LATE SUMMER NEWSLETTER Laurel County Health Department Volume 3, Issue 4 August, 2017

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1 LATE SUMMER NEWSLETTER Laurel County Health Department Volume 3, Issue 4 August, 2017 Employee of the Year This year continued a tradition that began last year, as Brandi Gilley was awarded 2017 Employee of the Year. Brandi was awarded the title at our Staff Appreciation Training Day on June 30th. Brandi was chosen by her peers at LCHD for her kindness, work ethic, and commitment to always lend a helping hand. Brandi started at LCHD in August of 2003 as a health educator, then in 2012 she became the Accreditation Coordinator. In addition to working as Accreditation Coordinator, Brandi is also the Director of Nutrition Services. Brandi wears many different hats at the Health Department, she is best known for her positive attitude and willingness to help others. In her interview with the Sentinel Echo, she mentioned how Photo: Courtesy of the Sentinel Echo honored & humbled she was to receive the award. In response to comments from LCHD coworkers that she was always willing to assist others, Brandi told the Sentinel Echo that really meant something to me because I ve always said that I wanted to be remembered when I left here as always being willing to help. Congratulations, Brandi! In This Issue Employee of the Year 2017 Staff Appreciation Training Day WIC Farmer s Market Program Accreditation Site Visit Kentucky Department for Public Health Amended Immunization Regulation Physical Activity and Diabetes Solar Eclipse Viewing Safety Employee Spotlight Laurel County Health Department 525 Whitley Street London, KY (606) Page 1

2 2017 Staff Appreciation Training Day Friday, June 30th LCHD held our annual staff appreciation training day at Levi Jackson State Park. During the training day Brandi Gilley received the employee of the year award, and many employees received years of service pins It was a beautiful day and a great opportunity for all of the different disciplines to come together, participate in activities and share ideas. We would like to thank our director and all those involved in planning this day for going above and beyond to help our staff feel appreciated and making LCHD a great place to work! Page 2

3 Laurel County Health Dept. Hours of Operation Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Environmental Hours Monday-Friday 8:00am-9:30am Plumbing Inspector Hours Mon-Wed-Fri 8:00am-9:30am Late Clinic Availability The Laurel County Health Department provides a late clinic one evening per month during the months of April through October for limited services. The clinic remains open until 6pm during this time. For more information on when late clinics occur, contact the health department at: WIC Farmers Market July 1st Laurel County Health Department kicked off its Laurel County WIC Farmer s Market Program, which provides WIC vouchers that can be redeemed at the Laurel County Farmer s Market. For this program LCHD partnered with the UK Cooperative Extension Office, Laurel County Farmer s Market and St. Joseph London. Vouchers were given out at the event on a first come first serve basis. With eligible participants receiving $20.00 in five $4.00 vouchers. At the event we were able to distribute vouchers to 23 eligible participants! In addition to the distribution of vouchers Laurel County Health Department provided educational games and activities designed to teach children about healthy eating. St. Joseph London and the UK Cooperative Extension office also provided activities, samples and distributed educational materials. Thanks to contributions from many local businesses we were able to provide raffle prizes to children, giving away 10 bikes, 4 mini golf passes, 4 swimming pool passes, and collectively 10 movie passes to London & Corbin theaters. Page 3

4 Accreditation Site Visit On July Laurel County Health Department had its Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) Accreditation Site Visit. Laurel County Health Department s accreditation process began in February Our site visit marked the final step in our work to become an accredited health department. For our site visit we welcomed three PHAB Site Reviewers, all of whom traveled from different states, as well as a PHAB accreditation specialist who served as a technical consultant during the visit. During the site visit the Site Reviewers toured our facility, interviewed staff members and met with our community partners and Board of Health members. The next step will involve the submission of a report from the Site Reviewers to the PHAB Accreditation Board, who will make the final decision to either accredit our health department or provide an action plan consisting of additional steps to take in order to receive accreditation. Kentucky Department for Public Health Amended Immunization Regulation As of June 21, 2017 new regulations regarding immunization schedules for attending child day care centers, certified family child care homes, other licensed facilities which care for children, preschool programs, and public and private primary and secondary schools have been implemented. Some of these changes include: Good Luck Rita! The LCHD had to say goodbye to Rita Hatcher in July Rita worked at Laurel County Health Department as a WIC Field Representative. Rita worked for the Department for Public Health for over 27 years. Mark Hensley, Laurel County Health Dept. Public Health Director said We ve had the privilege of hosting Rita at our health department over the last 5 years. Rita was always willing to help anytime there was a question about WIC. Enjoy your retirement, we re all going to miss you Rita! 2-Dose Series of HepA (Age 12 months through 18 years) Quadrivalent meningococcal vaccine (MenACWY) booster dose (Age: 16 years) For more information about these changes visit Don t Be Late, Be Sure Your Child is Up to Date! Source: Kentucky Dept. for Public Health Page 4

5 Solar Eclipse Viewing Safety A total solar eclipse will be visible on August 21, This amazing event lasts only about 2 minutes and is safe to watch, but the partial eclipse that happens before and after can permanently damage your vision. Use proper eye protection for safe viewing! Looking directly at the sun without the correct eye protection, even for a short time, can cause permanent damage to your retinas, a light-sensitive part of the eye that transmits what you see to your brain The only way to look directly at the sun when it s not eclipsed or is only partly eclipsed is with a special solar filter, such as eclipse glasses or a handheld solar viewer. Goggles, homemade filters, or sunglasses, even very dark ones, will not protect your eyes. Also, always avoid looking at the sun through an unfiltered camera, smartphone, telescope, or any other optical device. You ll need to add a certified solar filter to these devices to safely look at the sun. Eclipse glasses and handheld solar viewers are inexpensive and can be purchased from many retailers. However, not all meet the required ISO international safety standards; make sure yours do. Even if your eclipse glasses meet the safety standards, don t use them if the lenses are: scratched, wrinkled, or older than 3 years. Image Source: CDC Source: CDC Physical Activity and Diabetes Sometimes it s a complete surprise that a person with diabetes will have a low blood sugar after going grocery or department store shopping. Many of these adventures include lots of increased walking that varies from the daily routine. And it s the increase in activity that can make a difference. The benefits of physical activity is that it can act like a medicine to help lower your blood sugar and help manage diabetes. The effects of physical activity can last up to hours after exercising. There is a long list of benefits of exercise such as improving heart health, circulation, improving blood pressure, burning excess calories, increasing flexibility, improving your mood, feeling of wellbeing and more. The Laurel County Health Department has formed a diabetes support group called the Sweet Life. The group met on August 15, 2017 and we partnered with St. Joseph Hospital, Rita Taylor, RN, to provide education on the benefits of physical activity. Participants received an emergency kit that they can have available to treat a low blood sugar if necessary. It is recommended that if you have a blood sugar lower than 70 mg/dl that you treat with 15 grams of simple sugars such as four ounces of fruit juice, regular soda, or glucose gel tablets. Wait 15 minutes and check the blood sugar again. If the blood sugar is still low it is recommended to treat with 15 grams of simple sugars again. If you are interested in joining others in the effort to improve your health, learn more about how to self-manage your diabetes, be encouraged, and enjoy great fellowship check out the calendar of events on laurelcohealthdept.org under the Health Education tab. The next Sweet Life meeting will be held at the Laurel County Health Department on September 19 th, 1:30-2:30. St. Joseph London Hospital will also be participating and will offer free screenings. If you want more information, please call the health department at Page 5

6 Employee Spotlight Kassidy Carpenter Kassidy Carpenter began working at the Laurel County Health Department August 1st of Kassidy works in HANDS as a family support worker. When asked what the best thing about her job is, Kassidy said it was the families. She said the most difficult part of her job was getting paperwork done in a timely manner because things are always changing. In her spare time Kassidy enjoys shopping and spending time with her puppy Gunner as well as hiking. In addition to working at LCHD Kassidy is working on her Master s of Social Work at Campbellsville University. Kassidy, thank you for everything you do! We are so glad to have you at LCHD! Contact Us Give us a call for more information about our services and programs Laurel County Health Dept. 525 Whitley Street London, KY (606) info@laurelcohealthdept.org Visit us on the web at laurelcohealthdept.org Upcoming Events August 15, 2017 Diabetes Support Group Meeting, Location: LCHD Classroom 1:30-2:30pm September 19, 2017 Diabetes Support Group Meeting, Location: LCHD Classroom 1:30-2:30pm Closings September 4, 2017 LCHD will be closed for Labor Day! September 22, 2017 LCHD will be closed for the World Chicken Festival! Page 6