Crawford County health officials report expanded services, 12 sexual‑assault exams since October

Deborah Anthony, Crawford County Health Department director, told the Crawford County Commission in a June meeting that the department has expanded clinic services and provided specialized care locally, including sexual‑assault nurse exams.

The update matters because the health department is providing services that previously required victims or residents to travel out of county, and the department is trying to ensure the county receives reimbursement where available.

Anthony said the department started tracking October 1, 2024 numbers and that staff have been delivering community health visits, employee health visits and family‑planning care. "Kayla's been practicing with us as a nurse practitioner since about the October 1 because there was a little bit of time with, transition to her Kansas license," Anthony said, describing staffing changes that affected reporting. She said the department has begun offering school and camp physicals at the health department and in area schools for $10 to keep the screenings affordable.

Anthony also described a new local service: sexual‑assault nurse exams (SANE). "We've been on 12 exams," she said when asked how many SANE exams the department has done since the program began. Anthony said health‑department nurses have volunteered to provide those exams in Crawford County so victims do not need to travel to other hospitals that are not offering the service. She said the exams do not get billed to regular health insurance and that there is a separate victim compensation process that reimburses counties a set amount; she advised the commission that the department invoices county offices for those exams.

The department reported other program numbers: 388 tuberculosis skin tests, 1,302 immunization visits, 253 prenatal visits, and a WIC caseload of 914 individuals across 546 families (as presented). Anthony described daycare licensing as a substantial workload handled by two specialist staff members who cover 149 facilities across four counties and said licensing requires on‑site inspections and standardized forms.

Anthony said the health department received a grant through the Mount Carmel Foundation via the Community Foundation of Southeast Kansas to purchase an exam chair and equipment for SANE services. She said the department will issue a media release about the equipment at a later date.

On reimbursement, Commissioner Jim asked staff to follow up on whether the county is receiving appropriate payments from the statewide victim compensation fund; Anthony and the commissioners agreed county staff would check the reimbursement process. The commission also asked the department to return with updated service numbers in about six months.

Anthony told the commission the department plans a back‑to‑school event in August to advertise $10 sports and camp physicals; she said vendors offering inflatable attractions will be required to provide proof of insurance. She also noted the department is planning to list an unused county recreational vehicle for sale on Purple Wave, pending arrangements with facilities staff.

Discussion vs. decisions: the meeting record shows discussion of services, grant support and billing procedures; commissioners directed staff to check reimbursement for SANE exams and to return with updated numbers. No formal motions or votes related to the health department report were recorded.

Commissioners thanked Anthony and the staff for expanding local SANE services and for outreach on school physicals; Anthony said hospital participation in SANE training would relieve nighttime staffing pressure, but she did not present a timetable for that expansion.