From immunizations to
restaurant inspections, from early childhood health to emergency preparedness,
the programs at Jefferson County Public Health (JCPH) affect
our communities
each day.
That’s why we celebrated National Public Health Week from April 3-9, 2017. It’s a chance to
tell you about all the ways we can serve you and your family, and an
opportunity to make a difference.
The theme for 2017
National Public Health Week is “Healthiest Nation 2030,” and is based
around
The American Public Health Association’s (APHA) goal to cultivate
the healthiest nation in the world in just one generation. Jefferson County
Public Health is joining the APHA in this goal by advocating for
healthy and equitable policies, the power of prevention, successful community
partnerships and the importance of a strong public health system.
Each day this week,
JCPH we shared videos on Facebook, Twitterand YouTube channel to
highlight some of the programs and people that work to keep our communities
healthy and safe. We encourage all members of the community to celebrate
National Public Health Week by engaging with us on social media and sharing the
ways public health makes a difference in their lives using the hashtag #JCPH. Here's the link to our YouTube channel where you can find our videos: https://www.youtube.com/user/JCDHE Other
ways to get involved any time of year:
Join a
local public health coalition. The Healthy Jeffco Network is a partnership
of more than 400 community partners in seven coalitions who work to make the
county a healthier place to live, learn, work and play. The coalitions include:
Active Living, Food Policy, Jeffco Sips Smart, Health in Early Childhood,
School Wellness, Preventive Care & Behavioral Health Resources and Jeffco
Thrives. Visit Healthy Jeffco’s
website to learn more about how to get involved.
Attend a
screening for The Raising of America. The Raising of America is a
documentary that explores how a strong start for all children can lead to a
healthier, more equitable America. Healthy Jeffco’s Health in Early Childhood
Coalition will host a screening and community discussion about the film from
5-7 p.m. April 17, 2017 at the Golden Library. To RSVP or get more information,
go to roa-golden.eventbrite.com.
Get
yourself, your family and your pets immunized! From infancy to adulthood,
immunizations help prevent serious illness and even death. The Jefferson
County Public Health clinic at 645 Parfet Street in Lakewood offers
vaccines for the whole family. Remember to take care of furry family members,
too — important vaccines, such
as the rabies vaccine, are essential to maintaining health and
safety for Fido.
Join a
local prevention team. Tobacco is the leading preventable cause of death in
Colorado. You can help prevent youth tobacco use and support smoke-free
environments in your community by joining an action committee such as the
Smoke-Free Places Action Committee or the Citizens for a Healthier Lakewood
coalition. Learn more about these groups and more by visiting tobaccofreejeffco.com.
Test the
water and air around your home. Keeping your family as healthy as possible
starts at home. You can create healthier environments by testing your home for
radon gas, testing your well water for contaminants, and more. Learn more about
air and water quality at http://jeffco.us/public-health/healthy-environments/.
Follow Jefferson County Public Health on Facebook,
Twitter,
Instagram
and YouTube
to see behind-the-scenes videos of our programs and keep up with the latest in public
health. To learn more about National Public Health Week and ways you can get
involved in making a healthier America, go to http://www.nphw.org/.
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.
During the first full week
of April each year, the American Public Health Association (APHA) brings
together communities across the United States to observe National Public Health
Week as a time to recognize the contributions of public health and highlight
issues that are important to improving our nation. Did you know Americans are living 20 years longer than their
grandparents’ generation, thanks largely to the work of public health? Still,
people in many other high income countries live longer and suffer fewer health
issues than we do. This is the defining challenge of our generation – a
challenge that we, the public health community, are uniquely positioned to help
overcome. That’s why, National Public Health Week 2016,is rallying around a goal of making the U.S. the Healthiest Nation
in One Generation — by 2030. This week highlights the changes
that must be made within our health system to realize this goal. Changing our health means ensuring conditions that
give everyone the opportunity to be healthy.
Health must be a priority in designing our
communities, from healthy housing to parks and playgrounds. Walking and biking
must coexist with cars and public transportation. We need lower levels of
violence and crime so everyone can safely live, work, learn and play. Support
farmers markets and local businesses that value health, such as retailers that
don't sell tobacco.
Education is the leading indicator of good health, giving
people access to better jobs, incomes and neighborhoods. Call for policies that
start with early school success and lead to higher on-time high school
graduation rates. Be a champion for school-based health centers in your local
schools. Become a mentor — you can make a difference!
The science is clear: Poverty and poor health go hand-in-hand.
It’s time to fix our country’s growing income inequality and the unhealthy
stresses it puts on adults and children. Support policies that ensure a living
wage and remove barriers that make it harder to advance to higher incomes.
Everyone has the right to good health.
We must remove barriers so everyone has the same opportunity to improve their
lives and their health. Speak out against racism and an unequal criminal
justice system. Demand a fair allocation of community resources. Fight against
the trend of growing voter restrictions. Everyone needs a voice in improving
our communities.
Our food system should provide
affordable food with nutritious ingredients, free from harmful contaminants.
For many families, eating healthy is a daily challenge. Call for policies that
help eliminate food deserts and bring healthy food to all neighborhoods and
schools. Support measures like menu labeling that help people make healthier
choices. Start a community garden. Volunteer for a local food bank!
Our health
is connected to our environments. What happens upstream to our environments at
work, school and home affects our health downstream. Support policies that
protect the air we breathe indoors and outdoors and the clean water we drink as
well as those that help protect our health from natural and manmade weather
events and disasters.
Health
reform was just a start. To fulfill its potential, we must continue to pursue
options for expanded access to quality care at the federal, state and local
levels. But we also need to shift the main focus of our health system from one
that treats illness to one that equally emphasizes prevention.
Strong and consistent funding levels are necessary for the
public health system to respond to both everyday health threats and also
unexpected health emergencies. Support more funding for key public health
agencies like the CDC and HRSA. These agencies strengthen the public health
workforce and are a major source of funding for state and local programs.
Attend a
screening for The Raising of America. The Raising of America is a
documentary that explores how a strong start for all children can lead to a
healthier, more equitable America. Healthy Jeffco’s Health in Early Childhood
Coalition will host a screening and community discussion about the film from
5-7 p.m. April 17, 2017 at the Golden Library. To RSVP or get more information,
go to roa-golden.eventbrite.com.
