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Committee mulls vacancies, swine flu
By Francesca Olsen
Hudson-Catskill Newspapers
More requests for vacant, budgeted positions were addressed by the board of supervisors Health/Mental Health committee Monday, including a discussion about how to replace the Department of Health’s Emergency Preparedness Coordinator, Marge Costello, who is retiring in December.
Costello’s salary is covered by an emergency preparedness grant; Public Health Director Nancy Winch said she’d like to see a new hire work with Costello for a significant amount of time before her retirement commences, but that no additional funding exists for this arrangement.
Winch asked for authorization to fill the position when Costello retires; the resolution was passed and will be addressed in September’s budget and salary committee meeting.
The committee also passed resolutions to fill vacant, budgeted positions for one public health nurse and one home health aide; these will also go to budget and salary.
The Health Department has been actively involved in educating county departments about Swine Flu, or H1N1, for the past month in anticipation of the upcoming flu season. Supervisor Betty Young, R-Taghkanic, asked Winch what her plan was in the event that multiple health department staff are home with the H1N1 virus. Winch replied that she was not expecting a worst-case scenario, but that the state would “provide us with whatever backup they could” and that county public health nurses were cross-trained in certain areas to pick up the slack in the event of a widespread outbreak.
“The way it is, it’s been one to two days of fever, extreme body aches, and then the recovery period,” Winch said.
Supervisor William Hughes, D-Hudson1, asked about staffing for smaller departments, such as the county payroll department. People are advised to stay home if they are sick, Winch said, adding that workers’ attitudes are different when it comes to their own health. Some work no matter what ails them and some stay home for a slight cold. “We might have to be a little more cautious this time,” she said.
Director of Mental Health Dr. Michael G. O’Leary reported during the committee meeting that additional staff is needed to keep up with intake in his department. He asked for the committee to approve the creation of the position of community mental health nurse.
The mental health center currently has a waiting list of 30 patients and “scores of other patients on reduced visits because of caseload size,” O’Leary’s agenda states. “We’ve never really had to confront a waiting list before,” he told the committee. “In my opinion, we’re kind of stretching out appointments.”
O’Leary reported the success of a pancake breakfast held at the Greenport Applebee’s on Sept. 12 as a fundraiser for suicide prevention. He worked in the kitchen for the fundraiser. “It was terrific, and very generous,” O’Leary said.
O’Leary also reminded the board about the annual public forum on physical health care, which takes place today at the second floor conference room in the county office building at 325 Columbia Street in Hudson. A panel, which includes Winch, will hear testimony and firsthand accounts of the experiences of county residents and other experts in the field; the testimony will be presented to county and state legislators at Columbia-Greene Community College on Oct. 23.
The Department of Human Services is also co-hosting the second annual “Out of the Darkness” walk on Sept. 26; the walk will benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and raise awareness of risk and preventative factors related to suicide. “We’re getting a lot of people signing up for that,” O’Leary said.
The walk starts at 10 a.m. and ends at noon. Registration is from 9-10 a.m., or online at www.outofthedarkness.org. The walk will begin at the Mental Health Department building at 325 Columbia Street.
To reach reporter Francesca Olsen call 518-828-1616, ext. 2272, or e-mail folsen@registerstar.com.
Costello’s salary is covered by an emergency preparedness grant; Public Health Director Nancy Winch said she’d like to see a new hire work with Costello for a significant amount of time before her retirement commences, but that no additional funding exists for this arrangement.
Winch asked for authorization to fill the position when Costello retires; the resolution was passed and will be addressed in September’s budget and salary committee meeting.
The committee also passed resolutions to fill vacant, budgeted positions for one public health nurse and one home health aide; these will also go to budget and salary.
The Health Department has been actively involved in educating county departments about Swine Flu, or H1N1, for the past month in anticipation of the upcoming flu season. Supervisor Betty Young, R-Taghkanic, asked Winch what her plan was in the event that multiple health department staff are home with the H1N1 virus. Winch replied that she was not expecting a worst-case scenario, but that the state would “provide us with whatever backup they could” and that county public health nurses were cross-trained in certain areas to pick up the slack in the event of a widespread outbreak.
“The way it is, it’s been one to two days of fever, extreme body aches, and then the recovery period,” Winch said.
Supervisor William Hughes, D-Hudson1, asked about staffing for smaller departments, such as the county payroll department. People are advised to stay home if they are sick, Winch said, adding that workers’ attitudes are different when it comes to their own health. Some work no matter what ails them and some stay home for a slight cold. “We might have to be a little more cautious this time,” she said.
Director of Mental Health Dr. Michael G. O’Leary reported during the committee meeting that additional staff is needed to keep up with intake in his department. He asked for the committee to approve the creation of the position of community mental health nurse.
The mental health center currently has a waiting list of 30 patients and “scores of other patients on reduced visits because of caseload size,” O’Leary’s agenda states. “We’ve never really had to confront a waiting list before,” he told the committee. “In my opinion, we’re kind of stretching out appointments.”
O’Leary reported the success of a pancake breakfast held at the Greenport Applebee’s on Sept. 12 as a fundraiser for suicide prevention. He worked in the kitchen for the fundraiser. “It was terrific, and very generous,” O’Leary said.
O’Leary also reminded the board about the annual public forum on physical health care, which takes place today at the second floor conference room in the county office building at 325 Columbia Street in Hudson. A panel, which includes Winch, will hear testimony and firsthand accounts of the experiences of county residents and other experts in the field; the testimony will be presented to county and state legislators at Columbia-Greene Community College on Oct. 23.
The Department of Human Services is also co-hosting the second annual “Out of the Darkness” walk on Sept. 26; the walk will benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and raise awareness of risk and preventative factors related to suicide. “We’re getting a lot of people signing up for that,” O’Leary said.
The walk starts at 10 a.m. and ends at noon. Registration is from 9-10 a.m., or online at www.outofthedarkness.org. The walk will begin at the Mental Health Department building at 325 Columbia Street.
To reach reporter Francesca Olsen call 518-828-1616, ext. 2272, or e-mail folsen@registerstar.com.
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