Riley County/Manhattan
Board of Health Report
August 31, 2011

Heather Richey, Child Care Licensing Surveyor, began the meeting describing her responsibilities, incluing providing oversight inspections to assure safety and progressive care for the children in the child-care facilities now licensed by the Health Department. She checks for environmental hazards such as cleaning supplies in reach of children. She also helps with the required paper work such as immunization records and required information that goes to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. She also follows up on complaints and encourages the providers to attend orientation programs offered by the Health Department. In answer to a question from Loren Pepperd, she stated that background checks were required for providers.

Since Doug Finney, Treasurer, was unable to be present, Charles Murphy, Director, reported on the finances and stated that the state funding cuts continued to come in. He suggested that any changes to the budget should wait until January when the change to being a County Health Department rather than the present City-County agency take place. There is ongoing transferring of funds, as they become liquid, to the county treasurer in the continuing transfer to the county jurisdiction.

Discussion of the possible need for specific vaccine refrigerators commenced with Charles Murphy, Director, stating that such a refrigerator costs approximately $6,000 and that he had ordered a device for $150 that was designed to make sure the temperature within the refrigerators presently owned and used for vaccine storage maintained the correct temperature required for vaccine storage. If this doesn’t work adequately, then the purchase of the $6,000 refrigerator will be considered.

Susie Kufahl, Assistant Director, reported the the Konza Clinic will not be expanded, which will bring up next month the question of whether the Primary Care Clinic in the Health Department should begin to accept Medicaid. She also reported on the Health Care Forum, which had been held the previous evening and sponsored by the Manhattan Alliance for Peace and Justice, where she had had the opportunity to tell about the Health Department’s part in providing care for those without health insurance. She felt that more such information needs to be available to more of the citizens of Riley County. Deb Nuss suggested that more forums could be provided by the Health Department itself.

The board then went into executive session to discuss the candidates who had applied for the Health Director position, which will open in January as Mr. Murphy retires, and to plan for interviewing them. Three candidates were chosen but their names were not released as not all of them could be reached to confirm their continued interest. They will be interviewed by the entire board within the next month.

Mr. Murphy informed the board that funding available to the Early Detection Works Program has been cut so that the Family Planning Colposcopy Program is unfunded. Manhattan has been a center for this program for this area, serving other counties besides the Riley County/Manhattan area. This is an important early detection program for cervical cancer for women. Mr. Murphy wanted the board to determine whether to continue to fund this program using reserve funds in the hope of reinstatement of the funding and if they wanted to limit it to just Riley County or continue to serve about six other counties. He estimated it could probably be continued for $6,000, but the cost varies and some of it can be recouped with use of the sliding scale payment schedule. The board agreed to continue to offer this service.

The final issue was Mr. Murphy’s report on research requested at the last board meeting on what Public Health Advisory Boards were like in other counties and states. Mr. Murphy handed out a written report showing mission statements and by-laws from as far away as California. After discussion and a suggestion by Susie Kufahl, it was decided to seek help from the Kansas Health Institute, which has considerable expertise in this area and for a small cost will offer guidance on this issue. The board agreed to seek help from the KHI hopefully within the next month.

Submitted by Sue Cohen