HER. YOU READY? READY. AND THEN. SO WHAT WAS THAT? COULD YOU JUST SAY THE MEETING? OKAY, WE'RE
[00:00:06]
GOING TO START THE MEETING. TEXAS. SO THIS IS THE REGULAR BUSINESS MEETING. LET'S START.GO AHEAD. THANK YOU. OF THIS START TIME OF. 730. CALL 8TH JANUARY EIGHTH, 2025. THE MEETING LOCATION IS THE MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP MEETING ROOM. IT IS THE INTENTION OF THE BOARD TO CONCLUDE THIS MEETING BY 9:30 P.M. ANY AGENDA ITEM NOT CONSIDERED BY 930 WILL BE TABLED UNTIL THE NEXT REGULARLY SCHEDULED MEETING. OPENING STATEMENT ADEQUATE NOTICE OF THE MEETING AS REQUIRED BY SECTIONS THREE D AND FOUR A OF THE OPEN PUBLIC MEETING ACT, HAS BEEN PROVIDED TO THE PUBLIC AND FILED WITH THE TOWNSHIP CLERK. WE'RE GOING TO DO ROLL CALL. DOCTOR GRAYSON. HERE. DOCTOR AGUIRRE HERE. DOCTOR FAISAL NOT HERE. STILL NOT HERE. HASN'T BEEN HERE. DOCTOR SHARMA HERE. DOCTOR NEWMAN IS NOT HERE. DOCTOR MOHAN HERE. MISTER CURTIS HERE. DOCTOR PRATT HERE. DOCTOR. SARIAH HERE. HEALTH OFFICER PATEL HERE. JENNIFER FOSTER HERE. TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE LIAISON. PATRICIA. TODD. I'M SORRY. TAYLOR. TODD HERE. THANK YOU. AND DOCTOR BURT MENDELBAUM HERE. THANK YOU. DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT? NO, MA'AM. OKAY. I KIND OF MISS THOSE DAYS. THAT'S GOOD. LET'S BRING IT BACK. OKAY. WE HAVE NO PUBLIC COMMENT TONIGHT. SO WE'LL
[IV. Consent Agenda]
MOVE INTO THE CONSENT AGENDA. ALL MATTERS LISTED HERE UNDER ARE CONSIDERED ROUTINE IN NATURE AND WILL BE APPROVED IN ONE MOTION. ANY MEMBER MAY REQUEST THAT ANY ITEMS BE REMOVED FOR SEPARATE CONSIDERATION. MONTHLY REPORTS ARE THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT MONTHLY REPORT FROM DECEMBER 2020 FOR THE COMMUNICABLE DISEASE REPORT FOR 2024, AND THE MINUTES FROM THE REGULARLY SCHEDULED MEETING OF THE BOARD OF HEALTH HELD ON DECEMBER 11TH, 2024. CAN I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? I MOVE. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY, NOW WE HAVE A RESOLUTION. THIS IS[V. RESOLUTION 2025-09 APPROVING 2024 HEALTH OFFICERS SALARY]
THE REAL 2020 5-9 RESOLUTION. IT'S THE 2025 DASH TEN. OH, IT IS TEN. DARN. OKAY, 2025 DASH TEN. THIS IS SO WE AS A BOARD HAVE TO APPROVE. WELL, WE DON'T HAVE TO. WE ARE APPROVING THE HEALTH OFFICER SALARY. ALL OF THE OTHER DEPARTMENT CHAIR SALARIES WERE PASSED BY RESOLUTION ON THE 2ND OF JANUARY. AND SO THIS IS KIND OF A CORRECTIVE MEASURE. I JUST WANT TO NAME THAT ALL OF THOSE SALARIES AND ARE LISTED IN THE RECORD PUBLIC RECORD FOR THE 2020. SORRY. THE JANUARY 2ND MEETING OF THE TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE. SO IF YOU HAVE ANY INTEREST IN LOOKING AT THOSE SALARIES OR THOSE SALARY RANGES, YOU CAN DO THAT BY LOOKING AT THAT PUBLIC RECORD. AND THERE WAS NO RESOLUTION FOR THE HEALTH OFFICER AT THAT TIME. SO THAT'S WHY WE WERE PASSING THIS RESOLUTION. SO WHEREAS THE MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP BOARD OF HEALTH OF THE MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP, SOMERSET COUNTY, DESIRES TO SET THE 2024 SALARY OF THE HEALTH OFFICER NOT COVERED UNDER THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP BOARD OF HEALTH, THAT THE 2024 ANNUAL SALARY FOR THE POSITION OF THE HEALTH OFFICER FOR 2025 IS ESTABLISHED AT $115,000, EFFECTIVE LAST JANUARY 2024. 1ST JANUARY 2024, AND SHALL BE PAID PER THE TOWNSHIP PAYROLL SCHEDULE. AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT THIS RESOLUTION SHALL TAKE EFFECT IMMEDIATELY UPON ADOPTION AND IT WILL BE ADOPTED TODAY. SO CAN I HAVE A MOTION? SO AGAIN, JUST TO CLARIFY, THIS IS RETROACTIVELY SET A 115 FOR LAST YEAR AND CONTINUE THROUGH THIS YEAR. AND THEN WE WILL DO ANOTHER PATH. WE WILL PASS A RESOLUTION. IT SOUNDS LIKE UNLESS THEY DO IT AGAIN, IF THEY IT'S UP TO THEM TO PASS THE DEPARTMENT CHAIR RESOLUTIONS. THEY DIDN'T FOR DEEWANGI IN THIS LAST INSTANCE. SO WE WILL ALSO BE HAPPY TO DO IT AGAIN FOR 2025. OKAY. AND WE WILL DO IT SOONER RATHER THAN LATER. AND OUR APPROVAL OF THAT WILL GO FORWARD AT THE TOWNSHIP LEVEL, BECAUSE THE OTHER APPROVALS WERE DONE BY THE TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE, I BELIEVE.RIGHT. THAT'S RIGHT. BUT NOW WE'RE UP. WE'RE SETTING THIS SEPARATELY FROM THAT. YES. WELL, WE DID QUOTE UNQUOTE VERDICT WILL BE ADOPTED BY THEM. YES, WE DID DO WE DID DO SOME SHARED
[00:05:01]
GOVERNANCE. AND I WILL SAY FROM MY OWN PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE, I HAD HOPED IT WOULD BE HIGHER BECAUSE WE DO HAVE A STATUTORY REQUIREMENT TO MEET THE MAXIMUM OF A SALARY RANGE BY THE HEALTH OFFICER'S FIFTH YEAR. AND AT THE CURRENT TRAJECTORY THAT WE'RE ON, IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE WE'RE GOING TO MAKE IT. SO WE WILL HAVE TO AT SOME POINT IN THE NEXT THREE YEARS. 2020 6TH OCTOBER, FIRST OF 2026 IS WHEN WE HAVE TO MEET THE MAXIMUM OF THE SALARY RANGE. AND AT THE CURRENT TRAJECTORY THAT WE ARE ON, WE WILL HAVE TO MAKE A VERY LARGE CORRECTION. AND I WAS TRYING TO AVOID THAT AND SAY, COULD WE MAKE COULD WE SPREAD THAT CORRECTION ACROSS THREE YEARS? AND THAT WAS NOT ACCEPTED. SO WE ARE GOING TO DO IT THIS WAY FOR THIS YEAR AND WORK TO CORRECT IT AGAIN IN ANOTHER FUTURE DATE. SO THIS IS AGAIN, JUST TO CLARIFY, BEING CORRECTED FOR 24, BUT IT WILL BE ALSO APPLICABLE FOR 2025 OR NO THIS ONE. NO, NOT UNTIL WE UPDATE. WE HAVE A 2025 RESOLUTION. SO 2025 RESOLUTION. OKAY. AND WE ALSO HAVE TO DO A SALARY ORDINANCE FOR ALL NONUNION NONUNION EMPLOYEES. SO WE'LL DO THAT IN A FUTURE MEETING AS WELL. THAT'S WHAT YOU THAT'S WHAT IT MEANS IS NOT COLLECTIVE BARGAINING. YES YES YES. JUST TO CLARIFY THAT. SO NOT NOT TO INCREASE THE DISCUSSION, BUT WE DO NOT SPREAD THAT OVER THREE YEARS. FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WILL BE A BONUS IN 2026. YEAH. THEY'RE GOING TO THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO SOME. THERE'S YEAH THERE WILL HAVE TO BE A VERY LARGE CORRECTION IN EITHER 2025 OR 2026. AND I WAS TRYING TO SPREAD IT OVER THREE YEARS. I WAS JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE LOGIC WHY I CANNOT EXPLAIN. SO WE EXPECT A RESOLUTION FOR 2025 SINCERELY IN THE NEXT TWO MONTHS, I'M HOPING. OKAY. YEAH. SO I WOULD LIKE TO DO IT RATHER THAN WAIT AND THEN FIND OUT. OH, WE MISSED AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO IT WITH THE REST OF THE DEPARTMENT CHAIRS. IT WAS JUST A DIFFERENT WAY THAT THAT HANDLED IT THIS YEAR. SO WE HAD TO DO IT AGAIN. BUT WHEN YOU SAID LIKE THIS DID NOT PASS ON 2024. AND YOU KNOW, IF THIS DOES NOT PASS IN 2025, WE HAVE TO DO IT ONLY A YEAR LATER, OR WE CAN REAPPLY IT AGAIN. WELL, WE'LL WE GET TO PASS IT. SO WE'RE THE ONES THAT PASS IT SO WE CAN CHOOSE TO PASS IT OR NOT. OKAY. SO DOES THIS MEAN YOU WEREN'T PAID AT ALL LAST YEAR? NO. IT WAS. THIS IS JUST FOR THE CORRECTION. OKAY.OKAY. YES. THAT'S GOOD. YEAH. SO THIS ONE IS CORRECT? YES. IT'S RETROACTIVE. YEAH. YEAH. AND THEN WE'LL DO 2025 AND HOPEFULLY WORK WITH THE WE CAN WORK IN A DIFFERENT WAY WITH THE CFO AND THE TOWNSHIP MANAGER. AND THEY WILL PAY. CORRECT. YES, YES. YES YES YES. WELL WE DID I DID WORK WITH THEM AND SAY LIKE TELL ME WHAT THE NUMBER IS. YEAH, I GUESS I GUESS I REMEMBER THAT DOESN'T FEEL ANY, BUT IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS DEFINITELY GOING TO HAPPEN. THAT WAS THAT WAS OKAY. AND YOU CAN JUST I TOTALLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU LOOK AT THE SALARY RELATIVE TO THE OTHER DEPARTMENT CHAIRS AND, AND JUST TO GET FAMILIAR WITH WHAT THE SALARY RANGES LOOK LIKE FOR THE ENTIRE TOWNSHIP. AND THEN WHEN WE COME TO HAVE THE 2025 RESOLUTION, WE CAN HAVE A MORE ROBUST DISCUSSION ABOUT IT. AND. OKAY. SOUND GOOD? YEAH. OKAY. SO THIS IS SORRY. THAT'S OKAY JOE.
SO THIS IS JUST A LIKE JUST THE CORRECT PAPERWORK. LIKE LIKE LIKE I'M CONFUSED BECAUSE IT SAYS SHALL BE PAID LIKE LIKE IT HASN'T BEEN PAID YET. THE INCREASE HASN'T BEEN PAID YET.
YEAH. YEAH. THE INCREASE. CAUCASUS AND SHALL BE PAID LIKE LIKE THE LAST LINE. OKAY. SO THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 2024 CURRENT AND WHAT YOU WERE PAID. AND THEN WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING WILL BE THE DIFFERENCE. YES. OKAY. AND THAT SHOULD BE PAID. OKAY. JUST TO CLARIFY, JOE, TO YOUR POINT, YOUR QUESTION, IN OTHER WORDS, THIS IS RETROACTIVE AND THE COMPENSATION WAS BASED ON 115,000. RIGHT. IS THAT WHAT IT MEANS? NO, IT WAS NOT. IT WAS A DIFFERENT NUMBER. OKAY. LAST YEAR AND THERE WAS AN AGREED UPON INCREASE. OKAY. AND THAT'S THIS. THIS NUMBER HERE IS HER PREVIOUS SALARY. THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT OFFICER'S PREVIOUS SALARY, PLUS THE AGREED UPON INCREASE. OKAY, GOOD. YEAH. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? FURTHER DISCUSSION. OKAY. CAN I
[00:10:03]
HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? YEAH. I MOTION. SECOND. OKAY. OKAY. DOCTOR. GRAYSON. YES. DOCTOR.SHARMA. YES. DOCTOR. NEWMAN. I'M SORRY. DOCTOR. MOHAN. YES. MISTER. YES. DOCTOR. PRATT. YES.
DOCTOR. SHREYA. YES. OKAY. YES. AND I AM TELLING YOU THAT I'M DOING THAT BECAUSE I WANT THIS TO MOVE FORWARD. AND IT WAS A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK. AND JUST PUTTING THAT ON THE RECORD.
[VI. 2024 BRANDING STRATEGY PLAN]
YEAH. THANK YOU. OKAY. WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO THE NEXT POINT. BRANDING STRATEGY PLAN. SO THIS SHOULD BE IF YOU GUYS HAVE ACCESS TO YOUR EMAIL YOU SHOULD HAVE A PDF THERE AVAILABLE TO YOU. WE HAD DISCUSSED IT IN IN DECEMBER AS WELL. SO FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE NEW ON THE BOARD, I DON'T EXPECT YOU TO READ THIS WHOLE THING RIGHT NOW, BUT MAYBE DEVON. YEAH, DEVANTE CAN GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT THIS IS. SO THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, WE'RE CURRENTLY GETTING READY TO APPLY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH REACCREDITATION FOR NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH REACCREDITATION.AND SO PART OF THAT PROCESS INVOLVES UPDATING OUR BRANDING STRATEGY. AND THE BRANDING STRATEGY PRETTY MUCH CONSISTS OF UPDATED LOGOS. SINCE WE WERE LAST ACCREDITED. WE HAVE A NEW TOWNSHIP LOGO THAT YOU'LL SEE ON HERE. BUT OUR PUBLIC HEALTH LOGO REMAINS THE SAME, AND THE PHAB LOGO IS ALSO NEW. SO IT'S REALLY THE MONTGOMERY LOGO AND THE PHAB LOGO THAT ARE THE UPDATES HERE.
AND WE KIND OF BROKE IT DOWN BY WHERE AND HOW WE WILL USE THESE LOGOS. MAKE SURE THAT STAFF HAVE CONSISTENT BRANDING IN THEIR EMAIL SIGNATURES ON THEIR UNIFORMS. TOWNSHIP VEHICLES, ANY INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS THAT WE CREATE. AND THEN ALSO MAKE SURE THAT THIS BRANDING STRATEGY IS INCORPORATED INTO OUR NEW EMPLOYEE ONBOARDING SO THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S EASIER FOR NEW EMPLOYEES TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH OUR PROCESS. AND WE ALSO HAVE UPDATED TEMPLATES OF OUR BUSINESS CARDS THAT WE INCLUDED ON HERE AS WELL. SO JUST THIS FAIRLY SIMPLE BRANDING PLAN THAT ALIGNS WITH THE ACCREDITATION STANDARDS. AND WE JUST WANTED TO HAVE THE BOARD REVIEW THIS AND VOTE ON IT. ANY ANY DISCUSSION. GO AHEAD. WHICH ATTACHMENT IS IT. NO, NO I'LL JUST ASK. OH THEY JUST SENT IT OUT TO THE ATTACHMENT. NO IT JUST THEY JUST SENT IT AGAIN TODAY. OH I SEE.
OH I THOUGHT IT WAS IN DECEMBER. AGENDA. JEN JUST SENT IT. SO IT SHOULD BE A SEPARATE EMAIL FROM THE. I DON'T SEE IT. I DON'T SEE IT EITHER. DID YOU GET IT? I DIDN'T GET IT TODAY. I DON'T RECALL GETTING IT. JEN, CAN YOU SHARE IT? MAYBE OR NO. WHAT IS THIS TITLED? THAT. YOU WANT ME TO READ IT? I DIDN'T GET YOUR BRANDING STRATEGY. OH, THAT'S RIGHT THERE. LIKE A WORD, DOC. I GOT IT. WHAT? DID I GET IT? WHAT, DID YOU JUST SEND IT TO ME? I STUFF THAT GOES IN THERE.
LET'S SEE IF JEN CAN PULL IT UP FOR US. LET'S SEE IF WE LOOK OKAY. IT LOOKS LIKE SHE'S TRYING 18 ATTACHMENTS. I CHECKED. I THINK MOST PART OF IT. THAT'S WHAT. MEETINGS SCHEDULED AND SO FORTH. SO THOSE THINGS ARE ON. THE FIRST. FIRST, MY COMPUTER IS ACTING WEIRD. IT'S BEEN 720 NOW FOR THE LAST 40 MINUTES. AND PUT IT IN.
OH, YOU SENT IT. OH, YEAH, I GOT IT. CAN YOU CAN YOU SHARE IT ON THE SCREEN? YEAH. NO. I'M GOOD.
OKAY, I DON'T KNOW. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO USE THIS. OH, WELL THEN DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT. YOU JUST GOT IT. DO YOU KNOW HOW TO USE IT? YOU GOT IT. NO, I HAVEN'T TRIED THESE MONITORS. IT HASN'T COME. FORWARDED TO ME. IF I'M NOT ON THE LIST. I KNOW, I DON'T KNOW FIRST NAME, LAST NAME.
[00:15:11]
THANK YOU. LET ME SEE IF I CAN. COME OVER. HERE. YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES IT'S NICE. IT'S ALWAYS LIKE THIS. THANK YOU. YEAH. YEAH. OKAY. YEAH. YOU WANTED TO GO? ABOUT IT? THANKS. YOU GUYS HAVE IT NOW? I THINK SO, YEAH. OKAY, GOOD. ALL RIGHT. PERFECT. SO THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE HERE IN DECEMBER WILL PROBABLY REMEMBER IT. OH, LOOK AT THIS. WE'RE GETTING WE'RE GETTING MONITORS.OH, THIS ISN'T WORKING BECAUSE IT KNOWS I HAVE A COMPUTER. THAT'S. ON MINE. OH, THERE WE GO. AND THERE'S TWO. YOU'LL SEE ON PAGE TWO. THOSE ARE THE TWO BIGGER BRANDS. THE PUBLIC HEALTH ON PAGE TWO. AND THEN THE FACT THAT WE ARE AN ACCREDITED HEALTH DEPARTMENT. I'LL GIVE YOU THAT LITTLE SHIELD. LOOKS FAMILIAR. YES, I'VE SEEN THAT GUY BEFORE. YES. AND THEN THERE'S A BROADER.
ENGAGEMENT WITH STAFF. AND TARGETED COMMUNICATIONS WHEN THEY WILL USE IT. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN WE DO THE THERE WAS A RECENT WATER MAIN BREAK AND THERE WAS A COMMUNICATION FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH OUT TO, TO DESCRIBE THAT THERE WAS A WATER MAIN BREAK, AND THAT MEANT THAT THIS WAS GOING TO AFFECT THE OPERATION OF NUMEROUS, NUMEROUS BUSINESSES IN THE LOCATION. AND SO ALL OF OUR EVERYTHING WAS BRANDED WITH OUR CORRECT LOGO, ETC, AND SOME CONTACT INFORMATION FOR PEOPLE TO GET IN TOUCH WITH. BUT TYPICALLY WHEN SOMETHING HAPPENS, THEY DON'T. THEY STILL WILL. THEY WILL REACH OUT TO WHOEVER THEY CAN CONNECT WITH AT THE TOWNSHIP. BUT WE'RE TRYING TO GET MOST OF THIS COMING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND THE APPROPRIATE INSPECTORS. AND FOR THE MOST PART, THE BUSINESSES HAVE BEEN VERY ACCOMMODATING.
THERE HAVE BEEN SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM. THE THING THAT IS UNFORTUNATE IS THIS IS AN ASIDE AND NOT ABOUT OUR BRANDING HAS HAD TWO WATER MAIN BREAKS IN THE LAST YEAR. SO THAT'S. YEAH. THE MOST RECENT ONE WAS IN THE LAST FEW DAYS, TWO DAYS AGO. IN FACT. YEAH.
YEAH. WE CAN'T GET PIZZA. HE CAN'T GET PIZZA FROM ALFONSO'S. WATER MAIN BRANCH. I THINK WE DISCUSSED THAT LIKE A MONTH. DENNIS WAS THERE. YEAH, I THINK PROBABLY NUMBER LIKE THE WATER MAIN IS JUST. I DON'T KNOW IF I WAS PART OF THE BOARD THEN. YOU WERE. NO, YOU WERE, YOU WERE PROBABLY. YEAH. THAT WAS PROBABLY ONE OF THE 15. NO I HAVEN'T BECAUSE EVER SINCE THAT LONG. THEN THE DAYS GO SO FAST. RIGHT, RIGHT. BUT THEY TEND TO. THEY BREAK A LOT. YEAH. THE END OF THE SERVICE LIFE. YEAH. THERE'S THE ONE IN HILLSBOROUGH THAT WENT NOT THAT LONG AGO, LIKE SARAH JANE'S. AND THEN LIKE, HE'S LIKE, YEAH. OH, OKAY. SO THAT'S THE GIST OF THE COMMUNICATION PLAN. JUST TO BE VERY CLEAR ABOUT OUR BRANDING. YES. DENNIS. DENNIS. YEAH.
ESPECIALLY AROUND NOTIFYING. WHAT OUR PUBLIC HEALTH. YOU KNOW, WHEN WE'RE COMMUNICATING WITH THE TOWNSHIP AS WELL AS COMMUNICATING THAT WE'RE ACCREDITED, WHICH IS WE ARE ONE OF. FIVE ACCREDITED DEPARTMENTS OF HEALTH IN THE IN THE STATE. WOW. I DON'T KNOW THAT. THAT'S GOOD. IT IS VERY GOOD. IT'S A VERY GOOD IT'S A VERY, VERY IMPRESSIVE. THE ACCREDITED ACCREDITATION AGENCY. LIKE WHO DOES IT? IT'S. HE HAD. YEAH HE HAD HE FABRICATING. HE HAD PREVIOUSLY FAB. THAT'S IT. FAB. IT'S FAB IS ACCREDITED FOR LIKE A YEAR OR THREE YEARS. SORRY, DOCTOR MOHAN. THIS ACCREDITATION IS FOR A YEAR OR FOR THREE YEARS? FIVE YEARS. FIVE YEARS.
FIVE YEARS. OKAY, WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT IN ANOTHER MEETING TOO, BECAUSE WE'RE ABOUT TO GO UP FOR ACCREDITATION. OKAY. SO THIS LOGO WILL GO IN ALL THE COMMUNICATION LIKE PAPERWORK. IS THAT WHAT IT IS ABOUT? YEAH. ON OUR IN OUR PLANS, INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS LIKE FLIERS, BROCHURES, SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS, YOU KNOW, DEPENDING ON SPACE AND FORMATTING. BUSINESS CARDS, BUSINESS CARDS. OKAY. YEAH. YEAH. SO WHAT I WAS JUST DESCRIBING WAS THE SOCIAL MEDIA AND E-BLASTS THAT WE HAD AROUND THE WATER. MAIN BREAK. YEAH. OKAY. AND THEN YOU'LL ALSO
[00:20:05]
REVIEW THESE LOGOS AND MAKE APPROPRIATE CHANGES. YEAH. OKAY. OKAY. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? OKAY. MOTION TO APPROVE. OKAY. YES. YES. OKAY. DOCTOR. DOCTOR. GRAYSON. YES. DOCTOR. MARY. YES.DOCTOR. SHARMA. YES. DOCTOR. MOHAN. YES. MISTER. YES. DOCTOR. PARTY. YES. DOCTOR. SORAYA. YES.
[VII. HEALTH OFFICER COMMENTS]
OKAY. HERE'S THE BIG SECTION. THIS IS THE HEALTH OFFICER COMMENTS SECTION. ALL RIGHT.OKAY. GO FOR IT. SO WE ARE CURRENTLY IN CODE BLUE. SO THAT MEANS WHEN WE HAVE WHEN WE'RE EXPERIENCING FREEZING TEMPERATURES FOR PROLONGED PERIODS OF TIME, THE COUNTY WILL ISSUE CODE BLUE. THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT GETS INVOLVED. SO THAT WE ARE FIRST, YOU KNOW, INFORMED AND AWARE OF CODE BLUES. AND ANYTIME THERE ARE ANY HOMELESS PEOPLE OR INDIVIDUALS THAT HAVE BEEN DISPLACED, THEY DON'T HAVE A SAFE PLACE TO STAY. WHERE THEY DON'T HAVE SAFE. THEY DON'T HAVE SHELTER. THEN THE TOWNSHIP IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE ABLE TO SAFELY HOUSE THESE INDIVIDUALS OVERNIGHT. SO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THEY HAVE THEIR OWN PROTOCOLS AS THEY COME ACROSS THESE INDIVIDUALS. AND THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT HELPS IN IN MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE RESOURCES AVAILABLE AND THAT ARRANGEMENTS ARE MADE TO FACILITATE GETTING THEM TO, TO SAFE HOUSING. SO WE ARE CURRENTLY IN CODE BLUE THROUGH JANUARY 13TH. WE DID HAVE ONE PERSON WHO NEEDED ASSISTANCE. THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WAS ABLE TO HELP GET THEM INTO INTO A MOTEL I THINK IN HILLSBOROUGH. IF SO, THE IDEA IS YOU CALL SOMERSET COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES OR THE BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES IF THEY ARE NOT AVAILABLE OR IF IT'S AFTER HOURS, THEN THE A, YOU KNOW, EITHER US OR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, WE HAVE THE PERSON CONTACT 211 AND TO HAVE THEM MAKE ARRANGEMENTS WITH THIS INDIVIDUAL TO GET OR FAMILY WHOEVER NEEDS SHELTER TO GET THEM INTO SAFE HOUSING. SOMETIMES 211 GETS OVERWHELMED AND WE'RE NOT ABLE TO GET THEM THROUGH THAT SERVICE. AND THAT'S WHEN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WOULD HAVE TO TRANSPORT INDIVIDUALS TO SOMERSET MEDICAL CENTER. BUT THAT IS FOR EXTREMELY SHORT AMOUNTS OF TIME, SO SOMETIMES IT MIGHT NOT EVEN BE THROUGH THE CODE BLUE. THE DURATION OF CODE BLUE. SO WE YOU KNOW, WE JUST NEED TO WORK WITH OUR COUNTY PARTNERS AND TWO ONE, ONE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. AND IF ALL OTHER RESOURCES, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE AVAILABLE TO US, THEN THE TOWNSHIP WILL HAVE TO YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHEN WE OPEN UP OUR WARMING CENTERS AND HAVE STAFFING AVAILABLE SO THAT PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO STAY OVERNIGHT. FOR AS LONG AS THEY NEED. WHILE WE CAN MAKE ARRANGEMENTS TO FIND THEM. TEMPORARY HOUSING. SO AS WE GET INTO THE WINTER MONTHS, AS WE HAVE PROLONGED PERIODS OF CODE BLUE, IT DOES GET CHALLENGING.
BUT WE ALL WORK TOGETHER. SO IT'S, YOU KNOW, THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT BECAUSE THEY HAVE AUTO COFFMAN. THAT'S OUR DESIGNATED WARMING CENTER, THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. YOU KNOW, WE ALL TRY TO WORK TOGETHER. SO THAT'S THE CODE BLUE UPDATE.
YEAH. GO AHEAD. NO. GO AHEAD. SO THERE'S A PROCESS IN PLACE AS YOU WERE EXPLAINING. SO MY QUESTION IS WHAT DESIGNATE AS A CODE BLUE SCENARIO. HOW IS THAT BEING MODELED. AND WHO IS LIKE HOW IS IT BEING COMMUNICATED THAT THIS IS THE PROCESS. RIGHT. THERE'S A PROCESS IN PLACE. BUT FOR A NORMAL CITIZEN, IF THEY WANT TO BRING THIS TO SOMEONE'S ATTENTION, HOW WOULD THEY KNOW THAT? SO. SO THE CODE BLUE IS ACTIVATED BY SOMERSET COUNTY. YOU KNOW, BASED ON OUR EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE. SO THEY'RE THE ONES THAT WILL NOTIFY US THAT WE ARE, YOU KNOW, ACTIVATING CODE BLUE. AND THEN IT'S UP TO THE TOWNSHIP TO SEND OUT MESSAGING VIA E-BULLETIN AND TO MAKE SURE RESIDENTS ARE AWARE THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS THIS IS WE'VE BEEN CODE BLUE HAS BEEN ACTIVATED AND THIS IS THE PROCESS. THESE ARE THE STEPS THAT YOU CAN TAKE IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW NEEDS TEMPORARY HOUSING. SO THAT SHOULD BE IN THOSE WEEKLY BULLETINS THAT WE SEND OUT. AND THEN THERE SHOULD ALSO BE INFORMATION ON THE WEBSITE UNDER SOCIAL SERVICES OR HUMAN SERVICES SECTION. SO BUT THE YOU KNOW, THE EASIEST THING TO REMEMBER IS TO EITHER CALL 211 OR JUST CALL THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. THE TOWNSHIP GENERAL NUMBER. IF YOU COME ACROSS ANYBODY THAT NEEDS HELP. SOMETIMES PEOPLE REACH OUT THEMSELVES. SOMETIMES WE HAVE CONCERNED FAMILY MEMBERS OR FRIENDS WHO REACH OUT. NEIGHBORS ARE MORE COMMON, SO PEOPLE DO KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR THEIR NEIGHBORS. AND THAT'S SOMETHING ELSE. YOU KNOW, WE'LL INCLUDE IN OUR MESSAGING TO THE COMMUNITY. THANK YOU. THAT THAT'S THE SAME THING. I WAS ASKING THAT HOW
[00:25:07]
NEEDS ARE IDENTIFIED. LET'S SAY THEY ARE HOMELESS. THEY MAY NOT HAVE ACCESS TO A PHONE OR CALLING OR OR WHATEVER, ETC. SORRY, NOT INTERNET OR ANYTHING. SO AND IF THEY HAPPEN TO BE, LET'S SAY IN COLD NIGHT OR SOMETHING, HOW THEY ARE IDENTIFIED TO GET IMMEDIATE HELP. YEAH. IT'S REALLY THROUGH CONCERNED CITIZENS AND THEN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THEY REALLY HELP FACILITATE THEY, YOU KNOW, EVEN LEND THEIR, THEIR PHONES TO TRY TO GET AND TRY TO GET THEM HELP AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, HELPING THEM CONNECT TO TWO, ONE, ONE AND THEN, YOU KNOW, GETTING THE BALL ROLLING THAT WAY. DO WE GET THESE NOTIFICATIONS IN THE NEXT SLIDE? NEVER SAW MONTGOMERY. SO MONTGOMERY MONTGOMERY DOESN'T SEND OUT AN SOS. BUT WE JUST BETWEEN LIKE THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. YOU KNOW, WE KEEP AN EYE ON THE CODE BLUE ACTIVATIONS. AND THEN DEPENDING ON THE NEED WE WILL SEND IT OUT VIA THE EBOLA BULLET, THE WEEKLY E-BULLETIN. BUT MONTGOMERY HASN'T. THEY DON'T SEND THE NIXLE FOR CODE BLUE. OKAY. ANY REASON FOR THAT? I THINK IT JUST HAS TO DO WITH LOGISTICS. I THINK IT DEPENDS ON IF THEY FEEL THAT THERE IS A STRONG NEED FOR IT. IT REALLY DEPENDS ON AS WE START GETTING CALLS AND REQUESTS FOR HELP IN MONTGOMERY, IT'S NOT THAT OFTEN THAT WE HEAR FROM PEOPLE. IT'S USUALLY A HANDFUL OF PEOPLE PER SEASON, I WOULD SAY. SO I THINK IF THEY NOTICE THAT THRESHOLD GOING UP, I THINK THEN THAT'S WHEN THEY MIGHT START WITH THE MORE PUBLIC NOTIFICATIONS. DO WE THINK THAT THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO WOULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE SERVICES WOULD INCREASE IF PIXELS WERE TO BE USED, OR DO WE THINK LIKE IT SEEMS TO ME THAT IT'S PUTTING THE CART BEHIND THE HORSE, KIND OF LIKE WHY NOT INCREASE THE PUBLICITY OF THE SERVICE THAT'S OFFERED TO SEE IF MORE PEOPLE NEED TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT, AS OPPOSED TO WAITING FOR MORE PEOPLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF AND THEY DON'T KNOW ABOUT. THAT'S TRUE. YEAH, WE CAN BRING THAT UP TO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. BECAUSE I DO GET NOTIFICATION FROM NEW BRUNSWICK. YEAH.SOMETIMES. DO. YEAH. YEAH, THEY DO SEND THOSE OUT. I KNOW THAT THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, THE TOWNSHIP AND ESPECIALLY THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. THEY HAVE THEY THEY TRY TO WORK WITH ALL OF THE DIFFERENT PROPERTY MANAGERS AND ALL THE DIFFERENT DEVELOPMENTS AROUND TOWN. SO IF THEY DO SEE SOMETHING, THEY KNOW TO REACH OUT. BUT, YOU KNOW, I AGREE WITH DOCTOR FAISON'S POINT TOO, THAT WE WANT TO BE MORE PROACTIVE THERE. YEAH, I CAN I CAN BRING THAT UP. ANY DOCTOR SHARMA YOU. THE OTHER THING THAT I WANTED TO BRING TO THE BOARD'S ATTENTION WAS THAT ON DECEMBER 16TH, THERE WAS AN INCIDENT IN BRANCHBURG THAT THERE WAS A SOME TYPE OF A CHEMICAL SPILL AND IT RESULTED IN, YOU KNOW, TASTE AND ODOR CONCERNS FROM THE RESIDENTS. SO THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH THIS INCIDENT. IT IT ENDED UP BEING THAT, YOU KNOW, THE SUBSTANCE THAT WAS RELEASED WASN'T, YOU KNOW, DIDN'T POSE ANY PUBLIC HEALTH RISKS, YOU KNOW, ACCORDING TO THE NJDEP.
BUT THERE WAS A DELAY IN THE NOTIFICATION OF WHEN THAT INCIDENT OCCURRED TO WHEN, YOU KNOW, THE PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS FOUND OUT ABOUT IT AND WHEN THE COMMUNITIES FOUND OUT ABOUT IT, AND, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS NO COMMUNICATION FROM AMERICAN WATER. AND WE ARE CONCERNED THAT THAT GAP IN COMMUNICATION CAN CAUSE SOME REAL ISSUES. IF THAT CHEMICAL WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS POISONOUS OR HAZARDOUS. SO, YOU KNOW, WE WE'RE WORKING WITH THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP TO TRY TO IDENTIFY THESE COMMUNICATION GAPS. THE OTHER THING IS, EVEN WHEN AMERICAN WATER IDENTIFIED THE SUBSTANCE, THEY WERE SCHEDULING THESE COMMUNITY CALLS. BUT THERE WAS NOBODY FROM MONTGOMERY ON THEIR DISTRIBUTION LIST. SO WE WEREN'T REALLY INFORMED. SO WE I REALLY FOUND OUT FROM THE OTHER HEALTH OFFICERS IN, IN THE COUNTY, AND THAT'S HOW WE WERE ABLE TO GET THE INFORMATION. I THINK THE IT WAS RIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS OR CHRISTMAS EVE WHEN WE FOUND OUT ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE EXTENT OF WHAT WHAT HAD OCCURRED. SO WE ARE WORKING WITH THE NJDOE DIVISION OF LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH. THEY'RE THE ONES THAT OVERSEE LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS IN NEW JERSEY. AND THE GOAL IS TO TRY TO IDENTIFY AND UPDATE EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION PROTOCOLS FROM AMERICAN WATER AND MAKE SURE NJDEP IS AWARE OF THOSE PROTOCOLS, BECAUSE LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS ARE NOT ON THEIR DISTRIBUTION LISTS. BUT YES, I WANTED I WANTED THE BOARD TO BE AWARE OF THAT, THAT THAT WAS GOING ON. THEN WE HAVE WE'RE MONITORING H5N1. THERE HAVE BEEN NO CASES IN NEW JERSEY. THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT SENT OUT COMMUNICATION. JUST REGARDING SOME KEY UPDATES AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HEALTH
[00:30:06]
DEPARTMENTS TO SHARE THIS INFORMATION WITH OUR LOCAL VETS AND ANIMAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS.BUT IT'S REALLY THE UPDATES INCLUDE, YOU KNOW, AVOIDING FEEDING CATS OR CATS HAVE ALSO.
THEY FOUND THAT CATS HAVE A HIGH MORTALITY RATE WHEN EXPOSED TO AVIAN FLU. THEY'VE IDENTIFIED OUTBREAKS ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY IN POULTRY AND DAIRY COWS. NONE IN NEW JERSEY. SO FAR, THERE HAVE BEEN PREVIOUS DETECTIONS IN WILD BIRDS AND DOMESTIC POULTRY IN NEW JERSEY, BUT. NO RECENT DETECTIONS. AND THEN THEY HAVE SOME EXAMPLES OF DIFFERENT CASES IN OTHER STATES AROUND THE COUNTRY THAT THEY. AND I'LL SHARE THIS UPDATE WITH THE BOARD AS WELL. I DID SHARE IT WITH DOCTOR NEWMAN AND ALL OF THE VETS IN TOWN. THERE HAVEN'T BEEN ANY H5N1 CASES IN CATS.
IDENTIFIED IN NEW JERSEY AT THIS TIME, ALTHOUGH I KNOW THAT NJDOE AND THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ARE. YOU KNOW, THEY ARE MONITORING. AND DOING DISEASE SURVEILLANCE IN, IN AND ACROSS THE STATE. THE OTHER THING REGARDING H5N1, I THINK MOST PEOPLE. MIGHT BE FAMILIAR WITH, YOU KNOW, ALL THESE DIFFERENT PAST PANDEMICS AND PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES THAT HAVE OCCURRED FROM H1N1 TO EBOLA TO ZIKA TO COVID AND POX. YOU KNOW, THESE PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES, YOU KNOW, THEY THEY OCCUR QUITE OFTEN. AND MOST OF THE TIMES THE HEALTH DEPARTMENTS RELY ON PREVIOUS FUNDING FROM PREVIOUS GRANTS TO GET THEM THROUGH THE NEXT EMERGENCY. SO WE WE'RE KIND OF AT THAT POINT RIGHT NOW WHERE NOW ALL THE COVID FUNDS WILL BE DRYING UP.
ALL OF OUR COVID STOCKPILES WILL BE WILL NEED REPLENISHMENT IN TERMS OF LIKE EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS SUPPLIES. SO THAT'S YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO BE AT THAT JUNCTURE. AND SO WE DO HAVE TO BEGIN PLANNING FOR, YOU KNOW, PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS OR AVIAN FLU PREPAREDNESS, IN CASE, YOU KNOW, THAT BECOMES TRANSMISSIBLE PERSON TO PERSON. SO THAT'S ONE THING THAT, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS ARE KEEPING AN EYE ON. SO IF WE ARE TO SEE PERSON TO PERSON TRANSMISSION, THAT'S REALLY WHEN WE HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, ACTIVATE OUR EMERGENCY PLANS AND, YOU KNOW, BEGIN ALL OF THOSE EMERGENCY MESSAGING AND NOTIFICATIONS. WE'RE NOT THERE YET. BUT WE DO NEED TO REPLENISH OUR PPE AND STOCKPILES. SO THOSE ARE SOME OF THE REQUESTS THAT WE'RE MAKING TO THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. BECAUSE JUNE 30TH, WE HAVE OUR FIRST ROUND OF COVID FUNDING WILL BE EXPIRING JUNE 30TH OF THIS YEAR. AND THEN THE PUBLIC HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE GRANT THAT WE HAVE THAT EXPIRES IN MARCH OF 2026. AND THEN BEYOND THAT, WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING RIGHT NOW. SO WE ARE ADVOCATING THROUGH THE PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATIONS TO ADVOCATE TO THE STATE HEALTH HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY TO AND INCORPORATE PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING IN THEIR BUDGETS. SO THAT'S STILL AN ONGOING FIGHT. YOU SAID THAT AT THE END OF THE CYCLE, SOME OF THE GRANTS ARE GOING TO GET USED UP. YOU TRY TO ALLOCATE THOSE GRANT FUNDS TO THE NEXT PROBLEM. DID I HEAR THAT CORRECTLY? SO TYPICALLY WHAT HAPPENS IS AS THAT AS A GRANT FUNDING IS EXPIRING, YOU KNOW, HEALTH DEPARTMENTS TRY TO ALLOCATE SOME OF THOSE FUNDS TO PURCHASING PPE OR OTHER SUPPLIES THAT THEY CAN JUST STORE AND HAVE THEM. THAT WAS KIND OF WHAT I WAS GETTING AT. LIKE, IF IT'S GOING TO GO AWAY BECAUSE YOU CAN'T SAVE IT, YOU HAVE TO USE IT OR YOU LOSE IT. CORRECT. SO, SO SPEND THE MONEY THAT YOU HAVE. YEAH. AND, YOU KNOW, MOST OF THE HEALTH DEPARTMENTS DID PURCHASE THOSE SUPPLIES, BUT COVID WAS SO PROLONGED THAT WE'VE USED UP A LOT OF OUR PPE. AND THE REMAINING GRANT FUNDS ARE NOW MOSTLY BEING USED FOR STAFF AND PERSONNEL TIME. SO WE DON'T EVEN HAVE, YOU KNOW, THOSE EVEN OUT OF THE LEFTOVER FUNDS THAT WE MIGHT HAVE. WE WE'VE ALLOCATED IT ALREADY TO PERSONNEL. SO WE MIGHT NOT EVEN HAVE ENOUGH FOR, FOR PPE RIGHT NOW. SO WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO RELY ON THE NEXT ROUND OF FUNDING, WHENEVER THAT IS. AND THE MONEY THAT WAS ALLOCATED FOR ADDITIONAL STAFFING. THEN WHEN THAT MONEY IS USED UP AND THAT STAFFING GOES AWAY. YEAH, THE STAFFING GOES AWAY. UNFORTUNATELY. WHO IS THAT? THAT WILL BE ELIMINATED AT THAT POINT. SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE A PART TIME GRADUATE PUBLIC HEALTH NURSE AND A FULL TIME PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNER. AND JUST SO YOU ALL KNOW, THE PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNER POSITION IS ACTUALLY A REQUIRED POSITION IN THE PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE STANDARDS. THE EDUCATOR, THOUGH, IS DIFFERENT. EDUCATION IS
[00:35:09]
TOWNSHIP FUNDED. SO THAT'S SOMETHING WE SHOULD ASK THE TOWNSHIP TO BE FUNDING THEM.CORRECT. TOWNSHIP. YOU DON'T WANT TO RELY ON AN INFLUX OR INFLOW OF GRANT MONEY. THAT IS NOT CONSISTENT OR RELIABLE TO STACK A POSITION THAT IS REQUIRED. SO IN ORDER TO STACK IT APPROPRIATELY, THEN WE SHOULD BE ASKING THE TOWNSHIP FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDS TO COVER THAT POSITION. CORRECT? YEAH. CORRECT. YES. SO I WILL KEEP YOU UPDATED ABOUT ALL OF THE ADVOCACY WORK, BUT IF ANY OF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN ALSO ADVOCATING FOR PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING, THE PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATIONS, THE NEW JERSEY LOCAL BOARDS OF HEALTH ASSOCIATION ARE DOING A LOT OF WORK IN THAT IN THAT AREA, TOO. THE OTHER UPDATE WAS THAT SO THE SOMERSET COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THEY HAVE A PERSON DESIGNATED AS OUR PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS COORDINATOR, BUT THEY IT'S COMPLICATED. IT'S COMPLICATED BECAUSE THE SOMERSET COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THEY'RE A REGIONAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT. BUT THEIR NAME IS MISLEADING BECAUSE PEOPLE THINK THAT THEY ARE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT. THEY HAVE SOME SERVICES THAT THEY PROVIDE THAT ARE FOR THE WHOLE COUNTY, MONTGOMERY INCLUDED. BUT THEIR CORE PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES DOES NOT INCLUDE MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP. IT'S FOR THEIR CONTRACTUAL TOWNS. SO THEY'RE SORT OF LIKE A REGIONAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT, BUT THEY'RE THE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT. THEY DO RECEIVE PUBLIC HEALTH PREPAREDNESS GRANT MONEY THAT'S SUPPOSED TO BE AVAILABLE FOR ALL OF THE MUNICIPALITIES IN IN THE COUNTY. SO ONE OF THE RESOURCES THAT WE GET FROM SOMERSET COUNTY HAS BEEN THESE COVID TESTING KITS. SO THAT'S THE ONLY RESOURCE THAT WE CURRENTLY GET FROM THEM. SO AS PART OF OUR ADVOCACY WITH THE STATE, THE GOAL WILL BE TO INCREASE THE PUBLIC HEALTH PREPAREDNESS FUNDING AND TO TRY TO IF THE IF WE'RE NOT ABLE TO GET THE PUBLIC HEALTH PRIORITY FUNDING THROUGH THE STATE BUDGET, THE GOAL IS TO WORK WITH SOMERSET COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO TRY TO GET ANY PPE THAT WE NEED. IF THERE WERE WERE TO BE AN EMERGENCY IN THE SHORT TERM. SO JUST SO THAT SO JUST SO YOU ALL ARE AWARE OF THAT. GOOD QUESTION. MAYBE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT, BUT ARE WE HAVE MONITORING FOR CASES AND LIKE FLU RSV, COVID 19 BECAUSE I THINK IT'S NATIONWIDE OR INCREASING. SO FOR OUR LISTENING IS THERE ANY MONITORING SYSTEM THERE. SO WE SO WE DO GET A RESPIRATORY SURVEILLANCE REPORT EVERY WEEK FROM THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. AND WE ARE NOW TRYING WE'RE IN AN UPWARD TREND WITH EVERYTHING REALLY WITH RESPIRATORY DISEASES, WITH GI RELATED ILLNESSES. YOU KNOW, WE HAD, YOU KNOW, A NOROVIRUS OUTBREAK IN A LONG TERM CARE FACILITY. AND WHENEVER WE DO HAVE OUTBREAKS, THE PUBLIC HEALTH NURSES ARE BEHIND THE SCENES REALLY DOING THAT DISEASE SURVEILLANCE, LOOKING AT THOSE REPORTS, IDENTIFYING ANY PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION, STEPS THAT WE CAN TAKE TO MITIGATE THAT OUTBREAK AND TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE GETTING SICK IN OUTBREAKS. AND IT IT DOES INVOLVE A LOT OF WORK. AND SO WE WORK WITH THE OUR REGIONAL EPIDEMIOLOGISTS. SO THE NEW JERSEY HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THEY HAVE REGIONAL EPIDEMIOLOGISTS ALL ACROSS THE STATE. AND THEIR THEIR ROLE, PRIMARY ROLE IS TO PROVIDE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS. WHEN WE'RE DEALING WITH COMMUNICABLE DISEASES, OUTBREAKS AND SCHOOL AND CHILD CARE SETTINGS, HEALTH CARE SETTINGS, LONG TERM CARE SETTINGS, AND WORKING WITH US TO TRY TO MINIMIZE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE GETTING SICK AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. AND THERE'S ALSO A LOT OF REPORTING THAT'S INVOLVED WITH THAT AS WELL. SO I KNOW FOR, YOU KNOW, FOR THE NEWER MEMBERS, IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, I CAN I'LL BE SURE TO INCLUDE THAT IN THE ORIENTATION FOR THE BOARD MEMBERS. SO I THINK IN DECEMBER, THE BOARD HAD RECOMMENDED OR SUGGESTED THAT FEBRUARY WORKS BETTER FOR THE FOR THE BOARD OF HEALTH ORIENTATION. SO MR. WILL WILL WILL TRY TO SCHEDULE A BOARD OF HEALTH ORIENTATION, PROBABLY AT MAYBE 7 P.M. BEFORE THE BOARD OF HEALTH FOR BEFORE NEXT MONTH'S MEETING. AND WE CAN GO OVER THIS IN DETAIL AND WE'LL GO OVER THE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES AND THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE BOARD OF HEALTH MEMBERS AND WHAT YOU'RE
[00:40:01]
LEGALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR OVERSEEING WHEN IT COMES TO THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT'S. DOCTOR.SHERMAN, DID I ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? YEAH. YEAH, THAT IS FINE. YEAH, THAT'S WHAT I WAS DOING. AND SO AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, IF, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE WHEN WE'RE IN THE FALL AND WINTER MONTHS THERE, THERE'S A LOT OF DISEASES AND ILLNESSES CIRCULATING. BUT I'LL MAKE IT A POINT TO MAKE SURE IF THERE ARE ANY BIG OUTBREAKS OR REALLY, YOU KNOW, DISEASES OF CONCERN THAT WE'RE DEALING WITH. I'LL, I'LL BE SURE TO COMMUNICATE THAT WITH CARRIE ANN. AND IF THERE'S ANYTHING BIGGER THAT WE NEED TO SHARE OUT, WE'LL MAKE SURE TO DO THAT TO WITH YOU ALL. THE OTHER THING IS THE NEW JERSEY ASSOCIATION OF COUNTY AND CITY HEALTH OFFICIALS, THAT'S THE LOCAL PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE HEALTH DEPARTMENTS. THEY ARE PLANNING A SLEW OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT TRAININGS NOW THROUGH THE END OF JUNE. AGAIN, THEY ARE ALSO RELYING ON A LOT OF THIS GRANT FUNDING THAT'S GOING TO BE GOING GOING AWAY COME JUNE 30TH. BUT THEY HAVE TRAININGS COMING UP IN JANUARY THAT ARE FOCUSED ON MEDIA TRAINING. WHEN PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS ARE DEALING WITH PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES, HOW TO EFFECTIVELY COMMUNICATE WITH THE MEDIA. THERE ARE SOME FEMA TRAININGS AND COURSES IN PERSON THAT THEY'RE HOSTING. THEY HAVE LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TRAININGS, COMMUNICATION TRAININGS. THEY ALSO HAVE MRC TRAININGS, THE MEDICAL RESERVE CORPS TRAINING. SO I KNOW WE HAVE A LOT OF CLINICIANS ON THE BOARD. IF ANY OF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN JOINING THE MEDICAL RESERVE CORPS, WE HAVE SOMERSET COUNTY MRC. THERE'S ALSO THE MERCER COUNTY MEDICAL RESERVE CORPS. YOU CAN JOIN AND BE TRAINED AS AN EMERGENCY RESPONDER. SO WHENEVER THERE IS AN EMERGENCY, IT COULD BE A PUBLIC HEALTH OR NON PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY THAT REQUIRES BOOTS ON THE GROUND AND CLINICIAN SUPPORT. YOU WILL BE KIND OF ACTIVATED AND CALLED UPON TO COME OUT AND HELP. SO IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN JOINING LET ME KNOW. WE CAN SHARE INFORMATION WITH YOU ABOUT IT.
AND WHAT ELSE. THERE IS A MATERNAL CHILD HEALTH SUMMIT THAT'S GOING TO BE IN MARCH. WE ALSO HAVE A TRAINING ON COMMUNICATING PUBLIC HEALTH AUTHORITY TO PROTECT COMMUNITIES, YOU KNOW, ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY, A LOT OF PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENTS, PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS HAVE BEEN REALLY TESTED IN TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO DO THEIR JOBS IN EMERGENCIES. AND THE ASSOCIATION THAT THEY HAVE A GREAT SPEAKER LINED UP TO TALK ABOUT THIS. I CAN SHARE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT IT IF YOU GUYS ARE INTERESTED, BUT THIS IS GOING TO BE FOCUSING MOSTLY ON, YOU KNOW, HOW CAN PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS NAVIGATE THOSE, YOU KNOW, POLITICALLY CHARGED ENVIRONMENTS AND, YOU KNOW, DO WHAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO WHEN IT COMES TO PROTECTING THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE. AND WE ALSO HAVE SOME UPCOMING COMMUNICABLE DISEASE SUMMITS WITH THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT HEALTH OFFICER RETREATS. I'LL SHARE OUT THIS THIS TRAINING SCHEDULE. IF ANY OF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN ATTENDING. SO AS LONG AS THE TRAINING WHICH WON THE MRC, WHEN IS IT? HOW LONG IS THE TRAINING? HOW? I DON'T HAVE THE TIMES, BUT I CAN I CAN GET THAT TO YOU, DOCTOR MORAN. AND THEN WE ARE WORKING. WE I HAVE A COUPLE OF THINGS. OKAY. OKAY.
KEEP GOING. WE ARE TRYING TO PARTNER WITH THE LIBRARY ON SOME UPCOMING PROGRAMS. SO WE MET WITH THEM TO TRY TO IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION. THEY WERE INTERESTED IN HEALTHY EATING, NUTRITION EDUCATION. WE HAVE A TON OF MY PLATE. YOU KNOW, AS GIVEAWAYS THAT WE CAN USE TO EDUCATE THE CHILDREN. WE HAD GIVEN SOME OF THESE MY PLATES TO THE LIBRARY WHEN THEY DO THEIR HEALTHY EATING, OR WHEN THEY'RE HIGHLIGHTING HEALTHY EATING AS PART OF ANY BOOK SERIES OR ANY ANY BOOKS THAT THEY'RE RECOMMENDING TO THE COMMUNITY. AND THEY THEY WENT LIKE HOTCAKES. SO, SO WE AND WE HAVE MORE THAT WE CAN SHARE WITH THEM. THEY'RE ALSO INTERESTED IN HAVING US COME OUT AND DO SOME A SUMMER SAFETY SERIES. WE ALSO WANT TO DO SOME TYPE OF INFECTION CONTROL HALLOWEEN HAND-WASHING PROGRAM USING GLO GERM LOTION HERE AND THEN FOR ADULTS. THE MUNICIPAL ALLIANCE IS FOCUSING HEAVILY ON DIGITAL WELLNESS, AND THEY HAVE PICKED THE ANXIOUS GENERATION BOOK. THEY'VE I THINK THEY HAVE SOME BOOK CLUBS THAT THEY'VE SET UP IN THE SCHOOLS, AND THEY HAD ABOUT 60 SIGNUPS IN THE FIRST HOUR OF THE BOOK CLUB'S OPENING.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO EXPAND ON THAT BOOK CLUB AND TRYING TO WORK WITH THE LIBRARY TO
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FACILITATE AND HOST SOME SOME OF THESE BOOK CLUBS AND THE MUNICIPAL ALLIANCE. HAVE THEY HAVE FUNDING TO PURCHASE SOME OF THESE BOOKS? I THINK THE LIBRARY, THEY HAVE OVER 40 HOLDS FOR THE ANXIOUS GENERATION BOOK. SO THERE'S A STRONG INTEREST AMONG PARENTS TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS TOPIC AND HOW THEY CAN HELP THEMSELVES AND THEIR CHILDREN. WHAT'S THE NAME OF THE BOOK? WHAT WAS THE NAME OF THE BOOK? THE ANXIOUS GENERATION. OKAY. AND THEN WE ALSO PLAN TO DO A SESSION ON EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS IN THE LIBRARY AS WELL. SO THAT'S THE THERE'S SOME SOME INITIAL MEETINGS WITH THE LIBRARY TO, TO TRY TO SCHEDULE SOME PROGRAMING WITH THEM. THE OTHER THING IS I'M NOT SURE IF YOU GUYS HAVE RECEIVED THIS EMAIL FROM THE HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL, BUT THEY HAVE THEY'RE INVITING FAMILIES TO THE FIRST OF TWO PRINCIPAL ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSIONS. SO IF ANY OF YOU ARE ATTENDING, IF YOU CAN JUST GIVE US AN UPDATE ABOUT THAT, ABOUT THESE ROUND TABLES, WE'RE INTERESTED IN JUST LEARNING MORE ABOUT IT. IF ANYTHING COMES OUT OF IT. THE OTHER THING IS WE WE'RE WORKING BEHIND THE SCENES ON REACCREDITATION. IT'S A LOT OF WORK. WE WILL NEED YOUR HELP IN PASSING A RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT FOR SUBMITTING AND WORKING ON REACCREDITATION, AND THEN RECOMMENDING TO THE TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE TO DO THE SAME IN TERMS OF PASSING A RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT. WE HAD DONE ONE WHEN WE HAD INITIALLY APPLIED FOR ACCREDITATION. SO I HAVE A I HAVE THAT RESOLUTION IN FRONT OF ME, AND SO I'LL SHARE THAT WITH YOU, AND THEN I'LL DRAFT A LETTER OF OR A RESOLUTION FOR PUBLIC HEALTH REACCREDITATION FOR YOU TO REVIEW AND PROVIDE ANY FEEDBACK AND COMMENTS. THIS IS THE INITIAL ACCREDITATION. SO WE'RE HOPING IF YOU KNOW, IF WE CAN GET THAT PASSED AND AT THE FEBRUARY MEETING. IS THIS THIS FIRST TIME WE WERE ACCREDITED THIS YEAR? NO, THAT WAS THAT WAS THE INITIAL ALMOST LETTER OF INTEREST THAT WE ARE INTERESTED IN APPLYING FOR ACCREDITATION.SO THAT WAS IN 2009 AND WE DIDN'T END UP SUBMITTING UNTIL 2019. OKAY. AND THEN WE, WE HAD WE GOT OUR ACCREDITATION STATUS IN MARCH OF 2020. AND, AND WE HAVE RABIES CLINICS COMING UP. SO WE ARE FOCUSING ON INCREASING OUR PET LICENSING NUMBERS. WE RECEIVE ALMOST ON A WEEKLY BASIS. JEREMY'S FAVORITE TOPIC. WE RECEIVE, YOU KNOW, INCIDENCES OF BITES, POTENTIAL RABIES EXPOSURES. AND WHEN WE ARE DEALING WITH EXPOSURES WHERE ANIMALS WERE NOT VACCINATED AGAINST RABIES, IT'S A LOT OF WORK AND A LOT OF RESOURCES GO INTO, YOU KNOW, THOSE INVESTIGATIONS AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE YOU KNOW, WE'RE EDUCATING PEOPLE AND MAKING SURE THAT THEY'RE GETTING THEIR PROPHYLAXIS AND DOING WHAT THEY NEED TO PROTECT THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILY. BUT ANYWAY, RABIES CLINICS, WE ARE SCHEDULING THREE CLINICS THIS YEAR, ONE IN JANUARY, ONE IN FEBRUARY, ONE IN MARCH. DOCTOR NEWMAN, YOU KNOW, HAS GRACIOUSLY VOLUNTEERED AGAIN TO VACCINATE OUR PETS. SO SHE'S GOING TO BE HELPING US IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY AND THEN MARCH. WE HAVE DOCTOR SCHWERK FROM THE HILLSBOROUGH BOARD OF HEALTH WHO WILL BE HELPING AT OUR VACCINATION CLINICS. THEY ARE FROM NINE TO NOON. THE FIRST ONE IS THIS SATURDAY, JANUARY 11TH AT THE FIREHOUSE ON GRIGGSTOWN ROAD. SO FIRE COMPANY NUMBER ONE AND THEN THE FEBRUARY AND MARCH CLINICS ARE GOING TO BE AT OTTO KAUFMAN COMMUNITY CENTER. WE ALSO HAVE OUR WE'RE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE MUNICIPAL ALLIANCE AND THE MAYOR'S WELLNESS CAMPAIGN. WE'RE GOING TO BE HOSTING BEAT THE WINTER BLUES. IT'S GOING TO BE RIGHT HERE IN THE LIBRARY MEETING ROOM. WE HAVE STEPHANIE LARKIN, OUR OUR NEW JERSEY TEACHER OF THE YEAR. SHE WILL BE PRESENTING, AS WELL AS SURBHI FROM THE HEALTHY MIND HEALTHY BODY INITIATIVE. THE FOCUS IS REALLY GOING TO BE MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS, MINDFULNESS. AND WE WILL ALSO HAVE INFORMATION AND RESOURCES ON MENTAL MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS, SUBSTANCE USE PREVENTION. WE'LL HAVE INFORMATION ON INFECTION CONTROL AND WINTER PREPAREDNESS AS WELL AT THIS EVENT. SO IF YOU GUYS ARE AVAILABLE, FEEL FREE TO STOP BY. AND THEN FOR FEBRUARY WE'RE GOING TO BE PLANNING A HEART
[00:50:06]
HEALTH EVENT. THE GOAL IS TO TRY TO TIE A LOT OF OUR EVENTS THAT WE'RE PLANNING WITH THE FARMERS MARKETS. SO THE FARMERS MARKETS ARE EVERY THEY'RE THE LAST SATURDAY OF EVERY MONTH. SO WE'RE GOING TO SCHEDULE THOSE ACCORDINGLY. SO ONCE WE FINALIZE ALL OF THE DETAILS FOR HEART HEALTH MONTH, I'LL BE SURE TO SHARE THAT OUT. AND I'LL PROBABLY HAVE MORE INFORMATION AT THE BOARD OF HEALTH MEETING TO IN MARCH. WE'RE PLANNING SOMETHING FOR. WE ARE PLANNING CANCER PREVENTION INITIATIVES. IT'S ALSO A NUTRITION MONTH, SO WE'LL HAVE SOME HEALTHY EATING INFORMATION. APRIL IS NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH WEEK, SO WE ARE PLANNING SOMETHING FOR EACH DAY OF THE WEEK. IT'S USUALLY THE THEME IS IDENTIFIED BY AND SET BY THE AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION. AND THAT'S REALLY ALSO WHEN I WILL PRESENT OUR ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE YEAR. I STILL HAVE WE ACTUALLY STILL HAVE TO SHARE THE 2023 REPORT. SO THERE'S THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT'S 2023 ANNUAL REPORT AND THE 2024 ANNUAL REPORT THAT I'M, I'M PLANNING ON ON SHARING WITH THE BOARD. SO I THINK I THINK THAT'S ALL I THAT WAS A LOT. ANY QUESTIONS. THIS IS MORE FOR MY KNOWLEDGE. THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT INFORMATION THAT YOU SHARED. IS THAT SOMETHING GOING TO BE MADE AVAILABLE IN COMING MINUTES? IN THE MINUTES. YOU CAN ALWAYS START WITH THE MINUTES.AND YOU KNOW, AGAIN, SPEAKING FROM MY EXPERIENCE, I WANTED TO JUST ASK A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS RIGHT AGAIN IN THE END ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL RELATED ISSUES. SO NUMBER ONE IS THE SPILL THAT TOOK PLACE. YEAH. AND YOU KNOW, IT APPEARS THAT THERE WAS A LACK OF PROTOCOLS IN PLACE WHERE THE COMMUNICATIONS ARE MAKING TO. AND GUESS YOU GUYS WERE GETTING CALLS ON TASTE AND ODOR. AND THEN WE'RE KIND OF SCRAMBLING ON WHAT TO. GOING TO THAT EVENT. AND IS THERE LIKE KIND OF A KEY LEARNINGS COMING OUT OF IT. AND THEN THERE'S PROCESS THAT IS GOING TO BE PUT IN FROM A COMMUNICATIONS PERSPECTIVE SO THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S MORE STREAMLINED GOING FORWARD AND HOW THAT COULD BENEFIT. I MEAN, THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING GOOD TO BE COMMUNICATED AS WELL. YEAH.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE CONCERN WAS THAT THE GAPS WERE COMING FROM HIGH UP. AND EVEN, YOU KNOW, BEFORE I STARTED AS HEALTH OFFICER, THERE HAVE BEEN THESE TYPES OF EMERGENCIES IN THE PAST, EVEN WITH LIKE TROUBLING SUBSTANCES. AND SO THEY'VE HAD INCIDENCES LIKE THIS THAT HAVE PROMPTED DEBRIEFINGS AND, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THAT THESE EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION PROTOCOLS ARE UPDATED AND PEOPLE ARE AWARE OF THEM. BUT I THINK WHAT THE ISSUE IS THAT THERE'S A LOT OF NEW PEOPLE AT AT THESE LEVELS OF NOT ONLY GOVERNMENT, BUT ALSO MAYBE IN AMERICAN WATER. AND SO I THINK THERE'S BEEN, YOU KNOW, SOME KNOWLEDGE THAT'S BEEN LOST THERE. SO THERE, THERE, THERE, THERE WAS SOME INSTITUTIONALIZED PROTOCOLS AND PROCEDURES THAT WERE IMPLEMENTED. BUT I THINK, I THINK THAT KNOWING LIKE I WOULD IMAGINE AMERICAN WATER IS NOT TESTING FOR THIS SPECIFIC COMPOUND. AND I MEAN, IF IT'S A TASTE AND ODOR ISSUE, WHICH YOU CAN'T SMELL, IT'S BUSINESS AS USUAL FOR THEM, RIGHT? SO THEY SEND OUT EMAILS ABOUT WHAT THEY WERE DOING WHEN WHAT WENT ON.
YEAH. BUT WHEN WAS WHEN DID THEY PICK IT UP. I CAN I CAN GO BACK TO MY DELETED EMAILS, BUT THEY WERE SENDING LIKE 1 OR 2 A DAY. I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY THE TOP AT THE AT THE LEVEL WHERE THE TOWNSHIP WAS IMPACTED. BUT THE INCIDENT OCCURRED IN BRANCHBURG. I WAS GETTING EMAILS AS WELL.
YEAH, YES, THEY WERE DOING, BUT THE INITIAL REPORTING GOT DELAYED FROM THE INITIAL REPORT.
THAT'S WHAT I DON'T. YEAH, BECAUSE IF WE WHEN THAT INITIAL INCIDENT HAPPENED, WE SHOULD HAVE WE SHOULD HAVE KNOWN ABOUT IT AS PUBLIC HEALTH. THAT WAY WE COULD HAVE COMMUNICATED IT TO THE COMMUNITY BEFORE YOU GUYS EXPERIENCED THE TASTE AND ODOR IT'S SITUATION. AND THE RUMOR MILL WAS OUT OF CONTROL. IT WAS BENIGN SUBSTANCE IN THIS CASE. BUT WHAT IF IT WAS NOT CORRECT, YOU WOULD HAVE GONE DAYS CONSUMING SOMETHING THAT WAS DANGEROUS. POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS. YEAH. THEY ACTUALLY THEY YOU KNOW, THE SYSTEM OVERALL WHETHER IT IS. TAKEN ON THE CONTROL, IF YOU SHARE THE REAL DATA TRANSPARENCY, THEY'RE JUST SAYING IT IS GOOD ENOUGH OR IT WAS OFF. SO I'M LIKE WHAT LEVEL OF ELECTRICITY OR SOMETHING IS NOT ENOUGH GOOD ENOUGH FOR CORRECT. YEAH. WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY OF THE TOXICITY OR YOU KNOW, HOW MANY PARTS PER TRILLION WERE WERE RELEASED. WE DIDN'T WE DIDN'T HAVE THE EXACT DATA. SO IT'S HARD TO MAKE PUBLIC HEALTH RECOMMENDATIONS AND DO RISK COMMUNICATION IF YOU DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION. WAS THAT INFORMATION YOU COULD SMELL? IT WAS PRETTY GOOD INFORMATION ABOUT HOW MUCH IT WAS. SO THEY CAN OUT OF THE STATE LEVEL. BUT THERE IS SOMETHING THAT OCCURRED BECAUSE
[00:55:02]
THERE WAS THERE WAS THE TRANSPARENCY. AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE TRYING TO.YEAH, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE TRYING TO DETERMINE. WE HAVE A MEETING ON FRIDAY WITH THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP TO HELP US, YOU KNOW, FIGURE THAT OUT. BUT IT WAS CLEAR THAT NO PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS WERE INVOLVED IN THOSE INITIAL COMMUNICATIONS. AND MY COMMENT IS MORE, AGAIN, FROM WHAT LEARNINGS CAN YOU DRAW FROM THIS EVENT? RIGHT. AND THEN IMPLEMENT IT IN TERMS OF PROTOCOLS GOING FORWARD? YEAH. SO WE DO THESE HOT WASHES AFTER INCIDENCES LIKE THIS WHERE WE KIND OF REGROUPED. IT'S ALMOST LIKE A DEBRIEF TO GO OVER WHAT HAPPENED, WHAT WENT WRONG. HOW CAN WE MAKE SURE THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN AGAIN. SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT THE SOMERSET COUNTY HEALTH OFFICERS ARE, ARE PLANNING TO DO. ONCE WE MEET WITH THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE RIGHT PROTOCOLS ARE IN PLACE AT THE DEP AND WITH AMERICAN WATER. BUT SO WHEN YOU DO ONE OF THOSE, DO YOU LIKE FOLLOW UP WITH US THEN? YEAH, IN THE NEXT MEETING AND LET US KNOW WHAT THE FINDINGS WERE SO WE CAN. YEAH. OKAY.
YEAH. THANKS. CRAZY I THINK THAT'S IT. NO OTHER QUESTIONS. THE QUESTION WAS AGAIN RELATED TO KIND OF SEEING A SPIKE IN SOME OF THESE COMMUNICABLE DISEASES. AND I KNOW FROM A COVID PERSPECTIVE IT'S, YOU KNOW, TESTING IT LIKE, YOU KNOW, IN SEWERS AND STUFF AND GETTING SOME EARLY WARNING. DO WE HAVE ANY KIND OF THAT PROGRAM IN PLACE WITH EPIDEMIOLOGICAL TESTING? YEAH, WE MONTGOMERY ACTUALLY VOLUNTEERED TO JOIN THE WASTEWATER SURVEILLANCE PROGRAM, I THINK EITHER A YEAR OR TWO, TWO YEARS AGO MAYBE. SO WE ARE MONITORING FOR THAT. IT'S STILL VERY NEW. SO THE INFORMATION THAT WE GET, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT ALWAYS USEFUL. SOMETIMES WE FIND OUT AFTER THE FACT THAT, OH, THERE WAS A SPIKE, BUT IT'S WE'RE NOT AT THAT POINT WHERE WE CAN USE THAT DATA REAL TIME TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE COMMUNITY. BUT WE DO HAVE THAT PROGRAM RIGHT NOW, AND WE'RE WORKING ON EXPANDING THAT. AND CDC IS ALSO VERY INTERESTED IN IN DEVELOPING THIS. AND, YOU KNOW, REALLY EXPANDING ON THIS IN COMMUNITIES. SO THIS IS A PARTNERSHIP WITH WITH THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND THE CDC, ALONG WITH OUR SEWER DEPARTMENT PARTNERS. BUT I AS I GET MORE INFORMATION ON THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF DATA THAT WE'RE COLLECTING, I'LL BE SURE TO INCLUDE THAT IN IN YOUR PACKETS TO. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME.
THAT'S IT. NO MORE QUESTIONS. THE HEALTH OFFICER COMMENTS. SO OUR INTERN HAS WRAPPED UP THE FOOD INSECURITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT. SO WE'RE HOPING TO HAVE ADRIJA AND EMILY COME OUT AND PRESENT THAT TO YOU GUYS. SO THE GOAL WILL BE TO PRESENT IT TO THE BOARD OF HEALTH. GET ANY OTHER FURTHER INPUT OR FEEDBACK FROM YOU ALL, AND THEN PRESENT IT TO THE TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE.
THAT'S GREAT. SO FOOD INSECURITY HAS BEEN A CONCERN FOR THE TOWNSHIP COUNCIL AND OUR PREVIOUS BOARD LIAISON HAD SOME STRONG INTEREST IN IT AS WELL. SO THAT'S GREAT. THAT'S HELPFUL.
[VIII. NEW BUSINESS]
OKAY. SO NOW WE ARE ON TO NEW BUSINESS. AND USUALLY WHAT I DO FOR NEW BUSINESS IS I GO THROUGH THE ROUNDS OF THE GROUP. SO FOR EXAMPLE DOCTOR PRATT IS HERE FROM HE'S ALSO PART OF THE EMS. SO I'LL SAY, YOU KNOW, DO YOU HAVE ANY NEWS FROM EMS, DOCTOR MENDELBAUM I SWEAR HE WAS HERE.THERE HE IS. HE'S OUR ADVISOR AND OUR ADVISOR FROM TO THE SCHOOL BOARD SO HE CAN BRING STUFF FORWARD. AND OF COURSE, TOWN COUNCIL AS WELL. SO. AND ANYBODY ELSE AS WELL IS OPEN, BUT WE USUALLY START THERE. SO JOE, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING FROM E.M.S. WELL, I THINK YOU ALREADY MENTIONED OR ONE OF OUR NEWEST MEMBERS WHO IS CURRENTLY NOT HERE TODAY BECAUSE THEY'RE STARTING CLASS. SO DOCTOR NEWMAN IS ONE OF OUR NEWEST MEMBERS, AND SHE STARTED CLASS. I THINK TODAY MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE FIRST NIGHT. YEAH. SO. SO YEAH. SO I THINK THREE SHE'LL BE OUT FOR THREE MONTHS, BUT HOPEFULLY AFTER THREE MONTHS SHE'LL BE BACK AS AN EMT AND JOINING THE RANKS. SO SLOWLY BUT SURELY WE'RE GETTING THE WHOLE BOARD TO JOIN THE JOINING. SO JUST JUST BE AWARE THAT THEY'RE VERY GOOD AT RECRUITING. I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING. ABSENCES UP IN SCHOOL AS WE'RE STARTING TO SEE MORE ILLNESSES HANDLING IT WELL. OKAY. AND I THINK YOU SAID NO.
PAT TODD DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING FROM TOWN COUNCIL? NO, I'M A FLY ON THE WALL TODAY. OKAY. VERY GOOD TO BE HERE. OKAY. ANY OTHER NEW BUSINESS CAN I ASK THAT SINCE THIS IS JAY'S FIRST, FIRST DAY WITH US, IF HE CAN DO A VERY BRIEF INTRODUCTION OF YOUR BACKGROUND AND EVERYTHING FOR US. ABSOLUTELY. SO, AS YOU GUYS KNOW, JAY, NICE TO BE HERE PARTNERING WITH YOU. THANK YOU FOR THE WARM WELCOME AND HELPING SERVE OUR COMMUNITY. I'M A. 20 PLUS YEARS NEW JERSEY RESIDENT,
[01:00:08]
BACHELOR'S, MASTER'S, ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING BY TRAINING FROM STEVENS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY IN HOBOKEN. I'M A LICENSED PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER IN NEW JERSEY. I PRIMARILY SERVICE THE WATER WASTEWATER SECTOR. SO, YOU KNOW, I'M VERY FAMILIAR, LIKE AMERICAN WATER AND VEOLIA. AND I WORK WITH MANY UTILITIES ACROSS THE STATE. SOME OF THE LARGER ONES FROM PASSAIC VALLEY SEWERAGE COMMISSION TO MIDDLESEX COUNTY AUTHORITY AUTHORITY AND SO ON. AND. YOU KNOW, PROFESSIONALLY FOR WORK. SO ON THE PERSONAL SIDE, I HAVE TWO BOYS, YOUNG TEENAGERS ABOUT THE SAME AGE AS DANNY'S KIDS, VERY ACTIVE, EARLY TEENAGERS, KEEPING BUSY, HAPPY BEING UBER AN UBER DRIVER NOW, RIGHT. AND PROFESSIONALLY, YOU KNOW, I WORK WITH A PRIVATE CONSULTING FIRM CALLED GHD. AND, YOU KNOW, I KIND OF LEAD THEIR WASTEWATER PRACTICE FOR THE AMERICAS, THE US AND CANADA AS WELL. SO THANK YOU. GLAD TO BE HERE. THANK YOU. WELCOME, WELCOME, WELCOME AGAIN.THANK YOU. ANYBODY ELSE. NO. YOU DON'T HAVE ANYTHING. JEREMY. YOU LOOK LIKE YOU'D WANT TO BUT NO, NO I'M NOT. WELL, IT'S A PLEASURE TO HAVE YOU HERE. WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, OTHER MEMBERS THAT AREN'T HERE TONIGHT, BUT THEY ARE FREQUENTLY HERE FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS. WE HAVE DIFFERENT PEOPLE COME IN AND OUT OF THE MEETING. DOCTOR NEWMAN WILL BE. SHE'S STILL SERVING AS THE SECRETARY, SO SHE'S ACTIVELY INTEGRATING. ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK, CAN WE JUST HAVE AN UPDATE ABOUT THE SPACE? YES. SO I'LL JUST SAY ONE THING. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, DOCTOR NEWMAN IS EXTRAORDINARILY INTERESTED IN THE SPACE OF OUR DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HAS BEEN REALLY PUSHING FOR ENSURING THAT THEY HAVE THE ADEQUATE SPACE TO DO THEIR JOB, AS WELL AS MEETING HIPAA COMPLIANCE AS WELL AS OTHER ADA COMPLIANCE, ETC, IN THEIR OFFICE SPACE. AND SOME THINGS HAVE BEEN SINCE WE MOVED FROM OUR OLDER BUILDING. THAT HASN'T BEEN SOMETHING WE HAVE ACTUALLY REDUCED THE AMOUNT OF SPACE WE HAVE IN OUR FROM OUR PREVIOUS OFFICE SPACE. SO WITH DOCTOR NEWMAN WORKING BEHIND THE SCENES PUBLIC COMMENT, DOING EVERYTHING THAT SHE CAN TO ADVOCATE FOR MORE SPACE, WE HAVE SOME POSITIVE RESOLUTION TO SOME OF THE ISSUES. SO WHY DON'T YOU BRING THAT FORWARD? YEAH. SO LAST MEETING THE BOARD OF HEALTH HAD OR. YEAH, THE LAST MEETING THE BOARD OF HEALTH HAD COME FOR A TOUR UPSTAIRS TO TOUR THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, BUT ALSO OTHER DEPARTMENTS IN THE MUNICIPALITY AND. THE BOARD RECEIVED STAFF FEEDBACK ON, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEIR NEEDS ARE IN TERMS OF WORKSPACE AND STORAGE, PRIVACY AND THE. THE BOARD OF HEALTH ALSO HAD WRITTEN A LETTER SUMMARIZING THE CONCERNS. AND THEN BASED ON YOUR CONCERNS THAT YOU ALL IDENTIFIED DURING THE TOUR INTO A LETTER TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. AND SO THEY ARE WORKING WITH OUR BUILDINGS PERSON TO IDENTIFY DIFFERENT STORAGE SOLUTIONS IN THE BUILDING. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'LL BE GETTING SOME SPACE DOWN HERE AND JUST TRYING TO DECLUTTER AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND JUST WORK OUR WAY, YOU KNOW, JUST SMALL BABY STEPS TO TOWARDS THE A GOOD RESOLUTION. SO WE'RE WE'RE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. YEAH. OKAY. YEAH. SO THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING AND TO SUPPORT US. VERY GOOD, VERY GOOD. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICES. SURE. GREAT. I THINK THAT'S IT. I DON'T THINK WE HAVE ANY MORE BUSINESS SO WE CAN MOVE TO ADJOURN. I THINK THIS IS ONE OF THE LONGEST MEETINGS WE EVER HAD. OKAY. SO ALSO WE HAVE HAD A RECORD FOR A WHILE OF LIKE OUR MEETINGS HAVE BEEN ABOUT A HALF AN HOUR TO 45 MINUTES, WHICH HAS BEEN AND WE DO ALL OF OUR WORK. SO IT'S BEEN KIND OF REMARKABLE. THE ONLY TIMES IT GETS DELAYED IS IF WE HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT AND I WILL SEE THIS INDIVIDUAL. SO PROBABLY, YOU KNOW, I'LL BE THE EXPRESSIONS HERE, OKAY. THAT'S FINE. THAT'S FINE. OKAY. SO HAVING NO FURTHER BUSINESS TO DISCUSS THIS MEETING WILL NOW ADJOURN AT 842. THAT'S RIGHT. SO MOTION TO ADJOURN WAS MOVED BY OKAY. THIS IS TYPICALLY WHAT ALSO HAPPENS. DOCTOR SHARMA ALWAYS MOVES TO ADJOURN. AND SECOND SECOND FROM FROM JEREMY. AND THEN HE HI
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.