League of Women Voters Observer Corps notes on Board of Health
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, December 14, 2022
Submitted by the League of Women Voters Observer Corps.
*The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan organization encourages informed participation in government. The Observer Corps attends and takes notes at government meetings to expand public understanding of public policy and decisions. The notes do not necessarily reflect the views of the League or its members.
Board of Health Dec. 7
The program coordinator for the Toddler Learning Center which implements Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program and the Complex Needs program updated the Board on what is happening. The Center Covers Island and San Juan Counties and provides in-home and telemedicine services for children up to three years old who have disabilities and developmental issues. They train parents on how to support their children. They have Feeding Teams who help parents ensure children are getting enough calories and provide behavioral therapy. The agency will be changing its name to Steps in January 2023.
The Community Health Services manager, Mark Tompkins, briefed the board on Home Visiting and Early Childhood Education, which provides education and health services for children in lower-income households. A wellness van to provide mobile health services will launch in early 2023. The manager advocated reinstituting a Child Death Review Committee that will review the unnatural deaths of children up to 18 years and recommend and implement measures and public education.
Childcare is extremely limited in the county with San Juan particularly short. There is no licensed infant care on San Juan or Lopez. Training opportunities are available but low pay has created acute staffing shortages. The preschool on SJI did not open this year due to a lack of staff.
The Dental Program and the visiting dental van were renewed for another year and will make 36 visits in 2023. Demand for preventive care like cleaning has been double the available slots.
