Washington State Environmental Health Association will hold its 58th Annual Education Conference in May. This year’s theme, “Building Sustainable Partnerships Together,” will highlight how collaborative efforts in Washington state have challenged the status quo, bridged organizational boundaries, and benefited the community as well as the partners.
You can register for one or both days. This is an excellent networking opportunity. To view the program announcement or contact Susan Shelton at susans@bfhd.wa.gov.
We are well into the cold and flu season, and with it come requests from patients for antibiotics. This is the sixth year that the Department of Health and its partners have offered a consumer campaign promoting judicious use of antibiotics. This year, based on audience research, campaign materials have been re-designed to stress the information that consumers said was most meaningful for their decision-making. It includes hard-hitting facts about antibiotic resistance, and offers home remedies and self-care to treat symptoms of viral illnesses--when antibiotics are not indicated.
The new materials feature very popular cartoon depictions of viral symptoms developed by the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department. We invite you to order these free materials. For an order form go to www.doh.wa.gov/Topics/Antibiotics/orderform.htm. To view full size, color versions of the materials, or to download camera-ready “masters” for making your own copies, visit the DOH Antibiotics Web page at www.doh.wa.gov/topics/antibiotics.htm.
Partners who have made significant contributions to this campaign include the Tacoma-Pierce County Antibiotic Resistance Task Force and Washington AWARE, a project of the Washington State Medical Association and a variety of health plans and specialty societies. Funding has come from Premera Blue Cross, Molina Healthcare of Washington, DOH Bioterrorism programs, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Public Health-Seattle and King County (PHSKC) was awarded a National Libraries of Medicine grant in March for their Health Education Materials program. The program maintains a huge database of educational materials from a variety of sources, such as agencies and nonprofit organizations, that are reviewed by a committee of PHSKC professional staff. Under the grant, PHSKC staff will collaborate with the H.E.R.E. web site to take the database online and open the review process to other public health professionals around Washington. This online database will provide H.E.R.E. users with a tremendous new resource for free and low-cost educational materials that have been reviewed by colleagues for content and readability.
National Libraries of Medicine grants were also awarded to two other Washington projects:
The African American Reach and Teach Health Ministry will provide culturally relevant prevention information to promote responsible health choices.
Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center will collaborate with parent groups to train parents of children with special health care needs to find health information and resources.
The H.E.R.E. web site is being moved to a more secure Internet server and the technical staff at DOH is giving us the opportunity to make changes and improvements to the functionality of the databases. We are planning to add a slew of improvements that we’ve heard you request over the last few years. But we’re sure there are other ideas for how make the site better. Now’s your chance to offer feedback and suggest changes. Please contact: HERE@doh.wa.gov.
Prevention programs at DOH have updated four Best Practice fact sheets. They are available in the Health Educator’s Toolbox and include new resources and contacts. We encourage you to take a look at them and pass them along to colleagues.
Trang
Kuss is a nursing care consultant for the Washington State Department of Health
(DOH) STD/TB Services. She received her Bachelor of Nursing Degree from the
University of Washington, and two masters degrees in nursing and public health,
also from UW. Trang began her career as a hospital-based nurse and OB-GYN clinic
nurse. After learning more about public health nursing, she decided to change
her career path. “I was taking care of very sick, hospitalized patients whose
diseases were completely preventable. Health education and community
mobilization seemed like such novel ideas. I wanted to be a part of efforts to
prevent disease and promote health.” After receiving her masters’ degrees, she
joined the state Department of Health in hepatitis prevention—about seven years
ago.
“Patient education has always been a passion of mine, whether it be in an acute care setting or in a public health setting.” When resources are available, Trang feels one-on-one education is the best way to make sure people get their questions answered and understand how to prevent health problems. She also values population-based health education—reaching many people through a variety of avenues using multiple strategies. Another passion, Trang says, is her work promoting health in the Vietnamese community. “My family's flight from Vietnam in 1975 instilled in me a strong desire to improve quality of life for the Vietnamese people.”
Working with Asian communities on the Hepatitis B project taught her to pay attention at the beginning of a project to the needs of the audience. “Get to know your audience. Spend time with them. Work with community groups to gain their trust and assistance. Ways to achieve this trust include opportunities to eat together, or to be involved in play or exercise times. Talk with elderly community members, and attend informal gatherings that are important to the community.” Trang feels strongly that these activities play a crucial role when working with the Asian community in developing health education projects.
Facing dwindling funds, it is sometimes difficult in public health to develop educational strategies that are effective in minority communities, she said. “We need to work smarter, collaborate and share resources as much as possible. Health education is an essential service, and we have to be persistent advocates.”
Much of Trang’s free time is shared with her two young children, ages 4 and 2. They enjoy playing at the park and digging in the dirt on their 6-acre property. Her family recently built a new house and she and the children love gardening. She also cherishes a little time for her self to work on crafts and cross-stitch.
Trang is available to consult on developing educational materials, working with various Asian and Pacific Islander groups, achieving consensus with partner organizations, conducting process evaluation of campaign or educational materials, and collaborating with the media to get health education messages out in a variety of arenas. You can reach her by email Trang.Kuss@doh.wa.gov or phone 360-236-3465.
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Spokane Driving for Life--Friday Night Street Racing Project -
Spokane County A community coalition, including youth and a racetrack owner, developed a creative and popular program that provides a safe outlet for those who might be racing on city streets. |
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Spokane Suicide Prevention Coalition -
Spokane County This suicide prevention coalition works to increase awareness of depression and reduce suicide in the Spokane area. |
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Thurston County Mercury Thermometer Exchange Project
- Thurston County A project to increase public awareness about the dangers to people and wildlife when mercury is released into the environment, and to encourage proper disposal of mercury products. |
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Common Sense Guides - Thurston County Four new common sense guides on aphids, root weevils, roses, and weeds to encourage natural and organic alternatives to chemical controls. |
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Controlling Antibiotic Resistance: A Practical Guide for Health Care
Providers, Schools, Residential & Correctional Facilities, Dentists &
Veterinarians - Pierce County Spiral-bound manual with guidelines and protocols. |
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Do I Have a Foodborne Illness? - Benton
and Franklin Counties Brochure describing the causes, symptoms, treatment and prevention of a foodborne illness. |
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Egg Safety 101 - Benton and Franklin
Counties This brochure provides information on how to safely prepare and serve Easter eggs. |
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Fresh Cheese Made Safely - Washington State
University Brochure on how to properly perform heat treatment of fresh, unpasteurized dairy milk. |
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Food Safety During Your Pregnancy - Washington State
University Two-color brochure describing how the bacteria Toxoplasma gondii and Listeria monocytogenes are transmitted by cats and how pregnant women can prevent getting infected.. |
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Good Food From the Beach: Safe and Responsible Marine Resource Harvesting
- Western Washington Ten-minute video with information on safe harvesting, storage and preparation of shellfish, and the importance of conservation for future generations. |
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HazoHouse and the Swap Shop - Thurston County Two-color brochure describes Thurston County's free collection center for household hazardous waste, and the Swap Shop, which makes left over products available for free. |
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I'm a Happy Baby - SIDS Foundation This brochure lists seven things everyone who takes care of an infant should know. Available in English, Spanish, Russian and Vietnamese. |
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Potluck Safety - Benton and Franklin Counties This brochure offers tips to keep potluck food as safe as possible. |
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Talking To Your Kids About Alcohol - Washington State
Alcohol & Drug Clearinghouse Reminds parents that alcohol is a drug, and shows how youth are influenced to drink. Emphasizes that prevention begins at home, and gives tips on talking early and often. |
Making Sense Out of Adolescence: Why They Do What They Do, Tacoma, WA - March 24, 2003
16th Annual Northwest Regional Rural Health Conference, Spokane, WA - March 27-28, 2003
Public Health Grand Rounds: "HIPAA Privacy Rule: Enhancing or Harming the Public's Health?", Satellite Broadcast - March 28, 2003 This broadcast will feature the experiences and best practices of Thurston county, WA.
Zoonotic and Vector-borne Disease Workshop, Richland, WA - March 26, 2003. Mount Vernon, WA, April 2, 2003. Olympia, April 11, 2003.
The Ninth Healthy Communities Symposium: "Sparking Change, Creating Powerful Communities, Seattle, WA April 11, 2003.
Do you have a community project to add?
Submission Form -- Community Projects
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Submission Form -- Materials Exchange
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Add Yourself to the H.E.R.E. Rolodex
H.E.R.E. in WA Team
Office of Health Promotion
Washington State Department of Health
Theresa Fuller, Don Martin, and Jennifer Livingston
PO Box 47833
Olympia, WA 98504-7833
(360) 236-3736
HERE@doh.wa.gov