TCHD Public Health

News for Schools
2019
Spring Newsletter
Breakfast in the Classroom
 
There may be some unintended consequences of serving breakfast in the classroom. For more on the research:

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How to Become a Breastfeeding Friendly Worksite
 
Start the Conversation: 
 
Do teachers or staff in your school have questions about the support they can receive as a breastfeeding mom?
Can you think of someone in your school that is passionate about this and could be a champion and willing to start the conversation?
 
Tri-County Health Department (TCHD) breastfeeding specialists would be happy to have that conversation and discuss steps in becoming a Breastfeeding Friendly Worksite.
 
Why is this important?
Colorado is one of 21 states with laws that require employers to offer adequate break time and space for ALL breastfeeding employees, including teachers, to express milk at work.
This is great news because supporting breastfeeding moms:
*    Boosts morale
*    Reduces turnover
*    Provides health benefits to both mom and baby
*    Decreases sick days
 
Supporting teachers with breastfeeding accommodations by providing time and space to pump is an affordable way to show teachers how much they are valued and gives them the dignity at work they deserve. To learn more visit our Breastfeeding Friendly Worksite Webpage and take the assessment to find out if you are a breastfeeding friendly employer.  
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Want to get rid of unwanted household chemicals?
 
 
As you start your spring-cleaning think about Tri-County Health Department's Household Chemical Roundups. These community events help protect sanitation workers, assist to alleviate problems with sewage treatment plants and landfills, and prevent pollution of the air and water. We unload the products, so you don't even have to get out of your car!   For more information and a list of acceptable items:
http://www.tchd.org/250/Household-Chemical-Roundups
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Take Control of Your Diabetes

TCHD wants to help those struggling with diabetes by offering a FREE series of four, 2-hour long diabetes group classes. Please promote these classes to individuals who desire tools to better control their diabetes. For more information call: 720-266-2971 or visit: www.tchd.org/diabetes
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Tools for Sexual Health
 
Tri-County Health Department has six clinics that offer confidential visits for birth control, sexually transmitted infections (STI) testing and treatment and preventative annual sexual health exams. Our services are low-cost or no-cost and we accept Medicaid. For an appointment or more information please call 303-363-3018.

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Vaping, JUULS, and Restorative Practices: What Do These Three Things Have in Common?
 
What do these three things have in common?  They can go hand in hand when it comes to violation of your tobacco-free school policy. Students who use e-cigarettes (also known as JUULS, vapes, e-cigs, mods, tanks, and many other names) are violating Colorado's Tobacco-Free Schools law and ultimately your school's own policy.
Restorative discipline empowers students by helping them to learn from their mistakes in a school environment that is caring and responsive. Restorative discipline focuses on relationships and community, rather than on punishment for breaking rules.
To start, take a look at your tobacco-free policy and how it is communicated and enforced at your school. Enforcement of this policy may be a good place to evaluate what happens when a student gets caught.
  • Are they sent home for suspension, missing valuable instruction time?
  • Do they receive detention, without learning about resources for quitting nicotine?
  • Does your school use the Second Chance alternative to suspension program, a free tool for Colorado schools?
  • Do they get help quitting these products or have a follow up with a school nurse when they return?

Restorative practices include tools to hold students accountable for their actions, including use of e-cigarettes, in a nurturing school environment. Students learn how their actions affect other students, teachers and the school community, rather than other punitive discipline measures. Instituting restorative practices in your school can be hard work, but we can help.  Contact us to learn more how you can be a champion in your school for restorative practices.

  Contact information: Jessica Salus: [email protected]; 720-200-1613
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Tri-County Health Department investigating two separate outbreaks of mumps in their jurisdiction

Tri-County Health Department investigating two separate outbreaks of mumps.

TCHD began investigating a mumps outbreak in September 2018. The outbreak involves mostly unvaccinated school-aged children from four households in a community opposed to vaccination; there is one-unvaccinated adult case as well. All 15 cases report recent travel to Mexico or contact with someone who had recently traveled and become ill after returning from the same region.  TCHD helped facilitate appropriate exclusion of ill individuals and kids at risk at the impacted schools. There has been no evidence of anyone getting mumps outside of the four households.

The second outbreak is at GEO, an immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE Detention Facility in Aurora. As of March 21, 15 cases of mumps have been documented amongst ICE detainees since February. TCHD and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) are working closely with the ICE Detention facility to track new cases, implement disease control measures, and provide public health recommendations.  As of March, ICE administered over 1,100 doses of MMR to detainees across the facility. For the most current information related to this specific Mumps outbreak, please visit the TCHD website to see updated case numbers. www.tchd.org
 
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Is the water you and your students drinking full of lead? Find out with this grant!

The Water Quality Control Division (WQCD) of the Colorado Department of
Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has $300,000 available for $5,000 grants for eligible schools to test for lead in drinking water. Lead in drinking water is a concern in many areas due to aging infrastructure and older buildings and is most often associated with old plumbing not the water supply.Request for Applications is April 17 - June 17.

The application process is simple and technical assistance is available.

Contact:
Kristen Hughes 303-692-3313
More information is available online at:
 
Tri-County Health Department  | 303-220-9200  |  http://www.tchd.org/