State of county’s health:
Staley urges commissioners

to support readiness programs
By Scott Nicholson
nicholson@wataugademocrat.com

Appalachian District Health Department director Danny Staley gave the Watauga County commissioners an annual report Monday, saying a couple of health issues have arisen, although “red flags” were few.

The department has been training to handle pandemic flu outbreaks and to prepare for response, as the common flu makes its seasonal trek through the region.

Staley said Watauga County is a transitory community, with students and tourists who could carry a virus across the globe in less than a day, so training would help head off serious epidemics.

He said some cases of campylobacter bacterial infection had been reported, typically arising from the ingestion of raw or unpasteurized milk. The bacteria can cause diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever, nausea and vomiting. Staley said it could also be spread through undercooked meat or unsanitary kitchen practices.

“We have to be aware of it,” Staley said. “For those with compromised health, it can be very life-threatening, so we need to educate the community.”

Recommendations for preventing campylobacter infection include wrapping fresh meat in plastic bags to reduce blood leakage, refrigerating and heating meat properly, cleaning kitchen counter surfaces with soap and water, avoiding raw meat and eggs, drinking pasteurized milk and employing proper hand-washing practices.

Staley also highlighted improvements in the environmental health department, particularly the new well-inspection program. The department has been working on speeding up septic tank inspections, adding two new staff members. Staley said the waiting period for inspections was now three to four weeks, though often the department did far more than just sign a permit.

“We have worked hard to find engineering systems to get in,” Staley said, noting the difficulties and limitations of installing septic systems on mountain terrain. He said the department was planning a workshop to explain the process and that staff members often serve as advisory engineers to make recommendations for each specific site. He said the “pipe and gravel” septic systems common in the past were increasingly rare and that engineering of septic tanks had grown more complex.

The health department is in charge of inspecting the geothermal heating systems being installed at the new high school. Though the well consists of a series of 280 pipes to draw heat from beneath the ground, it is considered one well for permitting and regulatory purposes. Staley said the department had contacted other counties so the inspection could be a model for other geothermal systems.

Staley said the fight against obesity had been taken to the young through such programs as “Be Active Kids” and “Eat Smart Move More” efforts.

“We’re doing something right,” Staley said. “We often know, if you want to reach Mom and Dad, you do it through the kids.”

The percentage of Watauga County restaurants that were now smoke-free had risen from 60 percent to 74 percent, Staley said, with local school campaigns through the National Tobacco Prevention Council helping the effort. Participating businesses get a certificate of appreciation and a “Go-light” sticker.

Selected bars and restaurants were also used for indoor air quality monitoring, with the data to provide a baseline for further research by providing objective standards. Venues that had smoking sections or allowed part-time smoking had particulate measurements four-and-a-half times higher than smoke-free establishments, while those that allowed unrestricted smoking had measurements 11 times higher.

This year, the Appalachian District Health Department is enacting a vector control program for mosquitoes, which will educate the public about West Nile virus and Lacrosse encephalitis that can be transmitted to humans.

The Centers for Disease Control will use traps to study mosquito populations. Staley said the health department had received complaints of rodents on vacant property, but said the department had no eradication or control programs, instead offering advice, such as clearing weeds and eliminating rodent habitat.

Staley also noted the retirement of Lawrence Caviness, former Environmental Health supervisor for the three-county district that includes Ashe and Alleghany.

The district department gave out more than 4,000 child immunizations and 6,400 adult immunizations.

The district health department gets 18 percent of its money from county funding, with state and federal money funding 28 percent and fees providing nearly half the budget.