The Board of Health at its July 17 meeting, the first one posted on Wellesley Media since last October, covered everything from summer camps to a possible program to. Here are some of the hightlights:
- The Health Department has had its hands full with summer camps, with more than 30 operating in town this summer, according to Lenny Izzo, director of community and public health. The camp season got off to a challenging start because there were a number of new camps, and the department had undergone some personnel changes, but Izzo credited the staff for coming through.
- The Department has received funding from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration used to train staff on retail food safety standards, and Izzo says he and the staff have or will get a lot out of this training, which involves very detailed inspection protocols. Board Chair Marsha Testa Simonson noted that food inspection rules change over time and are becoming more restrictive, so there’s lots for health departments to keep up on. “This is a big area for public health in relation to food safety,” she said.
- On mosquito control, the state has identified early samples carrying West Nile Virus and Eastern equine encephalitis. West Nile Virus does tend to show up in big numbers when the weather is hot and dry, and indicators that it could be a big EEE year are also there, Izzo said. The Department of Public Works has treated catch basins with larvicide, and the East Middlesex Mosquito Control Project has treated wetlands, with specific areas to be targeted as needed. The hundreds of cases of Dengue fever in New York is something the Health Department and Board here are also keeping an eye on. “I feel like it’s only a matter of time before we have Dengue fever in Massachusetts,” Board Member Shira Doran said. And in really disturbing news, Izzo noted that aggressive daytime biting mosquitoes (Aedes albopictus) are establishing themselves more in the United States (not here yet), and if they wind up in Wellesley that could change traditional recommendations for avoiding bites.
- The Health Department’s Joyce Saret has been attending seminars on hoarding disorder, and the department is looking into procuring a subscription service that would address this serious health issue. The ClearPath service, which could cost up to $12K a year based on Wellesley’s population, could include public education, behavior therapy, hands-on assessments, and other offerings. “The number of person hours invested in just one case of this is incredible, from environmental to police and fire and social work and nursing, there are so many people who get involved in these situations,” Saret said. Simonson said Wellesley was one of the first communities to really address this disorder via its public health efforts, and noted that with its older population, Wellesley residents who are socially isolated could benefit from such services as those being considered.
- The Health Department has completed the digitization of its files, Izzo said. Paper files will be retained, but the idea is to go digital moving forward.
- The town will look to shore up its tobacco regulations in the wake of new state rules restricting the sale of flavored products.
Board of Health meeting minutes are up to date if you’re interested in reviewing those. The next meeting will take place in late August or early September.
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