Board of Health

BOH MEETING MINUTES 3-04-2024 James Griffin, Chair Joseph Tennyson, MD, Vice-Chair Richard Tomanek, Member Attending: Chair James Griffin, Vice-chair Joseph Tennyson, MD, Member Richard Tomanek Also in attendance: Director Paul Dinwoodie and Clerk Tina Nolin The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. Reading and Approval of Minutes • The motion to approve the February 5, 2024, minutes, was made by Member Tennyson, Chairman Griffin seconded, and the vote was 3-0 to approve. New Business Director’s Update • Migrant/Homeless Housing Director Dinwoodie updated the Board with the latest information on the migrant and homeless sheltering in the city via the State’s program. There continue to be two shelter locations in the city each with its own provider, who is there daily, Monday through Friday, the Holiday Inn is housing migrants, while Extended Stay America is sheltering homeless families and a few migrant families, as well. The current numbers are as follows: # of # of School-Age Location Families # of Children Children Extended Stay (SMOC) 35 121 15 Holiday Inn (Elliot Group) 152 502 101 Director Dinwoodie reported that the nurse continues to vaccinate these children at school clinics and clinics held at the hotels. The director also noted that not all school-age children are attending Marlborough schools, some are bussed to other schools that they were attending before being moved to Marlborough. The school nurse continues her clinics as new families come into the shelter. • Nurse’s Update Director Dinwoodie presented the nurse’s update noting that one Salmonellosis was reported this past month. The nurse’s follow-up on the case determined there was no connection to a restaurant in the city. Additionally, the nurse has renewed our vaccination enrollment with the State, which allows us to get administration reimbursements.  BOH Meeting Minutes, 3-04-2024 – Page 2 • Sanitarian’s Update Director Dinwoodie reported that the new sanitarians were quickly getting up to speed. Both have completed their ServSafe Certification and have started conducting food inspections. Thirteen food inspections were completed this past month along with 8 housing inspections with order letters being sent. • Viral Respiratory Illness Reporting The director informed the board that the latest updates from the State regarding viral respiratory illness in Massachusetts continued to show moderate levels of Flu while, emergency department visits and hospital admissions for COVID-19 patients remain at minimal and low levels, respectively. The State reported that 13.4% of emergency department visits the week of February 11, 2024, to February 17, 2024, were for acute respiratory disease, down slightly from last month’s report. • Rodent Update Director Dinwoodie reported to the Board that the health department, inspectional services, code enforcement, and the mayor’s office, continue to receive rodent siting reports every day via the online portal and follow-up on the various issues as warranted. It currently is filling up a lot of our workflow. Several order letters have been written to residential locations and landlords regarding trash, chicken coop, etc. During inspections of the restaurants and other food permit holders’, the sanitarians check to ensure the pest control is up to date, that the trash areas around dumpsters are clean, and that the dumpsters are secure with covers and no holes, etc. The department is following up with construction sites, especially if near where sightings have been reported, that they have done their due diligence with pest control and if warranted continue with pest control as needed. The director presented several map views of where rodent sightings have been seen. Most of the sightings appear to be in residential areas we are not currently having a lot of reports or action among our restaurants. The mayor’s office is reviewing several ideas to help with pest control management in and on city property, and we should know more soon. Subdivision, Site Plan & Special Permit There were no subdivisions, site plans, or special permits for review. Unknown business at the time of posting There was no unknown business to discuss. Scheduling of the Next Meeting The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Board is on Monday, April 8, 2024, at 6:30 pm. Adjourn Chair Griffin motioned to adjourn the meeting at 6:51 p.m.; Member Tennyson seconded the motion; the vote was 3-0 in favor of adjourning. Respectfully submitted, 4/8/2024 James H. Griffin, Chair Dated