The local health department wants to ensure every Union County resident is cared for, whether on a typical day or in an emergency situation.
Public Information Officer Jennifer Thrush shared with the Board of Health Wednesday more about the health department’s thought process when emergency planning.
Thrush said UCHD officials pay special attention to those who have what public health employees call “access and functional needs.”
“There is no time more important than during an emergency that we consider these individuals,” Thrush said.
This includes populations like families with small children, older adults, people with disabilities and people whose first language is not English.
Thrush explained that health department employees participated in a tabletop exercise to explore how they could most effectively reach these groups of people.
Along with the circumstances unique to each individual, Thrush said public health employees also have to consider the health department’s limited resources.
She noted that many newer employees are quick to suggest that UCHD could go door to door in the case of an emergency. However, with a staff of about 40, Thrush said that is not necessarily the best solution.
UCHD employees recently participated in a tabletop exercise to explore what the best solutions could be.
Thrush said they were presented with a hypothetical situation that mimicked an anthrax outbreak that required the health department to create a “POD,” or point of dispensing, to distribute the necessary medication.
UCHD employees considered various individuals who might face more obstacles getting to the site.
One such person, Thrush explained, would be someone over the age of 70. In the hypothetical situation, this person experienced moderate dementia and while he and his wife do have a car, only his wife drives and it tends to make her nervous.
Another individual could be the spouse of a person who works for an international company whose headquarters are located in Union County. The person relies on their spouse to translate and does not have many connections in the community.
Thrush emphasized that the health department’s partnerships in the community are essential to helping remove the barriers certain community members face when working to reach good health.
For instance, she said UCATS (Union County Agency Transportation Services) was able to provide free rides to the Union County Fairgrounds for those who wanted to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Thrush said, in many scenarios, it is more effective to work with organizations like the Board of Developmental Disabilities of the Mental Health and Recovery Board, which are already very familiar with the specific needs of those they work with.
Even working with community groups like apartment activities boards or faith-based organizations are important ways to reach Union County residents.
While planning for scenarios like the COVID-19 pandemic is important, Health Commissioner Jason Orcena said the same logic trickles down to the Union County Health Department’s daily operations.
“Day to day, it’s overcoming barriers and that’s all we’re trying to do,” he said.