HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020/01/28 - Board of Health MASON COUNTY
COMMUNITY SERVICES
Building,Planning,Environmental Health,Community Health
MASON COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH
REGULAR MEETING
Jan. 28, 2020
3:00 PM
Commission Chambers
411 North Fifth Street
Shelton, WA 98584
DRAFT AGENDA
1. Welcome and Introductions Scott Hilburn Chair
2. Approval of Agenda—ACTION Board Members
3. Resolution: Set Meeting Dates -ACTION Board Members
4. Elect Officer Positions-ACTION Board Members
5. Approval of Minutes of November, 2019—ACTION Board Members
6. Health Officer Report Dr. Dan Stein
7. Administration Report Dave Windom
8. Environmental Health Report Alex Paysee
9. Community Health Report Lydia Buchheit
10. Other Business and Board Discussion Board Members
(opioid update)
11. Public Comments
12. Adjourn
If special accommodations are needed,please contact Melissa Drewry,427-9670,Ext.589. From the Belfair area,please dial
275-4467,Ext.589;from the Elma area please dial 482-5269,Ext.589.
Mason County Public Health
415 N 6th Street, Bldg 8,Shelton WA 98584,
Shelton: (360)427-9670 ext 400 Belfair:(360)275-4467 ext 400 ❖ Elma: (360)482-5269 ext 400
FAX (360)427-7787
Resolution No.
A Resolution setting the 2020 meeting dates for the Mason County Board of
Health
WHEREAS, The Department of Community Services supports the administrative
requirements of the Mason County Board of Health and provides public notice; and,
WHEREAS,The Board of Health meets regularly to address the public health
needs of Mason County;
NOW,THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Mason County Board of Health
that the meetings for 2020 will be held at 3:00 p.m. on the following dates:
January 21
March 24
May 26
July 28
September 22
November 17
Adopted this 28th day of January 2020
MASON COUNTY,WASHINGTON
ATTEST BOARD OF HEALTH
MASON COUNTY,WASHINGTON
Scott Hilburn,Hospital District#1
Melissa Drewry,Clerk of the Board
Kathy McDowell,City Commissioner
Kevin Shutty,Commissioner
Randy Neatherlin,Commissioner
Sharon Trask,Commissioner
Peggy Van Buskirk,Hospital District#2
Gary Plews,Fire Commissioner
Keri Davidson,Shelton School Board
MASON COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH PROCEEDINGS
411 North Vh Street,Shelton,WA
November 26,2019
Attendance: Randy Neatherlin,County Commissioner;Kevin Shutty,County Commissioner;Sharon Trask.
County Commissioner;Peggy VanBuskirk,Hospital District#2;Gary Plews,Fire Commissioner
Absent: Scott Hilburn,Hospital District#l;Kathy McDowell,City of Shelton Council Member,Keri Davidson,
Shelton School Board Member
1. Vice-Chair Peggy VanBuskirk called the meeting to order at 10:03 a.m.
2. Approval of Agenda—Gary Plews/Cmmr.Neatherlin moved and seconded to approve the agenda as
presented.
3. Approval of Minutes—Cmmr.Trask/Gary moved and seconded to approve the September 24,2019
minutes as written.
4. Health Officer Report—Dr.Stein was not present,so Dave handed out an email from him outlining his
current projects.Dave briefed the email and said he's been extremely busy with these projects,as well as
his normal duties within the Health Department.
5. Administration Report—Dave spoke about the Washington State Association of Local Public Health
Officials(WSALPHO)conference.He discussed state funding noting that the state did not hand out almost
$2 million as promised to public health.
6. Community Health Report—Lydia was not present,and no questions were asked about the report.
7. Environmental Health Report—Alex was also not present.Dave mentioned there was another new hire,
and Alex has been working with that person to get them trained.
8. Vaping Ordinance Update—Allison Smallwood said that they are working to have vaping banned on
county property,and announced that there will be a public hearing December 10,2019 at 9:15 a.m. in the
Commission Chambers.A discussion was had about the long-term effects of vaping.
Dave reminded the board that Tobacco 21 will begin January 1,2020 meaning tobacco cannot be sold to
those under the age of 21.
9. 2020 Budget—Dave began by noting the budget will now be cut more than anticipated due to the vape ban
which was projected to bring in millions via taxes.He discussed expected funding around various counties
in Western Washington.
Dave said staffing seems to be set unless Thurston County needs staff.He stated that Thurston County
usually steals our staff.Gary questioned the pay difference between Mason and Thurston Counties to which
Dave explained it's quite a bit higher.
10. Other Business and Board Discussion—Cmmr. Shutty announced an upcoming meeting with the EPA
and said he would bring back information to review after the meeting.
Cmmr.Shutty talked about a meeting with WSU Medial School which has a mobile outreach to small
counties.He said he and Dave are going to see if this service would be available to more rural areas in
Mason County.
11. Public Comments—Tom Davis spoke about how the jail administers opioids to inmates and the effects
opioids have.
12. Adjourn—Cmmr.Shutty/Gary moved and seconded to adjourn.Meeting adjourned at 10:36 a.m.
BOARD OF HEALTH PROCEEDINGS
November 26,2019-PAGE 2
ATTEST MASON COUNTY,WASHINGTON
BOARD OF HEALTH
MASON COUNTY,WASHINGTON
Melissa Drewry,Clerk of the Board
Scott Hilburn,Hospital District#I
Kathy McDowell,City Commissioner
Kevin Shutty,Commissioner
Randy Neatherlin,Commissioner
Sharon Trask,Commissioner
Peggy Van Buskirk,Hospital District#2
Gary Plews,Fire Commissioner
Keri Davidson,Shelton School Board
From the Director Is Desk
January 2020 7 i
It's not too late, get your flu shots!
The gavel has fallen, and the legislative session is underway. As a recap from last season, the
legislature passed the Foundational Public Health Bill and appropriated funds of$22 million.
The funding hinged largely on revenues from vapor product taxes. Almost immediately,
revenues came short and only $18.3 million was funded. With the new regulations on vaping,
the revenue is being further eroded resulting in an approximate $10 million shortfall. The
Governor's budget proposal funds the shortfall, but the legislature isn't bound by that proposal.
What does this mean for Mason County? We could see $46,000 or as much as $100,000
annually. This funding is flexible as long as it's applied to foundational programs. DOH has
agreed to front three months' worth of funding out to the LHJ's as a stop gap measure which is
greatly appreciated.
The Washington State Public Health Association will be holding our annual legislative day on
February 5th. This is an excellent opportunity to reach out to our legislators. My intent is to
thank our delegation for the hard work on last year's bill and to really listen to their concerns
which I can bring back to our BOH. We'll then work these into the workplan for the coming
year. We know that substance abuse, homelessness, and mental health will probably be the
major topics and we're already addressing these issues. We could see movement on vaccines,
vaping, onsite septic, and tobacco as well.
As the legislature moves forward in this short session, I will keep the BOH informed of those
issues that might impact public health in Mason County. Being this close to Olympia is an
advantage for us to speak out when needed.
2019 proved to be a good year though tough as well. We had some turnover within the
environmental health staff, but we've also gained some top-notch new people. 2020 looks to
be a good year for us. We'll be replacing our aging vehicle fleet with newer, safer vehicles. The
local health coalition is gaining momentum. We're applying for funding that would help divert
people with mental health issues from the criminal justice system into treatment. Good things
are happening.
have been accepted as a board member for Peninsula Community Health Services. This should
be a great way of staying connected in health care delivery for a primarily Medicaid population.
Because PCHS and Mason County Public Health can often be in either a competitive or
contractor relationship with grants, we've put in place a very thorough conflict of interest
agreement.
FTE's stand at 20.5
2019 EH Report: For Board of Health January 28th,2020—by Alex Paysse
In review,2019 saw some big changes for Environmental Health. Across all EH programs,a staff of 6 completed
1400+inspections,reviewed 2003+permits, issued 403 licenses,responded to 232+complaints and 24 vector cases,
surveyed 38 public water systems,walked over 10 miles of shoreline, collected 136 freshwater samples,collected 26
shellfish samples,hosted 12+public meetings,held 5 workshops, and sent out over 74,000 educational mailings. I
estimate over 3,000 calls and inquiries are also answered by clerical and EH staff throughout a year. In addition,EH
staff attended over 20 workshops,conferences,and trainings to stay educated and informed for MC residents. Below
is a year-end review of the larger programs EH staff provides for public health.
Water Quality Program: Hood Canal PIC work wrapped up Phase 3 in March of 2019. Phase 3 included sampling
and investigation in several Hood Canal regions,primarily Big Bend SPD and Hoodsport. No PIC activity in HC
occurred after March due to lack of funding. Contract for Phase 4 funding is expected in January 2020. Phase 4
funding will be dedicated mostly towards Annas Bay SPD. Staff will be working closely with the Skokomish tribe on
this project. In April,MCPH finalized its contract with Pierce County for PIC work in North Bay and other South
Sound SPD's. Due to the amount of funding and time period of this project,PIC efforts were focused in North
Bay/Allyn. Katie Otanez completed dry season sampling with 10 confirmed hot spots and multiple shoreline surveys.
Katie resigned from MC in October when she made the decision to relocate to Yakima. Ian Tracy was hired in
November to continue the North Bay/South Sound work. So far 36 sample have been taken in the wet season and Ian
is working on hot spot investigation and correction.
Water Quality work remains difficult to staff and implement based entirely off state and federal grants. Grants are
project based typically after contamination has already occurred and funding opportunities vary. Despite these
challenges,Mason County's marine shorelines saw several upgrades this year as a couple grant funded PIC projects
wrapped up and various pollution sources were corrected.
• Oakland Bay, 172 acres (Conditionally Approved to Approved)
• Hood Canal 6, 17 acres(Conditionally Approved to Approved)
• Hammersley Inlet, 44 acres(Conditionally Approved to Approved)
• Several parcel closures were also reopened in both Hammersley and HC 6.
Onsite Sewage Program: In January MCCS changed permitting systems to SmartGov,an online based permit
tracking system. We once again experienced an increase in OSS permits,which makes 2019 an 11-year high for the
program. As construction activities in MC increase,On-site Sewage Systems follow suite. There are over 26,300
systems in Mason County. In 2019,management worked with BOH to re-establish the Onsite Sewage Advisory
Committee(OSAC)per MCC 6.76. Working with OSAC, staff and management worked on several program
improvements this past year. Such as,changing the Operation and Maintenance(O/M)tracking system from Carmody
Inc.to OnlineRME. Sewage system reports now have a uniform set of questions for each system component,which
sets standards and guidelines for inspectors. These new reports will bring more information to system owners, so they
know how each component is functioning. Providing more detailed reports can increase the publics knowledge of their
components so they can make timely decisions on repairs. The more informative reports also help staff in helping
homeowners with system questions. Homeowners will also have easy access to their system overview and history
through the OnlineRME public portal.
Drinking Water Program: Well construction permits saw a slight decrease from 2018,which does not align with
other construction related permits. Wells are required to be constructed prior to approval of a building permit, so it
may be just the timing of when people were permitting wells compared to their homes. In addition,there were
tensions in 2018 on effects of the Hirst decision which involved exempt wells and instream flows. More property
owners might have felt compelled to permit wells prior to legislature addressing the supreme court ruling. As of
December,well construction and decommission permits are available for online(paperless)submittal. Applicants can
submit the permit online,staff will inspect with use of tablets,then email out results. MC contracts with DOH for
sanitary surveys of smaller Group A water systems. In 2019, staff had a higher number of water systems to survey but
were able to complete them within the required timeframes.
Food Safety Program: Food program 2019 numbers are right on point with past years. This program remains
consistent year to year on permitting and establishment inspections. In October,Cody Lund resigned from Mason
County. Kayla Hamme joined the county in September and was able to train with Cody and DOH staff. In November,
Luke Cencula attended a temporary establishment inspection course in Florida by FDA so he can continue to assist and
bring depth to our inspection capabilities. Food worker training and testing is available online and in several
languages. We also have a food program facebook page that posts program updates and recall information. The Food
rule(WAC246-215)is currently undergoing updates with SBOH. The new rule is expected to be rolled out in fall of
2020. County staff expects an increase in workloads implementing changes proposed and educating our local
establishments.
Solid Waste Program: Staff wrapped up the education grant from Ecology in June. This project included multiple
mailings and handouts educating residents on proper solid waste handling and recycling. Handouts were also printed
in Spanish,to assist Spanish speaking residents in compliance with MC code. In August,Wendy Mathews was hired
to the Solid Waste program,as Luke Cencula moved into the Onsite program. Towards the end of the year, staff and
management have been working with MC Utilities on a voucher program that could help with solid waste enforcement
sites. These vouchers for up to 1,000 lbs of solid waste disposal could turn up to be a great resource for residents and
resolving neighborhood nuisances.
Other EH Programs: 24 vector activities were tracked in 2019. 5 specimens were collected and tested for rabies,all
with negative results. Mussels from Jerrell's Cove were collected 26 times and tested for biotoxins. Mason County
had no confirmed biotoxin cases for 2019. 13 inspections were completed on public pools and spas throughout the
county.
Review of EH Permits 2018 2019 % Change
Onsite Sewage
New Construction/ Upgrades 303 343 11.7%
Repairs/ Replacements 160 165 3.0%
Total Applications 463 510 9.2%
_
Drinking Water
Group A Sanitary Surveys 30 39 23.1%
Group B System Permits 2 5 60.0%
Private 2-party Systems 38 26 -46.2%
Well Construction/Decommission 162 148 -9.5%
Food Safety
Food Establishments Permitted 374 364 -2.7%
Routine Inspections 330 314 -5.1%
Temporary Event Inspections 123 123 0.0%
Food Worker Cards 3030 2898 -4.6%
Water Safety
Pools Permitted 15 15 0.0%
Spas Permitted 4 4 0.0%
Total Inspections 17 13 -30.8%
Solid Waste
Facility Permits 6 6 0.0%
Facility Inspections 6 6 0.0%
Environmental Health Complaints
Food 38 19 -100.0%
Sewage 68 52 -30.8%
Solid Waste 102 63 -61.9%
Other 12 98 87.8%
Total 220 232 5.2%
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November-December 2019
Communicable Disease & Notifiable Conditions (3 programs-CD,TB, STD) Staff:Audrey O'Connor,
Back up: Elizabeth Custis&Lydia Buchheit
November and December our communicable disease(CD) program nurse received 66 reports requiring data entry
into the State database, and/or investigation and follow-up. * Reporting of Chronic Hepatitis cases began to be
handled directly by the State Department of Health in 2019.
Disease Nov-Dec Total to date
Campylobacteriosis 2 30
ryptosporidiosis 0 2
Giardiasis 0 4
Shiga Toxin 2 1 4
Hepatitis A-Acute 0 1
Hepatitis B-Chronic 0 0
Hepatitis B-Perinatal 0 2
Hepatitis C-Chronic
Hepatitis C-Acute 0 1
Lyme 0 0
Pertussis 0 1
Salmonellosis 2 8
Suspected rabies-PEP 0 1
recommended
R/O measles 0 6
R/O mumps 0 5
Coccidiodmycosis 1 2
Lead Exposure 0 1
1
Influenza related deaths 0 3
aping Associated Lung Injury 0 1
Tuberculosis-Active/open cases 0 0
Vibriosis(non-cholera) 0 3
Yersiniosis 0 0
Chlamydia 42 242
Gonorrhea 15 60
Syphilis 0 5
Trichomoniasis 1 2
Herpes 2 7
HIV 0 0
Totals 66 391
Maternal Child Health Staff: Elizabeth Custis
Maternal Child Health Parenting Program
As part of the DBHR prevention grant and DCYF(CPS) contract, Elizabeth Custis is providing the
Incredible Years evidenced-based parenting home visiting program to families across Mason County.
Classroom education will begin shortly and will be available to referred CPS clients and anyone in the
community.This is new programing to Mason County in response to the high abuse and neglect referral
rate in our community.
ABCD Dental Program
Elizabeth continues to provide outreach to families and agencies across Mason County regarding the
importance of regular dental visits starting by age 1. In December, we helped to promote the Smile
Mobile that was located at a Shelton Elementary School to see uninsured or families that need
evaluations and care.
Breastfeeding Coalition of Mason County
Our Public Health Nurse continues to facilitate the group of Mason County providers that are
collaborating to provide support for breastfeeding health. This group is a collaboration of medical
providers, MGH Birth Center RNs, home visitors, clinic staff, lactation consultants,WIC, and Mason
County Maternal Child Health (MCH)staff. January 9th will be the start date of a new breastfeeding
support group located at Mason General Hospital with the goal that infants will be supported to
breastfeed longer and improve the health of mother and babies in our county.
Early Learning Coalition of Mason County
RN continues to co-facilitate this group made up of agencies serving Mason County. This mission of the
coalition is to support parents, caregivers, and the community in developing the skills children need to
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be successful in school and life. The coalition is currently planning an Early Learning Family Fun Fair in
North Mason for families to have access to free early learning activities and agency resources.
Immunization Improvement Grant
Elizabeth has met with the school nurse for Hood Canal and Grapeview School Districts to provide
support and ideas on improving immunization compliance rates. We are working with our Health
Officer, Dr. Stein,to communicate new compliance regulations and offer assistance to school
administration of all Mason County School Districts.
Children with Special Health Care Needs
Our Public Health Nurse continues to participate in the SMART Team of Mason County(School-Medical
Autism Review Team). This enables children from our county,that appear to be on the Autism
Spectrum, per the team, to be prioritized for a specialty evaluation and diagnosis at Children's Hospital
to be seen in 1 month vs. 18 months. The benefit will be receiving support and services earlier. The
team has been meeting since October and are collecting testing and documentation for students that
need determination and diagnosis of Autism. Elizabeth continues to provide consultation and care
coordination to many families with children that have special health care needs in the Mason County
area.
Social Service Programs
Housing Staff:Todd Parker
—Our housing coordinator attended the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance Annual Conference
November 5—7 in Spokane, WA
The Veteran Stand-down was hosted November 16. A total of 57 veterans attended the event 18 of
which reported as homeless. In 2018, 16 were counted as homeless.
—The annual Point in Time homeless census count is the night of January 23 with Project Connect Events
happening on Friday at the Shelton Family Center and North Mason Resources. The events are places
people can connect to resources,food and obtain donations such as clothing, sleeping bags and tents.
From January 1—8, Community Lifeline has averaged 25 guests at the adult emergency shelter on a
bed capacity of 35.
"'5-year Housing and Homelessness Plan was approved by the Board of County Commissioners and
submitted to the Department of Commerce as required.
Behavioral Health--Treatment Sales Tax(TST) Funded Staff:Todd Parker, Lydia Buchheit
Treatment Sales Tax contracts were extended 6 months through June 30, 2020 to continue services in
the community during the transition from the BHO to MCO.
The Therapeutic Court programs graduated a total of 22 individuals for the 2019 calendar year. 18
people graduated each year for the past three years.
Mason County Opioid Response (3 programs) Staff: Abe Gardner,Christina Miller-Shinn,Audrey O'Connor
Overdose Data to Action (OD2A)
Through the Opioid Overdose reports we receive from Mason General, first responders and law
enforcement, as well as through the self-reports received by participants at various outreach events, we
identified a spike in overdoses in October and November. We used this information to alert people
actively using opioids, as well as friends and family and professionals who interact with people who
actively use, to be extra cautious about the illicit supply and practice harm reduction techniques to
reduce overdose risk. There were seven reported non-fatal opioid overdoses in November and
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December, and 3 fatal opioid overdoses (note that sometimes it takes many months before we get
fatality reports due to toxicology reports).
We continue to increase the coordination of linkages to care by partnering with a Peer Recovery Coach
from Northwest Resources at all Substance Use Mobile Outreach sites, as well as on our Wednesday
Transit Center outreach table. We regularly strive to refer people to services via warm handoffs or
phone calls to make sure everyone is linked to care who wants to be. Staff also checks in regularly with
local treatment providers at monthly meetings.
All regular outreach activities have been maintained,with a slight interruption during the holidays.This
includes monthly overdose prevention workshops with inmates at the jail (34 inmates trained during
reporting period),weekly Transit Center outreach table events on Wednesday afternoons, and the
Substance Use Mobile Outreach.These outreach events provide harm reduction education to people
using substances, and education about local resources, and connection to services.
Substance Use Mobile Outreach of Mason County
It has been business as usual at the Mobile Outreach. We have been doing lots of education surrounding
soft tissue infections and how to prevent them. We have also begun asking participants if they have
been tested for HCV in the past year to get a better understanding of whether our highest risk
populations are getting screened, as well as provide an opportunity for HCV education. We have
identified a lack of providers who are treating HCV locally, especially who are treating individuals who
are still actively using. We are exploring where to refer our participants who want to begin addressing
their disease. We will be pursuing this topic in the upcoming year. Naloxone kits were given at 67%of
visits.
We gave 11 treatment referrals, including 7 for Medicated Assisted Treatment(MAT), an increase from
last year(Nov 1, 2019-Oct 31, 2019) where 26 treatment referrals were given total.At every visit, we ask
if the individual wants any referrals for treatment, mental health, medical etc. By screening every person
each visit, we can catch individuals when they begin actively contemplating change, as well as regularly
remind them that we are able to help navigate the system. One participant came in December, not to
exchange, but only to receive treatment information. We were also able to provide a warm handoff to
one of our partnering community agencies,who helped the participant attain detox and inpatient.That
individual is currently in sober transitional housing. Several people have also stopped by the RV solely to
learn what local resources are available to help loved ones.These anecdotes exemplify that this
program has become a trusted location for people in the community to receive help and information.
The Belfair location is gaining momentum. During this reporting period (Nov-Dec 2019), Belfair
accounted for 11%of all visits. Previously(year one of this program-Nov 1, 2018-Oct 31, 2019) Belfair
made up only 4.7%of visits. This increase is likely due to partnering with Kitsap's mobile exchange
program to promote our program in September 2019.
We have received a lot of good feedback from participants about our program—several people have
stated that they look forward to coming all week because of how empowered and comfortable staff
make them feel.They also are appreciative of having a place to ask sensitive questions.
Sept-Oct 2019 Nov-Dec 2019 Program Totals
(Nov 2018-Dec 31 2019)
Number of interactions 85 70 370
Number unduplicated participants 46 59 205
Mean number of individuals each encounter is serving 4.2 3.4 3.3
Number of syringes exchanged 26,490 26,910 143,939
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COAP (Community partnerships,Systemic change, Program coordination)-Abe Gardner
Over the last several months MCPH has continued to coordinate and facilitate conversations to fill gaps
in Mason County's treatment and recovery support system. More specifically, MCPH has been
concentrating on Medication Assisted Therapy in the Mason County jail, while also coordinating an
effort to apply for a local Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion program (LEAD).
While awaiting the results of the FORE grant that MCPH applied for several months ago,that would fund
a peer/care coordination position at the Mason County jail, MCPH has started to implement a MAT/re-
entry program. In partnership with the medical staff, the mental health provider as well as jail staff,
MCPH has been establishing policies, procedures and a workflow processes that will allow for a
comprehensive and effective jail MAT and re-entry program. As there are a lot of details to work out, all
parties have agreed to start slow, with an emphasis on proactive communication, so that we can make
sure to be as safe and ultimately successful as possible.
In addition to the jail work, MCPH has also been coordinating an effort to apply for some grant funds
that would support the implementation of a local LEAD program. With the participation and input of
the Sheriff's office, Shelton's Police Department, the prosecutor's office, the public defender's office,
superior and therapeutic court,Olympic Health and Recovery Services, the Commissioner's office, as
well as other community-based organizations, MCPH has been working with a grant writer with the goal
of bringing funds to Mason County to start a LEAD program. LEAD is a pre-booking program that
provides an avenue of treatment and recovery to individuals that are experiencing behavioral health
issues as opposed to arrest and incarceration.
MCPH through the support of the COAP program has also continued to collect important data from local
substance use treatment providers that has and will continue to guide and inform projects important to
helping Mason County residents that are experiencing behavioral health issues. MCPH will continue to
take a proactive approach in filling gaps in the treatment and recovery support system, while supporting
and sustaining current programs.
Substance Use Prevention Staff: Ben Johnson&Alison Smallwood
Community Prevention Wellness Initiative
The Shelton Coalition continues to meet the 2nd Wednesday of each month at 4PM at the Family
Education Support Services office at the Shelton Transit Center.The North Mason coalition meets the 3`d
Thursday of each month at 4PM at the North Mason high School commons.
The Shelton coalition served ice cream at Oysterfest in October to assist with funding the 2020 nature
remedies calendar.The calendar was completed and over 5000 have been distributed between October
and December at Mason County Government Buildings, Health Clinics,Treatment Centers, Hospitals,
Libraries and more. The Shelton Coalition has decided to begin work on the 2021 calendar soon.
The Shelton and North Mason Youth Prevention clubs will begin student and community prevention
activities and classroom education in February 2020.They will focus on media awareness; prescription
take back box and lock box awareness and National Rx take back month in April.
The first North Mason Shelton Substance Abuse Prevention Summit Series has been Scheduled.
All will be held at 7PM at the North Mason High School Commons:
Wednesday Feb 19-Current Science on Vaping, Emma Goddard American Lung Association
Wednesday March 18-Social Norms-Scott Waller, Washington State Traffic Commission
Wednesday April 22-Jason Kilmer, Implications for Prevention--Dr.Jason Kilmer, University of Washington
Associate Professor in Psychiatry& Behavioral Sciences
5
Tobacco and Vaping Prevention Program
The Tobacco and Vapor Product Prevention Program made a huge leap forward when the Board of
Mason County Commissioners voted to include vaping and vaping products in existing County non-
smoking policy.This is an important step in the programs mission of removing the potential of second-
hand smoke exposure from vapor products to the residents and visitors of Mason County. In the coming
year we hope to expand these policies beyond just County property to all city and private owned
business in Mason County.
Community Health Education, Assessment and Data Staff:Alison Smallwood, Lydia Buchheit
In December 2019,the Mason County Health Coalition hosted a workshop style meeting at Public Works
for which we had 32 people in attendance. The purpose of the Mason County Health Coalition is to
improve the health and wellness of our community. We are asking community members and key
stakeholders to participate with us in completing a Community Health Improvement Plan that will
identify areas in our community where gaps exist. Our goal,through the collaboration of this group, will
be to conduct projects and programs to fill gaps in our community, ultimately leading to a measurable
improvement of health in Mason County. We are asking anyone who may be interested to participate
with us, especially Board of Health members. In addition, we hope that you will reach out to other
members of the community you feel could help us in our mission of improving health in Mason County
and invite them to participate in this effort. For more information, and to be added to the coalition
contact list, please contact:
Alison Smallwood, MPH
asmallwood@co.mason.wa.us
Mason County Community Services-Public Health
Our next meeting will occur on January 29th at PUD 3 from 3-5 PM. We are hopeful we will have
another great turnout of community members that wish to help us with our mission of improving
health and wellness in Mason County.
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