Public Health Question 

JUNE 2020

Is My Local Health Department Addressing Concerns Other than COVID-19?

What Public Health Matters
Should I Bring to Their Attention?

Answer

As Summer 2020 approaches, constant attention to COVID-19 issues and protocol has not waned within your public health department.
However, much like hospitals and healthcare providers throughout the State, our Health Officer, Registered Environmental Health Specialists and Nursing Staff have begun to widen their focus and transition back to the protective roles they serve in regard to their core duties (both seasonal and year round).

The handling of animal bite reports, food establishment and food truck inspections, farmers’ markets and plan reviews, youth camp pre-inspections, recreational bathing facility plan reviews and inspections with weekly water test reviews, septic system permit approvals installments and abandonments, well inspections as well as general complaints involving the above categories and a myriad of other general complaint areas affecting our residents and our neighborhoods. Please watch our website for a revised Rabies Vaccine Clinic schedule announcement along with revised safety protocol. In a few months, more areas of health department oversight will be rotated into our workload (ex. schools, flu vaccines, etc.)

Our Administrative staff members continue to hold together operations by managing call flow, information distribution from and to our 19 Towns, and maintaining awareness of each department’s shifting focuses and priorities.

Our Nursing Department also intends to resume immunizations provided in accordance with the Vaccines for Children (VFC)/VFA Federal programs, town employee Hepatitis B vaccines, etc. within a short period of time implementing further safety protocol to protect staff and clinic attendees.

A reopening guidance page has been created and is accessible at our mcrhc.org website. Please revisit frequently as information will be added as more industries and facilities are given the green light to restart their operations. It is of importance to note that some general COVID-19 based non-compliance issues set by the Governor’s Executive Orders, may not be directly enforceable by our staff, but, as appropriate, we can advise from a public health standpoint.

Please continue to contact the MCRHC Disease Investigation team with ALL communicable disease reporting and situations as well as positive COVID-19 results in any setting public or private, located in the MCRHC jurisdiction. As we are all eager to get back to pre-pandemic ways of life, rules have inevitably changed ..What hasn’t changed are all protections provided by our licensed staff under NJ State Codes.
If you are affected by any public health concern, please let us know.
OR
To find your local health department, from anywhere in NJ,  just Ctrl and Click this helpful link: www.state.nj.us/health/lh/community/

**Stay Safe - Stay Well**