QUINNIPIACK VALLEY HEALTH DISTRICT

BOARD OF HEALTH MINUTES

North Haven, CT

May 22, 2014

4:30 PM

In attendance: J. Donaldson; D. Cofrancesco; W. Kohlhepp; R. Ivins; M. Rochow; A. Levison; R. Wilson;

V. Gallo.  Ex officio: L. Balch; D. Culligan, staff.

Not in attendance: C. Goldberg; B. Scott-Moore; P. Marone; A. Sofair; L. DeNegre.          

 PRESIDENT’S REPORT

President Donaldson called the meeting to order at 4:40 p.m. and declared a quorum present. She thanked all Board members who have worked on committees over the year. She also noted that she attended a QVHD staff meeting to impress upon the staff the importance the Board puts on timely food service inspections.

 NOMINATING COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS

President Donaldson noted that the Nominating Committee will present their slate of candidates for the offices of President and Vice President at the September QVHD Board meeting. She then appointed B. Scott-Moore to chair the Nominating Committee. The following members were appointed to the committee by Board vote:

R. Ivins (Motion by M. Rochow, seconded by W. Kohlhepp and passed unanimously.)

M. Rochow (Motion by R. Ivins, seconded by V. Gallo and passed unanimously.

C. Goldberg (Motion by R. Ivins, seconded by M. Rochow and passed unanimously.

 APPROVAL OF MINUTES

A motion to accept the April 24, 2014 minutes made by R. Wilson, seconded by R. Ivins and voted unanimously with one correction (change the word “offer” to “offered” last sentence of financial report).

L. Balch stated that due to problems reported by Board member with receiving the minutes electronically, the minutes will now be mailed out to everyone. R. Ivins requested that they still be sent electronically as well. For future meetings, the minutes will be mailed and emailed and the process revisited at the September meeting.

 FINANCIAL REPORT

L. Balch presented the financial report for the period ending April 30, 2014. She reported:

• April target: 83.33%. Overall revenue is at 88.97% and expenses at 81%. No funds from the reserve have yet been needed.
• Revenue from Hamden student housing inspections will cease when the moratorium goes into effect and will have an impact on the projected FY15 revenues in the adopted budget. In response to questions from Board members, she noted that QVHD only inspects new student housing applications for registration, but will re-inspect upon receiving a complaint.
• The current financial status looks positive on paper at this time.

 A motion to place the financial report on files was made by M. Rochow, seconded by A. Levinson and passed unanimously. Report placed on file.

 COMMITTEE REPORTS

School Based Health Center Advisory Committee

A. Levison made the following report:

• The SBHC Advisory Committee held its second required meeting on May 20, 2014.
• The target enrollment of 375 members has been met.
• Visits to the SBHC are lower than at this time last year however there are still two months remaining in the school year. Contributing to the lower number is the fact that the NP was out for a month, due to illness and school vacation.
• The need for immunization is the top reason students make a visit to the SBHC.  D. Culligan received billing guidance and assistance from Dr. Cynthia Mann and the Children’s Medical Group and received reimbursement for immunizations given at the SBHC. Immunization billing will be continued.
• 7 out of 31 parent satisfaction surveys were returned. All respondents felt services provided were culturally appropriate. The results on the question regarding condom distribution at the SBHC: 2-YES, 2-NO, 3-No opinion.

 Special Projects Committee

M. Rochow reported that she received information from the state with changes that were made to the tattoo law regarding licensure of the tattoo artist. She reported that the state will be hiring someone by the end of the month to work on the licensure issue, will be notifying artists about the licensing process, and will begin accepting application for licensure by July 1, 2014 although completion of the training requirement has been extended until January 1, 2015 by which time QVHD’s new regulations will be finalized to reflect the new licensure requirement. L. Balch reported that at the Special Projects committee meeting held on May 20, a tattoo artist from the community attended and shared information that was helpful in finalizing QVHD regulations. L. Fox and L. Balch plan to visit the establishment to observe and discuss equipment, consent forms and the process of recording post-tattoo instructions. Balch reported that there are 3 tattoo establishments within our district.

 ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS

Health Education

Report presented by D. Culligan:

• The current issue of Qvhd-TIPS Family Health Letter was distributed to Board members. D. Culligan plans to contact PTA’s next year to inquire about distribution through them, instead of the school system.
• The new QVHD website continues to improve and allows timely updating of content. Culligan encouraged Board members to view the new site and comment.
• The plans for the farmer’s markets continue to be developed. QVHD will attend three markets (Town Center Hamden, Highwood Square Hamden and Bethany) about once a month for an hour and a half to promote increased dietary intake of  fruits and vegetables. 
• D. Culligan has been working with Woodbridge as they revamp their Exposure Control Plan.
• North Haven had 2 raccoons test positive for rabies. One event involved a human bite. QVHD sent out press releases and posted information on the Patch for public awareness of the presence and prevention of rabies. The Patch staff moved it to the front page for a brief time.
• There was a hawk attack on a district resident who was walking on water company property. Culligan informed the Regional Water Authority (RWA) and the RWA responded with plans to place signage and cordon off the area during nesting time, when aggressiveness to protect their young is not unusual.

 Resolutions:

Motion by D. Cofrancesco, seconded by W Kohlhepp and voted unanimously: This is to certify that Leslie A. Balch is the Director of Health of Quinnipiack Valley Health District, 1151 Hartford Turnpike, North Haven CT 06473 and that on May 22, 2014, pursuant to Sec. 19a-242 of the Connecticut General Statues, is authorized to make, execute and approve on behalf of this health district, any and all contracts or amendment thereof with the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health on behalf of said organization, in order to operate a Public Health Emergency Preparedness program.

 Motion by D. Cofrancesco, seconded by W. Kohlhepp and voted unanimously: This is to certify that Leslie A. Balch is the Director of Health of Quinnipiack Valley Health District, 1151 Hartford Turnpike, North Haven CT 06473 and that on May 22, 2014, pursuant to Sec. 19a-242 of the Connecticut General Statues, is authorized to make, execute and approve on behalf of this health district, any and all contracts or amendment thereof with the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health on behalf of said organization, in order to operate a Healthy Homes program.

 Motion by D. Cofrancesco, seconded by W. Kohlhepp and voted unanimously: This is to certify that Leslie A. Balch is the Director of Health of Quinnipiack Valley Health District, 1151 Hartford Turnpike, North Haven CT 06473 and that on May 22, 2014, pursuant to Sec. 19a-242 of the Connecticut General Statues, is authorized to make, execute and approve on behalf of this health district, any and all contracts or amendment on behalf of said organization.

 Motion by D. Cofrancesco, seconded by W. Kohlhepp and voted unanimously: This is to certify that Leslie A. Balch is the Director of Health of Quinnipiack Valley Health District, 1151 Hartford Turnpike, North Haven CT 06473 and that on May 22, 2014, pursuant to Sec. 19a-242 of the Connecticut General Statues, is authorized to make, execute and approve on behalf of this health district, any and all contracts or amendment thereof with the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health on behalf of said organization, in order to operate a lead poisoning prevention program.

 Motion by D. Cofrancesco, seconded by W. Kohlhepp and voted unanimously: This is to certify that Leslie A. Balch is the Director of Health of Quinnipiack Valley Health District, 1151 Hartford Turnpike, North Haven CT 06473 and that on May 22, 2014, pursuant to Sec. 19a-242 of the Connecticut General Statues, is authorized to make, execute and approve on behalf of this health district, any and all contracts or amendment thereof with the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health on behalf of said organization, in order to operate a school based health center and any other contracts which come before the Board.

 Report of the Director of Health

L. Balch reports:

• The statewide Advisory Committee for School Based Health Centers held a meeting on May 20, 2014. Their charge is to develop minimum standards of service for SBHCs. The committee has just begun to address this as it gets mired down in details unrelated to the charge.
• MERS-CoV: information has been posted on the website. QVHD has been informed that 2 residents returning from travel have tested negative for the virus.
• Restaurant Postings: QVHD is moving forward with this task, has chosen the wording to be used for ratings and the regulations, and expects to proceed after the overwhelming number of temporary, summer food service inspections have been completed.  
• L. Balch will be a lecturer on public health for a grant funded, Community Health Worker course at Gateway Community College. The program is a pilot and it will be interesting to see where placements become available.
• Grants: L. Balch has learned that the PHEP grant will be received at level funding ($58,000) for FY 15 but has been informed to prepare for decreased FY 16 funding.
• L. Balch is currently looking into a HUD grant opportunity for lead and health homes.
• The CT legislature passed legislation (without opposition) that replaces the currently required 8 public health services with the nationally recognized 10 essential public health services. These services and related capabilities will form the basis for continued per capita funding from the State. These criteria are closely aligned with the accreditation.
• The public hearing for the QVHD FY 15 budget was held on April 30, 2014 and the budget has been accepted with no public comments.

 At 6:20 p.m, a motion to adjourn was made by R. Ivins, seconded by A. Levison and passed unanimously.

 Minutes prepared by D. Culligan

 The next regular meeting of the Board of Health will be held at 4:30 P.M. on June 26, 2014.