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Adopt and present a resolution recognizing April 4-10, 2022, as National Public Health Week in Solano County (Supervisor Hannigan)
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Published Notice Required? Yes _____ No __X__
Public Hearing Required? Yes _____ No __X__
DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION:
The Department of Health and Social Services (H&SS) recommends the Board of Supervisors adopt and present a resolution recognizing April 4-10, 2022, as National Public Health Week in Solano County.
SUMMARY:
For over 25 years, the first week of April has been designated as National Public Health Week (NPHW) by the American Public Health Association. NPHW brings together communities across the United States to recognize the contributions of public health and highlight issues that are important to improving the health of the nation. This year, the NPHW theme is “Public Health is Where You Are” and the goal is to work together to build healthier communities and, eventually, the “healthiest nation.” Health and Social Services (H&SS) will host virtual activities throughout the month of April to focus on the NPHW theme and the services provided by Solano Public Health.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The H&SS staff time associated with preparation of this agenda item and with these events is budgeted in the Department's FY2021/22 Adopted Budget. There is no impact to the County General Fund.
DISCUSSION:
Each year, the American Public Health Association (APHA) selects different public health issues around which to rally together and focus efforts to protect the nation's health. APHA’s goal is to continue its broad vision to make America the healthiest nation in one generation by building on the National Prevention Strategy to improve health and wellness. This year's theme, “Public Health is Where You Are,” encourages all residents to band together to strengthen and support the community. By working together, Solano can achieve health equity and make communities healthier, stronger, and safer.
According to the APHA, the U.S. spends more on health care than other comparable countries, with numerous studies indicating that people living in the U.S. live shorter lives and struggle with more health issues such as obesity, infant mortality, diabetes, and heart disease, among others. In the U.S. there are disparities in health by race and ethnic groups, county to county and state to state. The APHA believes this disparity to be the defining challenge of the nation-and one that the public health community is uniquely positioned to overcome.
In recognition of National Public Health Week and this year’s theme, Solano County Public Health will host virtual events throughout the month to showcase the work of its Public Health teams. These include:
Virtual Women Infants and Children (WIC) Parent Education Appointments and a New WIC Class
In April, the WIC Program will be featuring a new virtual class called “The Breakfast Buzz,” which will begin on April 11th. The purpose of this class is to teach families about the importance of eating a healthy breakfast and strategies to overcome barriers to eating breakfast. This class provides nutrition education along with a breakfast burrito recipe. The “build your own breakfast burrito” recipe emphasizes WIC authorized foods.
WIC Books for Kids Program
This year, the WIC Program is partnering with the Solano County Library to offer library cards and enrollment into the library’s 1,000 books before kindergarten program. They plan to serve over 2,500 children this year.
CalFresh Healthy Living Earth Day
On Friday, April 22, 2022, the CalFresh Healthy Living team will be supporting Armijo High School in Fairfield with their National Earth Day celebration. This event will be taking place at the school's community garden. The CalFresh team will be collaborating with multiple on-campus clubs and will be distributing materials and resources relevant to healthy living and how to take care of the environment.
Child Safety Seat Demonstrations
The Health Promotion and Community Wellness Bureau provides two virtual child passenger safety classes per month. In April, these events will be taking place on Tuesday, April 12th and on Tuesday, April 26th. These classes are free of charge and run from 10:00am to 11:30am. To register for one of the virtual classes, go to www.videsolano.com/classes/.
National Diabetes Prevention Program
The Health Promotion and Community Wellness Bureau, in collaboration with Touro University’s National Diabetes Prevention Program, is hosting a virtual Lifestyle Change Program on Thursday, April 22nd from 6:00pm-7:00pm. To register for the virtual class, go to www.vibesolano.com/classes/.
Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Heath (MCAH)
In celebration of National Public Health Week 2022, the MCAH home visiting programs including Healthy Families Solano, Black Infant Health, District Nursing, Nurse-Family Partnership, and Perinatal Mental Health will be celebrating the entire month of April through multiple activities. Home visiting programs will be launching new communications outreach strategies including new community billboards, bus advertisements, and social media posts to promote public health in-home programs. Home visiting programs help clients get connected to health insurance, establish a medical home, support child immunizations and well-child check-ups, conduct developmental screens, and connect with other community resources, including WIC, mental health, and other supportive services. Throughout the month of April, MCAH home visiting staff will be emphasizing the importance of routine childhood immunizations in response to decreases in immunization rates due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mobile Dental Clinic
Family Health Services' Mobile Dental Van will be deployed to various HeadStart locations around the county. In the month of April, the van will be deployed for a week to perform fluoridation treatments and dental screening for children at HeadStart locations.
Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Team
The EMS team has focused on providing COVID-19 vaccine and rapid antigen test kits to the residents of Solano County. This year, their team has provided 37,660 rapid antigen tests and administered 4,500 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in collaboration with community partners. In the month of April, they anticipate providing 3,000 rapid antigen test kits to community partners and to vaccinate 700 community members.
Long-Term Care Facility (LTCF) Team
Solano Public Health has made special efforts to assist the long-term care facilities (LTCF) in Solano County. These facilities house some of the most vulnerable residents of the Solano community. Community members who live in LTCFs are often vulnerable to severe COVID-19 illness due to their age and/or multiple underlying health issues. To protect these individuals from severe illness and death, Solano Public Health maintains a LTCF Outreach Team and provides training and technical assistance as well as education focused on COVID-19 infection control.
ALTERNATIVES:
The Board may choose not to adopt this resolution. This is not recommended because this is an opportunity to raise awareness of issues important to improving the public's health.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
H&SS partners with various community-based organizations to promote National Public Health Week, as well as with Human Resources and First 5 Solano Children & Families Commission.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
APPROVE DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION