Summit County Healthcast

After vaping for eight months, twenty-year-old Katie Bertram became heavily addicted. Soon, she began to experience chest pains and difficulty breathing. Katie joins us on the Healthcast to discuss her vaping journey: the reason she started, how her addiction grew out of control, the health scares that made her want to quit, and how she was able to walk away from vaping with family support. Listen as Katie shares personal insights for peers in the same situation and valuable advice to parents who discover their children are vaping and want to help them quit.

This episode is the second half of our conversation with Health Director Rich Bullough and Deputy Director Phil Bondurant. We look forward to the health department’s 2020 initiatives and areas of focus for the year, including: * Sustainability * Electronic WIC card pilot program * Integrating Behavioral Health services into Early Intervention * Diabetes Prevention Program Expansion * A “Health in All Policies” approach

In this episode of the healthcast, Director Rich Bullough and Deputy Director Phil Bondurant outline the department’s major successes over the course of 2019 and how they impacted the community. Bullough and Bondurant cited support from County Council, the Board of Health, County Manager Tom Fisher, various community partners and innovative staff as the main drivers behind these initiatives. “This department is innovative,” Bullough said. “We’re not just following and responding to emergencies. We really feel like we’ve shifted from the perspective of regulation to really begin looking at [Summit County’s] future. I think that we’re an important player in that.” Major 2019 projects and initiatives mentioned by health department leadership included: * Behavioral Health * Wastewater Ordinance, particularly on the East Side * The Community Health Assessment Survey * Streamlining of the Sundance permitting process * The Summit County Farmer’s Market * Family Planning Elevated Grant

Flu season is upon us once more and we sat down with Nursing Director Carolyn Rose to talk about everything you need to know to be prepared. In this episode, we answer common questions such as who needs a flu shot, who a flu shot protects (hint: it isn’t just you), how flu vaccines are created, other ways to prevent the flu and more. We also debunk the myth that you can become ill from the flu shot: “You cannot get sick from getting the flu shot. I know some people will swear they go the flu from the flu shot but what actually happens is there are so many different cold and flu viruses out there and the vaccine takes 7-10 days to become effective. If you have been exposed to a flu virus or a cold virus of some sort right around when you get the flu shot, that’s when people say they got it from the vaccine. Actually they didn’t, they were just exposed at the right time and the right place and came up with the right symptoms.”

A ten-year veteran of the Summit County Health Department, Nate Brooks worked as an Environmental Health Scientist until his recent promotion to Environmental Health Director. Before interviewing and being selected as director, Nate’s worked primarily focused around drinking water, septic systems, and water quality. He is also a lifelong resident of Summit County. In this episode of the healthcast, we talk about his expanded responsibilities, his plans for the Environmental Health, and what challenges he foresees Summit County facing in the future.

We’re joined in this episode by previous Environmental Health Director, Phil Bondurant. Phil talks about his new position as the Deputy Director of the Summit County Health Department, what his new responsibilities and roles are, what his vision is for the future of the health department, and more. We also discuss preliminary results from the Community Health Assessment and the challenges and opportunities the health department hopes to identify and address from the assessment.

In this episode of the Summit County Healthcast, we were joined by Kathryn McMullin, a Critical Infrastructure Specialist with the Department of Public Safety Division of Emergency Management. Kathryn discussed the likelihood of an extended loss of water due to an emergency in Utah and the immediate dangers associated with water loss. Additional topics covered include proper waste disposal, water storage, and sanitation practices.

In episode 51, we sit down with Nursing Director Carolyn Rose to discuss the recent Measles and Mumps outbreak occurring across the United States. At the time of this recording (May 2019), there were no recorded cases in Summit County. Several cases have occurred in Utah, however, and the health department encourages everyone to check their records for proper vaccinations or to get vaccinated if you have not done so yet. From the Utah Department of Health: What is the Utah Department of Health (UDOH) doing to prevent the spread of measles in Utah? The UDOH is working with local health departments, school districts, hospitals, community partners, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to ensure that all persons who have been exposed to measles are contacted and provided appropriate information about vaccination, exclusion, quarantine and medical care. What should I do if I don’t know my vaccination status or I never had the MMR vaccine? Individuals who may have been exposed to measles and have not been vaccinated should stay home (no work, church, shopping or recreational activities); specifically those who have been contacted by health officials and those students who were excluded from school due to lack of vaccination. The MMR vaccine may prevent disease if given with 72 hours of exposure to measles. Immune globulin (IG) may prevent or reduce severity of disease if given within six days of exposure. It is very important to follow the directions given by your healthcare provider and public health in order to protect your own health, and the health of those around you. Where can I find information about my vaccination record or my child’s vaccination record? Contact your healthcare provider to get information on your family’s immunization records. The Utah Immunization Information System (USIIS) is a state-wide immunization database that contains vaccination records of children and some adults. You may contact the Utah  Immunization Program at 801-538-9450 or the Utah Immunization Hotline at 1-800-275-0659 to request a search for immunization records in USIIS. What is measles? Measles is a highly infectious respiratory disease caused by the measles virus. What are the symptoms of measles? Measles symptoms include rash, high fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes. These symptoms usually appear within 7-18 days from exposure to an infected person and last about a week. The disease can also cause severe illness and complications, such as diarrhea, ear infections, pneumonia, encephalitis (brain infection), seizures, and death. These complications are more common among children under five years or age and adults over 20 years of age. How is measles spread? Measles spreads easily. When an infected person sneezes or coughs, droplets containing the virus spray into the air. Those droplets can land in other people’s noses or throats when they breathe or if they put their fingers in their mouth or nose after handling an infected surface. The measles virus can survive for two hours in air or on surfaces. It is also important to know that people with measles are infectious (can spread the disease) from four days before to four days after the rash appears. Thus, an infected person can spread the disease before knowing he or she is infected. Who is at highest risk for getting measles? People at highest risk are those who are unvaccinated, pregnant women, infants under six months of age, and those with weakened immune systems. Can a person be a “carrier” of measles and spread it to others? No. Persons exposed to measles must develop measles to spread it to others. Measles is spread by infected persons or from being exposed to a closed area after a person infected with measles occupied the area in the previous two hours. Once the infectious period is over, the person cannot infect other individuals.

Environmental Health Director Phil Bondurant returns to the healthcast to discuss the 2019 Summit County Community Health Assessment. This short survey will aid the health department in planning public health initiatives over the course of the next several years. All members of the public ages 12+ who live or work in Summit County are encouraged to participate. The short, ten-minute survey can be taken at https://summitcountyhealth.org/survey2019 Full press release: Summit County, Utah (April 22, 2019) – The Summit County Health Department is seeking input from residents and workers in the county to help shape local public health efforts. Through May 31, members of the public can take the 2019 Community Health Assessment survey in English or Spanish and share their thoughts, ideas and concerns. Survey responses will aid the Summit County Board of Health in developing a strategic plan for the health department. “Input from the community is a vital part of our strategic planning process,” Summit County Health Director, Rich Bullough, said. “This assessment allows us to plan ahead to best meet the public’s needs as Summit County continues to grow and evolve.” Community health assessments were previously conducted by the health department in 2012 and 2016. The 2012 assessment was a standard community health assessment. The 2016 assessment focused on mental health and was the driving force behind the creation of the Summit County Mental Wellness Alliance. Questions are designed to be “emotionally-based” in order to create an open-ended discussion between participants and the health department. Focus is placed on concerns arising in the next several years.  When the assessment closes, responses will be compiled into a report for the Board of Health by Environmental Health Director Phil Bondurant, who also drafted the assessment. “It’s time to evaluate where we’ve grown and improved and where we’ve struggled,” Bondurant, said. “With this information, we can identify priority issues in the county — challenges the public is concerned their children and grandchildren will face.” In addition to adults, children ages 12 and up are encouraged to participate in the assessment with their parents’ permission. As an added incentive, the health department will be giving away Amazon gift cards to participants when response benchmarks are met. The health department has set a goal to gather at least 750 survey responses. The 2019 survey can be taken online at https://summitcountyhealth.org/survey2019 or in-person at any of the Summit County Health Department’s three locations.

Public Health Nurse Lynn Little joins the healthcast prior to her retirement at the end of March 2019. We discuss the changes Lynn has seen in the health department and Summit County health community over the past 18 years, including three location changes, the growth of technology and more. Lynn also reflects on the most important traits public health employees should possess and valuable lessons learned throughout her career.