffco seniors were screened for SNAP eligibility in
2016.
GoFarm accepts SNAP benefits for all of its programs and is a Double Up Food
Bucks partner, meaning SNAP customers benefits go twice as far. GoFarm works
with community partners such as: Centura Health, Colorado School of Mines, Hunger
Free Golden, the Healthy Jeffco Food Policy Council, Health in Early Childhood
Collaborative, Jeffco Conservation District and, Jeffco CSU Extension Office.
Assuring Food Safety Casa Bonita’s General Manager Mike Mason, Assistant General Manager
Peer Osby and Store Manager Rob Hall
Casa Bonita has a dedicated staff of employees that are innovative,
conscientious and diligent in assuring they serve food that is safe for public
consumption. The managers have been there for many years and continually think
of new ways to promote safe food and solve issues that arise.
Management ensures that every two years, every employee in the establishment
takes the Online Food Safety Course from the Colorado Department of Public
Health and Environment website. This includes the food handlers, servers,
maintenance staff, office employees and management.
They have also developed an internal communication system using cell phones
that informs all of the employees of observed violations and an efficient
system for correcting the violation immediately. They have shared this system
with other restaurants so they can also be more compliant with the Colorado
Retail Food Service Regulation. This has led to collaboration with other
restaurants to problem solve food safety issues that arise on a day-to-day
basis.
Casa Bonita has been active in attending the JCPH Food Safety Forum for the
last five years to learn more about food safety and to share ideas with other
attendees. They also participated on the Advisory Committee that helped JCPH
launch the Jefferson County Excellence in Food Safety Course, which has has
been offered by JCPH’s Environmental Health Services for the last 23 years.
Casa Bonita is a progressive restaurant that is proud to promote food safety
and give guests the most pleasant experience possible. They care about their
staff and the public, and it shows in how well they perform on their food
safety inspections.
Providing Happiness and Thanksgiving for Jefferson County WIC Families White Fence Farm’s Volunteer, Liz Breuer, and Owners, Craig Caldwell and Tom Piercy Approximately
24 percent of households with children in Colorado struggle to afford enough
food for themselves and their families. White Fence Farm, a homestyle-cooking
family restaurant, farmhouse and entertainment facility, generously fed more
than 100 of the Jefferson County Women, Infants and Children (WIC) participants
for free on Thanksgiving Day in 2016.
Owners Craig Caldwell and Tom Piercy jumped on the opportunity to help families
in need when Liz Breuer, avolunteer, suggested the gift of a free Thanksgiving
meal for WIC participants. Liz knew that the WIC Program serves families who
sometimes struggle to have enough food in their homes, especially during the
holidays. She contacted JCPH’s WIC clinics and made it happen. WIC participants
were very grateful for White Fence Farm’s kindness and for the delicious meal
they received.
Jefferson County Public Health and the JCPH WIC (Women, Infants and Children) Program encourage everyone to “Put Your Best Fork Forward” for this year’s National Nutrition Month®.
“Put Your Best Fork Forward” acts as a reminder that each bite counts. Making just small shifts in our food choices, can add up over time. More specifically this year’s theme focuses on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits.
Making small changes during National Nutrition Month®, and over time, helps improve health now and into the future.
The National Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics suggests everyone try the following five ways to make eating healthier easier:
Create an eating style that includes a variety of your favorite, healthful foods.
Practice cooking more at home, and experiment with healthier ingredients.
How much we eat is as important as what we eat. Eat and drink the right amount for you, as MyPlate, a healthy eating tool from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, encourages us to do.
Find activities that you enjoy and be physically active most days of the week.
Manage your weight and lower your health risks by consulting a registered dietitian nutritionist. Registered Dietitian Nutritonists (RDNs) can provide sound, easy-to-follow personalized nutrition advice to meet your lifestyle, preferences and health-related needs.
Eating healthy also means paying close attention to what you and your family are drinking. Many parents and caregivers are not aware of the hidden sugar in many of the beverages that they give to their children. That’s why Jefferson County Public Health, in conjunction with the Healthy Beverage Partnership, is promoting a new campaign aimed at educating parents and caregivers about the harmful effects of sugar, and informing them of the high sugar content in many of the beverages they may be giving to their kids.
Parents are encouraged to visit www.hidden-sugar.org and take a pledge to reduce the amount of sugary drinks they provide to their children. Pledge to serve your family healthy beverages for 30 days and you’ll be automatically entered to win a family plus membership to the Denver Zoo, Children’s Museum, or the Museum of Nature and Science.
JCPH also has more about this topic on display in the Jefferson County libraries throughout the months of March and April, with educational handouts available.
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Day
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Day is celebrated March 8 and raises awareness of registered dietitian nutritionists as the indispensable providers of food and nutrition services. JCPH recognizes RDNs for their commitment to helping people enjoy healthy lives. Click here to download flyer and Meet the JCPH RDNs. You can also learn more about what they do for the JCPH WIC (Women, Infants and Children) Program by watching this video.
Visit http://jeffco.us/public-health for more information on Jefferson County Public Health and the WIC Program, one of the communituy nutrition resources JCPH offers.
The Jefferson County WIC Program is an active member of Healthy Jeffco, a network of over 300 community partners working collectively to make Jefferson County a healthier place to live, learn, work and play.
In 2015, Colorado ranked 14th among U.S. states for childhood immunizations,
with over 24 percent of children under-immunized at 36 months of age and 472
Colorado children hospitalized with vaccine-preventable diseases, resulting in
$35 million in hospital and emergency department charges.
That’s according to
an independent report released today by the Colorado Children’s Immunization
Coalition (CCIC) and Children’s Hospital Colorado (Children’s Colorado). The
report, Vaccine-Preventable Diseases in Colorado’s Children, also finds that in
17 Colorado counties less than 50 percent of children are up to date on routine
immunizations – well below the coverage level necessary to prevent the spread
of vaccine-preventable diseases.
Prepared annually by pediatricians and researchers from the
Department of Epidemiology at Children’s Colorado, the report provides an
analysis of the state of health of Colorado’s children based on the most recent
National Immunization Survey, Colorado Hospital Association inpatient and
emergency department data and Colorado Department of Public Health and
Environment data.
The report examines vaccination rates, hospitalizations and
costs associated with vaccine-preventable disease in children. For the first
time, the report also includes emergency department visits for
vaccine-preventable diseases, county-level rates and school exemption data.
Findings show that, despite improvement, there are significant gaps in
vaccinating Colorado’s children.
Local health departments in the Denver Metro area work to
increase vaccination rates in our communities as an important and life-saving
public health practice. Colorado’s current rate of children immunized with
all of the recommended vaccines remains well below the majority of U.S. states
and the national goal of 90 percent, with under-vaccination resulting in
preventable childhood illness, hospitalization and death.
Jefferson County Public Health is part of the Denver Metro
Alliance for HPV Prevention, a regional collaborative working to increase human
papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates across five counties in the Denver
metropolitan area. Other members include Denver Public Health, Tri-County
Health Department, the Colorado Children’s Immunization Coalition and the Adult
and Child Consortium for Health Outcomes Research and Delivery Science. The
project is funded by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s
Amendment 35 grant program to address cancer, childhood obesity, and tobacco
use and exposure in and around the Denver Metro area. For more information,
please visit HPVFreeCO.org.
Get your child vaccinated!
Jefferson County Public Health will offer low cost immunizations
to the children in the community at the Shots for Tots and Teens clinic on
Saturday, March 4, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at Arvada Fire Station #2, 5250 Oak
Street.
Orlando Lucero, 7, watches as Mountain View Fire Rescue fire-medic Micah Arnold applies a bandage to
the site of his vaccine at the Shots for Tots and Teens clinic Feb. 4, 2017 in Arvada.
The Colorado Health Foundation, in partnership with the Colorado Health Institute, released its 2016 Colorado Health Report Card on February 17, 2016. The report marks 10 years of ranking Colorado against other states based on 38 health indicators across five life stages, revealing data trends that showcase Colorado’s progress and struggles in health over a decade. View the infographic. In addition to sharing 10-year trends for some of Colorado’s most pressing health issues, this year’s Health Report Card features the latest annual rankings across five life stages and “deep dive” workbooks focused on specific health indicators.
Over the past decade, Colorado’s Report Card rankings have faltered on the following health issues:
Healthy Beginnings: The percentage of children between 19 and 35 months who received all their recommended immunizations dropped from 80.3 in 2007 to 74.3 in 2016.
Healthy Children: The number of children living in poverty is on the rise, from 14.4 percent in 2007 to 20.1 percent in 2016.
Healthy Adolescents: The percentage of teens living in poverty has increased from 10.3 percent in 2007 to 17.7 percent in 2016.
Healthy Adults: Adults experiencing poor mental health increased from 11.8 in 2007 to 13.7 in 2016.
Healthy Aging: Colorado struggles to improve immunization for seniors, with a decrease from 62.2 percent in 2007 to 52.8 percent in 2016.
While these are concerning trends, there is progress to note from the past 10 years. Both babies and children earned their highest grades in this latest 2016 Health Report Card. The Healthy Beginnings category climbed from a C to a C+, mostly because Colorado moms-to-be reached sixth place nationally for timely prenatal care, jumping 12 places. And Healthy Children also took home a C+, with higher health insurance coverage driving their rise from a C.
The CHOP
program aims to teach children the behaviors that lead to a healthier
lifestyle. In Jefferson County, 92 percent of children consume less than the
recommended amount of fruits and vegetables each day. One of every three
Jefferson County adults consumes less than one serving of fruit each day.
