Jose Arriola, deputy director of Santa Cruz County Health and Human Services, urged residents to rely on science-based sources about vaccines and described the department’s use of social media and community partnerships to reach the public.

“Vaccines are effective,” Arriola said, urging listeners to consider the data and research behind immunizations. He noted that misinformation has proliferated on social media since the COVID-19 pandemic but said those platforms can also be useful: “it's a tool ... this last month, our health services Instagram page has seen 60,000 people visit.”

Arriola described partnerships formed during the pandemic. He said the county partnered with Mariposa Community Health Center to run a centralized vaccination pod at the recreation center, calling the effort “a massive undertaking.” He also said Mariposa is a contracted partner on tuberculosis-control work and assists with vaccine programs.

Beyond immunizations and pandemic response, Arriola highlighted other public-health priorities the county handles, including restaurant and public-pool inspections, septic-system consultations, mosquito surveillance, and litter-prevention efforts. He encouraged safe food handling for the July 4 holiday: “make sure you're washing your hands ... keeping the food at the proper temperature. I think, we'd rather see fireworks and not foodborne illnesses.”

Arriola also spoke to a common operational challenge: communicating with upset constituents. “Sometimes it's just really education. People just don't really know why we're doing what we're doing. And once we explain those things, it's feeling they go away feeling, okay. Now I understand,” he said.

The interview was conducted on the Gov 101 podcast with hosts Amuela Costa and Natalia Flores and included acknowledgments of student interns and local partners who support public-information efforts. Arriola praised interns’ social-media work and said the department will continue leveraging those channels to reach residents.