Board of Health - January 20, 2017 Minutes
Regular Meeting: Friday, January 20, 2017
Present: John Baird, MD; Dinah Goldenberg, Chelsey Matter, Vern Bennett, John Strand, and Mike Thorstad
Absent: Chris Anderson, MD
Others Present: Larry Anenson, Justin Bohrer, and Desi Fleming
Dinah Goldenberg, Chair called the meeting to order.
Announcements: Welcomed Vern Bennett as new Cass County Representative. Dinah circulated handouts for the March 2017 Fargo Public Schools vote. John Strand wanted to send a card to Jan Eliassen.
Approve minutes from Nov. 18, 2016: Mike Thorstad made a motion to approve the Nov. 18, 2016 meeting minutes. John Strand seconded and motion carried.
Health Officer’s Report: Dr. Baird circulated a copy of his report and highlighted TB, Sanford Pediatric Infectious Disease meetings, Community Medical Services medical assisted therapy for opiates, Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Panel activities, FM Ambulance oversight, Heart Smart Community Committee, Hoarding Coalition meetings, Xcel MGP site, local health officer training, death investigation conference, travel to Uganda, and coroner meetings.
Budget Report: Desi presented the report and said that the department was quite pleased with the numbers for 2016. Although this is an estimate, total expenses will not increase and revenue will go up more when the year end numbers come in.
Year End Statistics: John Strand asked about Detox numbers increase. Our detox is basically a dry out center and then they are released into the community. Hiring a nurse will make a big difference. John asked about the death in the Clay County jail with regard to Detox issues. If someone is jailed in the Cass County jail our nurses and Family HealthCare would get involved if they are in need of medical attention.
Approval of Family Planning Grant: Larry Anenson gave a brief history of Family Planning. Many of the individuals are uninsured and Title X funding allows us to give services to these clients. If our grant for next year is accepted, we will receive approximately $171,000 for Title X and $12,000 for depression screening. Discussed the goals and how they are consistent with the Healthy People 2020 goals. Mike asked if this is a federal grant administered from the State. It is approximate and there is some fluctuation. Mike Thorstad made a motion to support the Grant Application, John Strand seconded, and motion carried.
Accreditation Update: Justin Bohrer said at the beginning of December we did the kick off for accreditation. We are in week three of collecting documentation for the Standards and Measures. Discussed timeline for submission of September or October 2017, with a review and a site visit by health professionals and academia after that. We will have a monthly update at all Board of Health meetings. We are going through 12 domains and 10 are based on core public health services.
Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Addiction: John Baird gave a report on how the five communities have set up this blue ribbon commission to address addiction prevention and early treatment. Discussed specific policies, 211 system, establishing clearinghouse, and addressing prevention issues. Mike Thorstad, asked if the medical community has changed its perspective on prescribing opiates. Sanford and Essentia are doing things to address proper treatment of individuals. Talked about Dentists, pharmaceutical yellow jug program, Narcan training, needle exchange program, and internal trainers. Opiates deaths are still maintaining a crisis status. Dr. Baird, one of the things that the blue ribbon commission is looking at is data collection. Chelsey Matter stated the new first lady in North Dakota has been having some meetings with nonprofits to see how to get a handle on this issue at the state. Dinah added I know it is a lot of work and it all takes time.
Legislative Issues: Dr. Baird handed out 2017 Legislative Priorities listing. Discussed addressing tobacco use, outpatient addiction treatment for opiates, Friday afternoon SACCHO call, State aid funding, Medicaid expansion, behavior health counselors, specific bill numbers, and drug courts. Dr. Baird will support and testify for the syringe exchange program. John Strand talked about recent National League of Cities meeting and how we are leapfrogging on the opiate addiction issue and he was really proud of our efforts and how far we have gotten so quickly.
Adjournment: The next Meeting will be Feb. 17, 2017.