Board of Health

Agenda Village of Arlington Heights Board of Health Commissions Room 33 S. Arlington Heights Rd., 60005 September 18, 2023 6:30 PM I. CALL TO ORDER II. ROLL CALL III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. May 1, 2023 Minutes IV. REPORTS A. Health and Human Services Director Update B. Nursing Services Update C. Social Services Update V. OLD BUSINESS VI. NEW BUSINESS VII. OTHER BUSINESS VIII.PUBLIC COMMENT IX. ADJOURNMENT Persons with disabilities requiring auxiliary aids or services, such as an American Sign Language interpreter or written materials in accessible formats, should contact Erin Mercado, at 33 S. Arlington Heights Road, Arlington Heights, Illinois 60005, emercado@vah.com or (847)368-5793.  Board of Health 9/18/2023 Item: Minutes Department: HHS ATTACHMENTS: Description Type May 1, 2023 Minutes Minutes  Minutes Village of Arlington Heights Board of Health Commissions Room 33 S. Arlington Heights Rd., AH 60005 May 1, 2023 6:30 PM I. CALL TO ORDER Chairperson VanLandeghem called the meeting to order at 6:38 p.m. All stood for the Pledge of Allegiance. II. ROLL CALL Present Also Present Karen VanLandeghem, MPH, James McCalister, Commission Liaison Chairperson Lindsay Dohse, Nursing Superviser Kristen Brown, M.D. Nicole Espinoza, Social Services Coordinator William Moran, M.D. William La Fontaine, Guest Shalu Gugnani, M.D. Jerome Merservey, M.D. Ashley Bae, LCSW III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Minutes from February 6, 2023 A MOTION WAS MADE BY DR. BROWN TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE FEBRUARY 6, 2023 MEETING, SECONDED BY DR. MERSERVEY AND APPROVED BY UNANIMOUS CONSENT. IV. REPORTS A. Director Health and Human Services Update Mr. McCalister said there was an IDPH release today on a salmonella outbreak recall linked to gold metal brand flour dated between March 27 and March 28. There were 13 illnesses reported, 3 hospitalizations and 2 cases linked to IL. He said that they have been working on 1 the biennial written report for the strategic goals. His staff has done a great job putting it together and it will go to Village Board in a week or two. Mr. McCalister said when it is completed, he will email a copy to the Board. On May 22, the power point presentation will be presented to the Village Board. In your packets there are 2023 County health rankings and they rank every county in every state. The counties are weighed by length of life, quality of life, health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors and physical environment. There are 102 counties in IL and the lower score is considered better. Cook County is ranked in the middle of the pack where DuPage County was third. Mr. McCalister reviewed the rankings of Cook and DuPage County for the various weights. Also included in the packet are the maps for 2023 Health Outcomes and Health Factors in Illinois. Counties look similar for both, best and worst. Mr. McCalister said that the naloxone dispensing machine arrived and is located in the Police Department’s lobby next to the prescription drop off. There is a space next to the machine and they will put a sharps container so people will be able to drop off their sharps. They are calling it a harms reduction center. The naloxone machine will also have fentanyl strips. Mr. McCalister passed around a brochure. Dr. Brown asked how they are distributing the brochures to the community and Mr. McCalister responded that the brochures were just printed and he did not ask how they were going to be distributed, he is pretty sure that there will be a public campaign. There was a discussion on how many coins should be distributed, as most people will need at least 2 doses. Ms. Espinoza said she believes people will get two coins but she and Mr. McCalister will double check with Chief Pecora. Dr. Merservey asked what the expiration date of the medication was, and after the discussion, it was determined to be 2 years. Mr. McCalister stated that he’s excited that the Police Department has been working with the hospital, and Karen Baker said they want to have a harm reduction day. They are working on a public/private partnership with Northwest Community Hospital, involving a gun and drug take back program, as well as offering car seat and bike helmet checks. Right now, the date proposed is July 22, 10 am – 2pm or 3pm at the hospital. They wanted to know if the Board of Health had any thoughts or additions to the harm reduction day. Dr. Merservey asked how is this going to be advertised and Mr. McCalister responded that this is still under discussion and not out to the public yet. Dr. Brown asked if the Fire Department does car seat checks and Mr. McCalister responded that the Police Department does the car seat checks with an appointment. Chairperson VanLandeghem thinks it’s a great idea. Mr. McCalister mentioned that they are collaborating with various departments and have had held meetings regarding the underground parking garage across the street. The Legal Department is working on a no trespassing ordinance which means that you are allowed to park there, walk to go shopping, and then return to your car. This helps a variety of issues, which includes kids skateboarding and people staying and sleeping there. They are also looking at Public Works doing improvements down there, with brighter paint and lighting. The Police Department had a meeting, many businesses showed up because they are 2 concerned that it is where their customers park, and not feeling safe. Dr. Gugnani said they have problems in her garage with kids skateboarding and stealing things. Chairperson VanLandeghem said that it would be nice if they considered all parking structures or the ones that the Village owns/manages. Mr. McCalister discussed the green events for this year. Earth day was on April 22, and the Department purchased compost bins through SWANCC. The Department sold the bins to residents for slightly below cost at $50. They sold over 60 bins from the 75 that was purchased. This year, they are working with the racetrack for the document destruction event, and if it works out, they will add textile recycling through SWANCC to the document destruction event. He said that they want to do a latex paint event this year in September or October. Last year, they had over 700 cars in 3 hours, and there were still many people wanting to get latex paint out of their garage. SWANCC is looking to have two hazardous waste collection days. Hazardous waste collection has become challenging due to its high cost. They are planning to limit the number of participants to 700 – 800 cars. Mr. McCalister mentioned a few things about the Senior Center. They had a celebration for Diversity month, which he attended. Their team aims to celebrate two ethnicities each year, and this year they focused on Italian and Chinese cultures. The event featured both Italian and Chinese food and performers, including an Italian opera singer and a Chinese harpist. They also had a Volunteer Fair a week or two ago. Hands on Suburban Chicago did a workshop for an hour letting people know how they can volunteer and give back to the community. All ten agencies had booths set up, so people could sign up to volunteer right there. Dr. Merservey said he attended the Volunteer Fair and he couldn’t hear much because the booths were too close together at the entrance and there was a lot of noise. He suggested that the booths should be spread out. Mr. McCalister said that he attended the Dementia Live and he thought it was really interesting and impactful. They put glasses and gloves on you so can feel how a person with dementia feels. Mr. McCalister said that Northwest Community Hospital provides classes at the Senior Center. In 2022, the Senior Center held 128 classes and had 1,644 participants. They have had 17 classes this first quarter with 454 participants. He said the congregate meals program has seen an increase in numbers, and he’s not sure if it’s because people are coming out of COVID. During COVID, home delivery meals were sky high, but now they are also congregating and having a meal. In 2022, they served 6,660 meals inside the building and in the first quarter of 2023 they served 2,127. Mr. McCalister said they filed more taxes this tax season. In 2022, 560 taxes were filed and this year 700 taxes were filed. Dr. Brown asked who does the taxes and Mr. McCalister responded that they have a SHIP program and have volunteers come in and file the taxes. He said you cannot come in with complex tax returns but they will prepare and file regular taxes and the service is open to everyone, not only seniors. He said that 700 people came through the doors that may not normally attend the Senior Center. 3  Mr. McCalister said they also started a new MySeniorCenter key tag program. It is a kiosk with a computer screen that lets you know what classes are being offered and allows you register for your classes on it. It also provides feedback on what programs are doing well and what needs improvement. It hasn’t been up long and they already have 5,100 registrants. Mr. McCalister reminded the Board of Health that the Senior Health & Fitness Day is on May 31st from 9 am – 1 pm. and they would love the Board of Health members to stop by and give their thoughts on the event and opportunities for improvement. Mr. McCalister said that they are trying to get the word out about their programs and services. One way is through social media and the other is through their website. In April, his staff created 13 social media posts. The various posts included were recycling information, keeping wildlife out of your homes, discounted Hepatitis B vaccines, discounted cholesterol screenings for National Public Health week, International Laughter Day, library resource hour and International Guide Dog Day which featured one of the Commissioners from the Commission of Citizens with Disabilities. Mr. McCalister said they added pictures to the website and drop-down menus in alphabetical order. He said that Nursing Services added a fillable form. Mr. McCalister asked if anyone had a chance to look at the website and Chairperson VanLandeghem replied that she looked at the website and offered a few recommendations. Mr. McCalister mentioned that there is a Community Survey on the Village website. There is a strong section on senior interest. The Park District recently did a survey and he is looking forward to seeing the end results. There are questions on the survey about the Senior Center and there is a great interest in a new Senior Center. Mr. McCalister said that Nursing Services is going to have a new software package and Ms. Dohse will discuss it in the nursing update. Mr. McCalister said that there is a Blood Drive on Wednesday and if anyone is interested in donating blood, they should stop by. Mr. McCalister said that the COVID-19 Declaration ends May 11th. He said that they will continue testing employees as long as they have tests. Chairperson VanLandeghem said that some people will be losing coverage under Medicaid. She asked if folks come for services and if they connect them to Medicaid. Ms. Espinoza said that they connect residents to Medicaid because they do not have the ability to process state benefits. Chairperson VanLandeghem is interested to hear if there are more folks walking in the door who have lost their coverage. B. Nursing Update Ms. Dohse said that they finished their hearing and vision screening in the community and they ended with screening 856 children, rescreen 130 children and referred 11 for vision and 8 for hearing. She is working on updating the website and have already received an inquiry through the fillable form. She said it is a nice way to help individuals who are more comfortable emailing versus calling on the phone. Ms. Dohse said in honor of heart month in 4 February, they hosted 3 cholesterol clinics, 2 for residents and 1 for employees. In April for Public Health week, they held a discounted cholesterol clinic for residents. Michelle Finn, the Community Nurse and Ms. Dohse attended the Municipal Nurses meeting in Hoffman Estates. They participated in Dementia Live at the meeting. Ms. Dohse said that since the last meeting, they received 23 referrals from the Fire Department and they are still working on how to improve the follow up. She has reached out to the patients within 24 hours and many times she doesn’t receive a call back. Many of the referrals are mental health related issues. Ms. Dohse collaborates with Ms. Espinoza on these referrals. Some examples are knowledge deficit, leaving the hospital with a nebulizer but do not know how to use it, hoarding that doesn’t meet criteria for their home to be uninhabitable but significant enough that the conditions are risky and they may injure themself. Ms. Dohse said they hosted an employee Tdap clinic. Her focus was to make sure that Public Works employees were vaccinated but the clinic was open to everyone. She is trying to further CPR education in the community. Michelle is now CPR certified and they will be teaching two classes at the Senior Center in May. She said since the last meeting, they trained 20 individuals in CPR. They had 2 evening courses at South Minister Presbyterian Church. Ms. Dohse is collaborating with Social Services, the emergency department at the hospital, and APS with some unfortunate cases. She met with Karen Baker at Northwest Community Hospital and Karen provided information regarding access to services within the community and resource centers. Ms. Dohse received vaccines from Cook County for the Bivalent booster. There hasn’t been much response for the booster but she is strongly encouraging home visit patients to get the booster if they need it. Ms. Dohse said Michelle has 20 years’ experience as a labor and delivery nurse and is working with an educator at NCH on a mother/baby group. There was a mother/baby group at NCH before the pandemic but it is no longer offered. They are working to restart the group. Michelle will run it together with the educator. Ms. Dohse said that they will be working the first aid stand at the Salute Memorial race. Ms. Dohse said in June, they will be training Village employees in CPR. They will also train CPR to caregivers (family members). They will bring a manikin to the home and run the class through their laptop since most family caregivers cannot leave the home for a class. Ms. Dohse said for World Hepatitis month, they will be providing discounted Hepatitis B vaccines. She said that on May 11th they are participating in an online webinar on older adult mental health awareness. On May 31st, they are participating in the Senior Health & Fitness Day and will provide hands on CPR training and offering blood pressure screenings. Ms. Dohse said that they will be manning the first aid tent at Frontiers Day. They are also hosting 5  the Municipal Nurses meeting in July and are hoping to have Live4Lali speak on naloxone and the opioid epidemic. Ms. Dohse said they are hoping to get a new CDP database. The CDP databases interfaces with ICare and will streamline the documentation of care. They are currently using an access database. Mr. McCalister said that the Environmental Health Division uses CDP and is excited to get the Nursing Division on the database. Dr. Brown asked if there were any updates on infant and child CPR and Ms. Dohse responded that they would be able to teach a class monthly but the only issue is that they can’t teach the class at night and she doesn’t know what the interest would be for day classes. There was discussion on where classes are held and how fast classes fill up. C. Social Services Update Ms. Espinoza said on March 21st, they recognized World Social Work Day and submitted a social media post. The theme was respecting diversity through joint social action by advocating for and serving the residents. Ms. Espinoza said that their Social Worker, Erin Mercado received her license last month and completed the 2010 ADA basics, which is the first step in attaining her ADA Coordinator certification. She said their Administrative Assistant, TréWan Collins completed the Salvation Army Volunteer program and will be processing Salvation Army Financial Assistance programs, including Nicor Sharing. Ms. Espinoza said that they have a new Victim Services Coordinator in the Police Department. They have started doing case consultations with the new Victim Services Coordinator and the Crisis Worker. Ms. Espinoza said that they continue to work with Ms. Dohse to provide mental health, disability and senior services. Ms. Espinoza met with Lori Felix who is the Outreach Family Counselor of District 214 Specialized Schools, and shared with her the services that the Village of Arlington Heights offers to increase family’s awareness of services offered. Ms. Espinoza said that the Commissions for Citizens with Disabilities received a donation from the Knights of Columbus and that the donation is used to sponsor a portion of Disability Day at Frontiers Days. Ms. Espinoza said she has also worked with several families in the community who needed to attain Civil Mental health Writs for loved ones struggling with mental health issues. She explained that in Civil Mental Health Court, an individual who has witnessed a mental health crisis can petition the court to have the person experiencing the crisis evaluated. The person is taken to a hospital for the mental health evaluation. Ms. Espinoza said the Division is continuing Library Resource Hour every quarter, and they did have quite a few people attend with intentionality and questions. 6  Ms. Espinoza said financial assistance requests have hit an all-time high due to rent increases coupled with inflation. They have seen rent rates increase $500 - $600. They are receiving a heavy stream of applicants, but applicants are requesting higher rent rates and are further behind than in prior years. Arlington Cares recently provided at $10,000 donation which goes directly to the Village’s Emergency Assistance program. Ms. Espinoza stated the Division recently worked with a resident who is an expectant mother. Ms. Espinoza contacted the Arlington Heights Rotary Club who donated a pack ‘n play, bedding, and a double stroller. The Police Department also donated a car seat. The items were dropped off to the resident who was extremely grateful. Chairperson VanLandeghem asked about parking structures and unhoused individuals utilizing those areas for shelter. Chairperson VanLandeghem asked if Ms. Espinoza has been in contact with Journeys. Ms. Espinoza stated she regularly speaks with Journeys and updates Social Services information accordingly. She said the PADS sites closed April 30th. Ms. Espinoza reports Journeys stated there were not enough church sites available to provide a summer program. Ms. Espinoza explained the process of individuals undergo when entering Journeys, along with other resources for individuals who are unhoused. V. OLD BUSINESS VI. NEW BUSINESS A. VAH Strategic Priorities 2024-25 Chairperson VanLandeghem said that the Village Manager, Randy Recklaus reached out to all the Boards and Commissions to ask for their recommendations towards the 2024 – 25 Strategic Priorities plan. Mr. McCalister discussed the process which entails that the Village Board will get the written report for each Department this month, followed by a presentation. He said that this year, the Village Manager wanted to get the thoughts and ideas from the various Boards and Commissions. He said the Village Board will convene in July and talk about what their strategic goals to be for the next two years. They will pull data from the different departments and Boards and Commissions to see what they want their priorities to be focused on for the Village as a whole. Chairperson VanLandeghem drafted a list from the recommendations from the BOH members. She presented the recommendations and there was conversation to update the recommendations with the input from the Board Members. Dr. Gugnani made a motion to approve the 2024 – 25 Strategic Priorities recommendations, seconded by Dr. Moran, approved by unanimous consent. B. Dr. Sean Barnett Chairperson VanLandeghem reported that Dr. Barnett has sadly resigned from the BOH due to his schedule being too busy at the hospital. Chairperson VanLandeghem thanked him for all of his service to the Village on the BOH. She said there is a vacancy on the Board, so if anyone has suggestions, please forward the suggestion to her or Mr. McCalister and they would offer it to Mayor Hayes. She discussed the process for nomination and said that they would like to continue to diversify the Board of Health. There was conversation on the background, expertise, and qualities they are looking for in a Board member. Mr. McCalister thanked Dr. Merservey for being reappointed. 7 VII. OTHER BUSINESS VIII. ADJOURNMENT DR. MESERVEY, SECONDED BY DR. MORAN, MOVED TO ADJOURN AT 8:12 P.M., ALL CONCURRED AND THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. The next scheduled meeting is August 7, 2023. 8