MOUNT VERNON — Health Commissioner Zach Green said Knox Public Health is wrapping up its five-year strategic plan.
“We have several high-level objectives which we will be looking to achieve in the first 12 months, one which has to do with our master plan for the downtown development,” he recently told the Knox County commissioners.
“We received our draft from Sol Harris Day, and it is under leadership and the ad hoc facilities committee review just to get a better view of what the square footage looks like and how the parcel layouts are going to be.”
Green said KPH is considering a five-year lease on 3,200 square feet of space on Coshocton Avenue for behavior, health, and substance abuse services.
“So it meets some immediate needs now; however, being downtown is where the board wants to invest at this point,” Green said. “Obviously, when we have almost a block and a half of property, it’s hard to justify purchasing something closer to our main building.
“So they just want something temporary at this point.”
Additionally, Knox Public Health is still considering mobile units for temporary offices as part of the transition to the downtown area.
KPH is waiting to hear whether it will receive state demolition money through the Knox County Land Bank for 205 W. Vine St.
COVID, influenza, Lyme Disease
Green said the county is peaking with COVID cases, and flu season is right around the corner.
KPH received its first shipments of COVID and influenza vaccines for this year.
“So we will be marketing that for appointments starting next week,” he said.
The county’s COVID vaccines cost around $200,000, roughly $130 to $160 a dose. Green said his team is working on determining costs for self-pay individuals.
The county has over 90 cases of Lyme Disease year-to-date, which Green said is on track from last year’s trends.
“The biggest thing is Lyme Disease is year round, and I can’t stress that enough,” Green said. “They may not be as active throughout the winter months, but you still 100% can contract Lyme in the dead of winter. And our winters are mild.”
“It’s good that it’s getting more awareness. … But again, it comes to the provider education.”
Miscellaneous
•Knox Public Health is undergoing its three-year review by Health Resources & Services Administration (Sept. 10) and national re-accreditation (Oct. 4-5).
•The agency started the next Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) process. “We’ll begin identifying the three top strategies or areas of concerns and then how we get those metrics drilled down from there,” he said.
•KPH is actively looking for a dentist to replace the retiring dentist in the Community Health Center.
•No additional positive traps for West Nile have occurred.
911
911 Operations Director Laura Webster reported that calls were down slightly in August. She hired two full-time dispatchers but still needs one more.
Members of a Knox Technical Center fire/EMT class toured the operations center.
“I love it when they do this because it gives them the experience to see the other side of the radio and what we do,” Webster said.
Webster said the Mount Vernon Police Department, Knox County Sheriff’s Office, and most of the fire and EMS departments will send their new personnel to sit in at least one shift.
“That was something that we discussed several years back in the fire chief’s meetings. We expressed that it’s really important for them to come in here and see why we might not answer the radio right away or what all goes on,” Webster said. “So that relationship with them doing that has been pretty good.”
911 staff go on ride-a-longs yearly as part of their continuing education points. Webster noted it would be nice if law enforcement, fire, and EMS personnel would do the same.
“It’s something we can work on,” she said.
