Board of Health — Skokie, IL
Date: 2014-05-08

Skokie Board of Health
 May 8, 2014
 7:30 p.m.
 AGENDA
 U




 I. Call to Order


 II. Approval of Minutes


 III. Catherine A. Counard, M.D., M.P.H.
 Director of Health
 Year in Review

 IV. Chair’s Report


 V. Personal Statements


 VI. Director’s Monthly Report


 VII. Community Health Plan Initiatives Updates


 VIII. Adjournment/Next Meeting:


 Thursday, June 12, 2014

 Carrie Haberstich, AICP
 Planner/CDBG Administrator
 Department of Community Development
 Village of Skokie Bike Plan

 7:30 p.m.
 Skokie Village Hall
 Annex Room


452820 v.1

Skokie Board of Health
 May 8, 2014


Present Absent Excused
Mr. Abbasi Dr. Plotkin Dr. Prince Dr. Sood
Dr. Drachler Ms. Jones Thorne Ms. Varma
Ms. Nickisch Duggan Dr. Topouzian Ms. Urbanus
Dr. Gaynes Dr. Usman Ms. Varma
Dr. Herwitz Dr. Veis
Ms. Langguth Dr. Williams
Dr. Luka
Mr. Nidetz
Mr. Pandya

Guests
Dr. Edward McCarron, Commission on Family Services

Dr. Counard, Director of Health
David Clough, Staff

Call to Order - The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. by Dr. Drachler, Chairman.

Approval of Minutes – One spelling error was corrected. The minutes of the previous meeting were
approved with these corrections.

Dr. Drachler introduced Dr. Counard.

Dr. Catherine Counard, Director of Health – Board of Health Year in Review
Dr. Counard began by thanking the Board of Health for their support over the past year. She emphasized
that she wanted the experience to be meaningful for Board of Health members, and she is seeking input as
to how Board meetings or activities could be strengthened or improved. Dr. Counard then gave a review
of Board of Health FY2014 activities and accomplishments. She also reviewed the duties of the Board of
Health which are mandated by Village Ordinance as well as the informal policies enacted by
Dr. Drachler. Dr. Counard added that the FY15 budgets for the Board of Health and Department of
Health were approved by the Trustees. The Village fiscal year begins on May 1. A copy of the
presentation is attached.

Accomplishments:
 • Served on IPLAN Committee
 • Supported the Erie Evanston/Skokie Family Health Center
 • Conducted tobacco cessation training for healthcare workers
 • Recommended all Village properties go smoke free
 • Proposed that e-cigarettes be included in the Smoking in Public Places Ordinance
 • Joined the Medical Reserve Corps.
 • Volunteered at community flu shot clinics
 • Judged youth anti-tobacco posters

Dr. Counard mentioned that Mayor Van Dusen expressed support for limiting e-cigarette usage but it was
not certain when the matter would be brought before the Board of Trustees. Currently the Trustees are
focused on a proposed ordinance to limit gun sales to shooting ranges, which is up for consideration on
May 12. She added that a major project for the upcoming year is to create a shared workspace for the
Health Department and Human Services through an addition to Village Hall. Architectural drawings of
the proposed addition to the building were distributed. She outlined details of the plan and how it would
streamline resident access to health and human services.

Mr. Nidetz asked what the expected time line was for the construction. Dr. Counard responded that
construction on the outside section was meant to start in June and the interior would begin in the Fall. All
construction will have to be completed by Spring of 2015.

Dr. Polin brought up the issue of gun sales and proposed that they be banned entirely in the Village
instead of restricting sales to shooting ranges. Dr. Counard responded that the Board of Trustee meeting
to discuss this issue would be held on Monday, May 12th. If anyone wanted to give the Trustees input
about the issue, they could speak during the meeting. Written comments could also be submitted to the
Trustees either online or by mail.

FY15 objectives for the Health Department were reviewed.
 • Create customer friendly, shared workspace with Human Services
 • Acquire second Animal Control vehicle
 • Train responsible personnel to implement the Community Shelter Plan
 • Update written policies and procedures
 • Provide at least one relevant training to all staff
 • Establish client centered database for health screening results
 • Publicize Board of Health activities by developing the Board of Health section of the website

Dr. Counard reviewed the FY2014 Board of Health budget. She mentioned that the $200 in travel and
meeting funds were not utilized during the year. She also informed the Board that the American Public
Health Association 2015 Annual Meeting would be held in Chicago (October 31 - November 4).
Requesting additional funds (which would be part of the FY2016 budget) to send multiple Board of
Health members to the meeting was discussed.

The June meeting will be the last for this year. Dr. Drachler requested proposals for speakers at next
year’s Board of Health meetings. Proposed speakers included:

 • Cook County Health Department
 • Asian Human Services
 • Dr. Jorelle Alexander, Director of Oral Health for Cook County Health and Hospitals System
 • Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
 • Skokie Public Library

Open Discussion
Dr. McCarron reported that he is attending because he is with the Commission on Family Services, an
advisory committee for Human Services. They have been discussing elder care, elder abuse, and home
health care and they would like to know who else in the community is addressing these issues.

Dr. Drachler asked how many people mentioned home services in the IPLAN survey. He is interested in
pursuing issues from a different viewpoint and thanked Dr. McCarron for bringing it to their attention.
He recommended having someone come to speak to the Board of Health about issues of aging.
Dr. Williams recommended the President of Chicago Continuity of Care as a speaker.
Dr. McCarron asked how home health care is provided. Dr. Counard responded that Home Health is
provided through private businesses and the Village has a listing of these agencies but does not promote a
specific one.

Dr. Drachler praised the Commission on Family Services for having the foresight to reach out and have
overlapping contact between the two committees. He proposed having a member of the Commission on
Family Services join the IPLAN committee. Different ways to increase communication between existing
committees addressing similar issues were discussed.

Dr. Williams brought up the issue that Sanford Brown College will be closing and leaving behind a new
eight chair dental clinic. He proposed that the Village hire a dentist and make that clinic a full time
training area for dental students. This would improve access to dental care in the community.
Dr. Counard mentioned the Erie Family Health Clinic and Asian Human Services as entities that provide
dental care. The issue of Medicaid payments for adult dental care being cut from the state budget was
discussed.

Dr. Drachler proposed that Dr. Counard take an e-mail poll to see if anyone would be interested in serving
on subcommittees pertaining to the four priorities identified in the Community Health Plan. The poll
could identify potential members and potential committees.

Dr. Drachler brought up the issue of gathering data on childhood obesity to understand the current
situation and be able to measure the effects of our efforts. He discussed the difficulty of attempting to
gather comparable data from seven different school districts.

Ms. Langguth reported hearing in the news about a school district receiving complaints from parents
about singling out children for being overweight. Dr. Drachler and Dr. Counard responded that we only
want aggregate data with no identifiable personal information collected.

Dr. Drachler discussed the issue of making Skokie a bike commuter village instead of a driving centered
community. Dr. Counard added that this is an issue for the Environmental Committee as well, and it
would be discussed more in-depth during the June Board of Health meeting.

Ms. Jones Thorne stated that she would be interested in starting work groups that were action oriented.
She would like to see more public health data and have more contact with front level public health staff to
identify actionable items.

Dr. Counard suggested promoting systems that are already in place, for example, extending Jewel’s food
scrap recycling program to other businesses. Large grocery stores generate six tons of food scraps/waste
each month that typically ends up in landfills and also serves as an attractant for rodents (rats). Other
major entities such as Oakton Community College, Skokie Hospital, and both high schools also generate
large amounts of food waste. Dr. Drachler agreed that getting businesses in Skokie to participate in this
program, and recycling in general, would be a huge step. Ms. Thorne mentioned that there may be an
opportunity to work with the Skokie Chamber of Commerce on recycling issues.

Dr. Williams discussed overlap between the Environmental Commission and the Board of Health.
Environmental Health to him is how the environment affects individual health. The Environmental
Commission would be more focused on recycling and such.

Chair’s Report
Dr. Drachler reported on the April 30th budget meeting and his opportunity to tell the Trustees about
health issues being addressed in Skokie.
Director’s April 2014 Monthly Report – a copy of the report is attached

Public Health Partners of Excellence
Clearbrook Child and Family Connections received an award for offering services for children with
physical and or developmental delays from birth to 3 years of age. The City of Evanston Water Division
and Laboratory received an award for providing Skokie with more than 9million gallons of highest
quality drinking water from Lake Michigan each day. Many thanks to Dr. Drachler for presenting the
awards during the April 23 Board of Trustees meeting.

Student “Second Hand Smoke is No Joke” Poster Contest Winners
This year the Health Department partnered with Peer Services of Evanston to conduct a poster contest
entitled "Second Hand Smoke Is No Joke" for students attending public middle schools; 185 students
submitted posters. The winning posters will be displayed at Village Hall and the Skokie Public Library
during May. Many thanks again to Dr. Drachler for judging the posters and presenting the awards.

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)
Beginning May 23 through August 5, 2014, residents from Skokie and other areas in Northern Illinois
will be selected to participate in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). As
part of the project, NHANES will have a Mobile Examination Center located at the Illinois Science +
Technology Park. A letter of explanation has been provided to elected officials, area leaders, and will be
given to residents who are chosen to participate.

Dr. Gaynes asked why NHANES targeted Skokie specifically. Dr. Counard replied that this year they are
focusing on Asian health issues and Skokie was selected due to the large Asian population.

Dr. Drachler added that after presenting the award to Clearbrook he brought the organization to the
attention of Mark Schroeder from NorthShore University HealthSystem. Hopefully, NorthShore will be
able to provide some additional funding for Clearbrook.

Old Business
No old business.

New Business
Dr. Drachler brought up the Board dinner in August and asked if someone would volunteer to pick the
restaurant.

Dr. Luka brought up that at the end the month she will be going to India to get married. Congratulations
Dr. Luka!

Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 8:52 p.m.