By JAN McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
The COVID pandemic drilled in the need for planning – a premise already professed by public health. Practice may not create perfection … but it sure gets them closer to that goal.
Knowing that preparation takes money, the Wood County Health Department put together a detailed proposal for state funding for COVID Enhanced Operations.
On Thursday, Wood County Health Commissioner Ben Robison reported to the board of health that the health department is in line to get more than $8 million – more than any other health department in the state.
“We intend to make good use of this,” Robison said to the board. “So we can make a lasting impact.”
Some of the funding will pass through the health department to other county partners working on preparing for COVID or other infectious diseases.
In its three-plus years, the COVID pandemic killed at least 403 residents of Wood County. A total of 39,101 cases were reported, and 1,225 people were hospitalized in the county. At the height of the pandemic, Mercy Hospital reported 96% of people dying from COVID were unvaccinated.
At next month’s board of health meeting, an overview of the $8 million possibilities will be presented by Pat Snyder, who is in charge of health promotion and preparedness at the Wood County Health Department.
Robison said he wants the board to be aware of how the money can be used, and have a thorough discussion of how it can best be put to work for Wood County.
“We take seriously the responsibility to do this,” Robison said.
Among the possible uses of the funding are:
Supplies and equipment
- Water bottle fill stations, laptops, the mobile health center, UV disinfection systems for local hospitals and one for the health department to loan to places experiencing an outbreak, respiratory protection system for Wood County Hospital, and floor cleaning equipment for schools and similar public buildings.
- Filters and other air purifying supplies, cleaning and disinfection supplies and other infection prevention tools for county partners.
- Technology supplies for accessible communication and personal health monitoring supplies for members of the community with disabilities or language barriers.
- Supplies to support mobile, remote work.
- Touchless activation supplies.
- Educational booklets and bags for infectious disease education and management kits.
- Portable handwashing stations for use by environmental health staff while in the field.
- Books to update the Wood County District Public Library’s collection of books for all ages related to health and test preparation materials for medical professions, including in languages other than English when available.
- Hygiene kits with soap, deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste for infection control.
- Variety of supplies to equip the mobile health center.
Contracts
- Independent contractors to help with case notification, call center operation, project oversight, and other functions.
- Health education project to prevent infection and severe outcomes.
- Partners supporting infection prevention efforts with Latin and Hispanic populations – LaConexion and Welcome BG.
- Installation of water bottle filling stations throughout the county.
- Transportation of underserved, at risk individuals, who have symptoms of COVID-19 and are unable to obtain appropriate testing due to lack of transportation.
- Mobile unit medical provider and support staff.
- HVAC cleaning services to provide duct cleaning in facilities throughout the county.
- Community asset mapping to identify and document available resources in communities.
- Targeted health promotion campaign aimed at increasing vaccination rates among residents and employees in long-term care facilities.
- School-based health educator contractors to allow the health department to provide school-based health educators to provide instructions on how to reduce the risk of transmission of infectious diseases, including COVID.
The board will discuss these and other options for the funding.
Robison is a planner, with experience dealing with public health emergencies. Prior to taking the health commissioner job in Wood County, Robison served as emergency response unit supervisor with the Ohio Department of Health. Before that, he worked as Franklin County Public Health emergency preparedness supervisor.
Last year, funding was approved that can be used to purchase a mobile unit, for timely assessment and mitigation of infectious diseases.
“This is really exciting news,” Robison said of the possibility. “This is intended to provide transportation services throughout the county to support evaluation for symptoms that could be COVID.”
“This allows us to begin to get our arms around the breadth of emerging healthcare issues and offer treatment earlier in the course of the disease,” he added.
The service will allow the health department to get people connected to treatment earlier whether it is Paxlovid, Tamiflu or antibiotics, Robison said.
In October 2022, the Wood County Health Department was already preparing for the next infectious disease.
While COVID touched most lives, it was particularly brutal in settings where groups of people lived together – either by choice or by force. The numbers of those sickened or killed by COVID were exponentially higher in nursing homes and prisons than for the average population.
The health department was selected as a facilitator for approximately $2.5 million to be used to help congregate living sites prepare for pandemics like COVID-19. The funding was used for confinement facilities like jails and detention facilities, and congregate living facilities like shelters and long-term care settings.
“This will really benefit the residents of Wood County in these facilities for many years to come,” Robison said.
