Ms. Adamson reported the Department is working on updating the ARPA budget with County Finance, who manages the funds. She reminded the Board that all ARPA dollars must be designated by the end of the year (to all allocated projects).
Dr. Michael Szurek will formally be appointed as a Board of Health member on August 20, 2024. Dr. Szurek is a dentist in Woodstock and his term will run through June 2027.
The Department will be partnering with the McHenry County Mental Health Board to encourage schools to participate in the Illinois Youth Survey. It is hoped that additional education and ongoing conversation will increase participation.
Ms. Adamson gave a shout-out to the Department’s Public Information Officer. Katherine Keefe, Clerk of the Circuit Clerk, liked the recruitment videos the Department produced and is looking to do something similar. Ms. Adamson encouraged members to check out the videos.
Ms. Nomm had the opportunity to meet with municipal representatives regarding their local requirements related to pool barriers and pool covers. At that meeting it was suggested that a survey be sent to each municipality regarding their pool barrier requirements. Ms. Nomm stated that the survey has been completed and Ms. Adamson is working with the County/ Municipal Liaison to get the surveys out to the municipalities. A short turn-around time is expected, and Ms. Nomm will bring the information back to the Board for consideration.
Director Karras informed members that the mobile unit has arrived earlier than expected. There is still a lot of work to do to get it ready. The vendor has been helpful in educating staff about how to use the equipment. Ms. Karras added that the department hopes to have an event that Board members can come to see it.
The new Illinois Disease Surveillance System (IDSS) is up and running. The STD and TB modules have rolled out and provides more robust statistics and can see data in real time.
Director Karras told board members that the Department’s Informaticist recently attended an Epidemiology conference. He came back with a lot of new ideas, and in talking with others, discovered that the Department is ahead of others in data modernization. She is very proud of the work of the Epidemiology team.
Ms. Howell informed members of the outcome of the reckless dog owner trial last week. Halfway through witnesses it was decided that the Department had made its case and to try to settle—a similar settlement was offered months earlier. One dog will return to the family who no longer lives in McHenry County and will not be allowed to have any dogs in McHenry County for three years. She said it was a very interesting process.
Last week there were 13 adoption cages available and 18 adoptable animals. There were adoptions over the weekend, which brought numbers down. Animals are still being transferred to other organizations when there is availability.
Director Howell stated there will be two fall clinics: one in September for dogs, and two in October—one for dogs and one for cats. She noted that animals must be microchipped to participate in the clinic.
Director Howell gave an update regarding the estimated 120 dogs dumped around the Chicagoland area. She stated the Division is working closely with law enforcement and other counties to locate the owners and hold them responsible. The division still has the 17 cats that were confiscated at the end of July and hope to have them relinquished or forfeited soon to get a disposition for them.
Director Howell was asked about a recent rabies-positive bat. She offered tips for preventing bats from entering the home and advised keeping away from wild animals. She also addressed precautions Animal Control staff use, such as netting, gloves, and coffee cans to contain the bat. All officers are vaccinated prophylactically against rabies, and titers are done every 2-3 years, and a booster is provided, if needed.
Director Marrin informed members that succession plan packets are going out to supervisors and employees to complete the employee assessments, which identifies current internal talent career goals of employee. GovHR provided a training on how to use the packets. An education and training program will be formulated to support employee's advancement and achievement of career goals.
The Department met with Kluber Architects who is finalizing a timeline for construction. All contracts must be approved prior to end of December under the ARPA funding requirements.
She is working with the PIO on updating communications policies and on an employee newsletter. The employee recognition committee will help determine how often and what information to include.
Ms. Gaffney asked how the bilingual program is going. Ms. Marrin said it’s going very well. The use of the language line is tracked. Since starting the Bilingual Program, there have been no Spanish interpretations using the language line. The number one language used by the language line for interpretations is Ukrainian.
Director Haak said the first kick-off meeting for the ARPA grantees went well. The Department presented its requirements, and Kerrie Johnson from County fiscal presented on how grantees will file for reimbursement.
She stated that the Department has started the discussion on aligning the Community Health Assessment with the hospital systems and other partners. She is also working with the epidemiology program to develop more realistic evaluation plans for the MAPP groups. NACCHO rolled out MAPP 2.0, which will be incorporated into the next assessment cycle.
Manager Dietz said she is working on finalizing the budget and finishing up the capacity and cost assessment.