By Maureen Vander Sanden
Correspondent
Officials recently got a glimpse at the work Central Racine County Health Department has been doing for the village over the present year.
“Union Grove elected officials, staff and residents have been great partners in efforts to provide for a healthy, safe community,” said Health Officer Margaret Gesner, who presented a report to the Village Board Monday.
The health department’s motto is “success is sometimes measured by what does not happen.”
“This means we are working with you and the community through our broad array of environmental health, community health and preparedness programs to prevent disease and promote health in your community,” she explained.
Union Grove residents represent 4.3 percent of the entire population served by the health department.
The multijurisdictional health agency, established by inter-municipal agreement, serves more than 112,000 residents in 14 municipalities, including Union Grove, Caledonia, Dover, Mount Pleasant, North Bay, Norway, Raymond, Rochester, Sturtevant, Yorkville, Town and Village of Waterford, Town and City of Burlington.
According to Gesner’s report, in the past year:
- 5 percent of reported communicable diseases are from Union Grove,
- 3 percent of all maternal child health referrals for home visits come from the village,
- 11 percent of all animal bite follow-ups for rabies prevention came from the village,
- 36 environmental health licensing and inspections were conducted at Union Grove facilities requiring said services, including the Farmer’s Market.
- The health department experienced a drop in childhood vaccinations provided by the public agency by about 73 percent since 2012 due to changes in federal and state guidelines, however Gesner said people are still being vaccinated by going to their pediatrician or other healthcare provider.
According to the health officer, there are several areas that Union Grove residents have identified through a survey as priority health issues in the village, which health officials are working on.
Those include mental health, alcohol/drug abuse, child neglect and abuse, child/infant mortality, and obesity.
“(The agency) provides programming to address some of the issues and collaborates with many other Racine County groups and agencies to address others,” the health officer explained. “For example, Central Racine County Health Department chairs the Racine County child death review team, provides perinatal home visiting services as part of the Racine County Home Visiting Network, participates in the group call Family Preservation West, and works with local healthcare providers.
Only 38 percent of the health department’s budget comes from local tax revenues of municipalities in its jurisdiction.
Therefore agency officials have sought grant dollars to offset the costs of services, Gesner said.
She announced that the Wisconsin Partnership Program recently awarded Central Racine County Health Department a $50,000 grant over two years through the Community Opportunity Grants Program.
“The grant is to understand the impacts of adverse childhood experiences to improve prevention services,” she said.
Village President Michael Aimone thanked Gesner for her report and commended the agency specifically for its work in hosting classes for food vendors at the Racine County Fair.
“You did a great job conducting those classes,” he said, adding, “We look forward to a continued relationship with (the health department) in 2016.”
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