Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Health topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Burke County Health Department reports lower infectious disease, wins awards and expands partnerships
Summary
Health Director Danny Scalise reported declines in hepatitis A and other communicable diseases, improved WIC outcomes with increased federal benefit circulation, faster vital-record turnaround, and several awards and partnerships; staff recruitment and environmental health inspection backlogs were discussed.
Health Director Danny Scalise presented the health department’s quarterly operations report on Jan. 7, highlighting declines in hepatitis A cases and other communicable diseases and several programmatic accomplishments.
Scalise said county hepatitis A rates dropped from a high that previously ranked Burke among the state’s worst to effectively near zero, attributing improvements to harm‑reduction and health‑education efforts. He reported declines in ED overdose visits and a reduction in overdose deaths. Scalise also noted WIC performance improvements, including a national gold award and increased federal benefit issuance to local residents — numbers in the presentation showed federal WIC dollars returning more than $1.8 million to the local economy in the latest reporting period.
Scalise said the health department improved its turnaround for vital records and now ranks among the fastest in the state for accurate record issuance. He described staff development and recruitment efforts tied to a strategic plan with goals that include being an employer of choice, mitigating substance use, expanding academic partnerships and improving environmental health practice. The department has expanded partnerships with public health academic programs and hosts student practicums and internships.
Scalise also addressed environmental health staffing and inspection capacity. He said vacancies and retirements left the unit short of recommended staffing and that the department has contracted temporary registered environmental health specialists and is training new hires; he expects staffing to be caught up by the end of the fiscal year so inspection cycles return to normal.
Commissioners asked about inspection backlogs and septic permitting; Scalise said food‑and‑lodging inspections and on‑site septic work had fallen behind but that the department is hiring and contracting to close the gap, with the goal of being current next fiscal year. He also noted the department is pursuing public‑health preparedness grants and broader accreditation‑related work.
Ending: The board accepted the health department report as presented; Scalise said staff will continue recruitment, training and quality improvement work and move forward on public health preparedness and accreditation activities.
