Letters to the Editor: Call Ottawa Impact what it really is

Call Ottawa Impact what it really is

One thing Ottawa Impact has given us is a new acronym, CINO, Christian in Name Only.

Lee Voigt

Holland

Nate Kelly's credentials misinterpreted

The misunderstanding regarding Nathaniel Kelly's qualifications as the Ottawa County health officer, pending state approval, is unwarranted. The inaccuracy of articles and embedded documentation by Adeline Hambley's attorney accuses Nate of having no public health experience, harming public confidence in his appointment.

In my personal experience, clients review documentation authored by their attorneys to ensure the accuracy of facts. Suppose Hambley believes Kelly does not meet qualifications; I question her understanding of public health and how occupational environmental health and safety is a public health profession.

It's claimed Nate is an HVAC safety manager, implying he inspects HVAC equipment, a narrative parroted by a false claim that an industrial hygienist is a janitor. Kelly also works in industrial hygiene and holds an industrial hygiene management certificate from Columbia Southern University.

Nate has a master of science in public health and a master of science in occupational health; the interim health officer lacks these qualifications. Believing Nate would not qualify because he works in the private sector is a misconception you must work for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to be an industrial health/occupational environmental health and safety professional.

OSHA is a public health agency. Occupational environmental health and safety hazards impact total worker health and community public health. For example, occupational disease surveillance involves interacting with medical professionals and health departments, identifying trends, evaluating risks and implementing exposure controls.

The position requires no medical degree; the county has a medical officer. The role of the health officer is not to be an expert in all public health disciplines. Community leaders should know where to find information and lean on their support staff, specializing in specific domains like food safety and infant programs.

Kristen Meghan Kelly

Hudsonville

If you were qualified, it wouldn't be hard

During a March meeting, county Administrator John Gibbs was quoted as saying: “There is a lot to do in this position, it’s drinking from a firehose.”

I would suggest an alternative view of drinking from a firehose. My freshman handbook from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1972 had the following line in the Academics section: “Getting an education at MIT is like trying to get a drink of water from a fire hose.” The credit for this line goes to Anonymous. Our understanding as students was that lots of information would come at us fast and furiously. It was also shared that we were qualified to be admitted to MIT such that we could handle the heavy, difficult workload. After a few major inundations of problem-set homework, I did learn how to effectively manage the workload.

So, I would suggest to Mr. Gibbs, if you are truly qualified for the role and responsibilities as county administrator, then you, too, should be able to learn how to effectively manage and deal with your workload. You don’t need additional assistance from an aide such as Jordan Epperson, whose resume doesn’t match well to the job description that was posted. Save the county some expense and move the budgeted money to the county health department that is performing real, necessary work with qualified people.

Rob Colten

Park Township

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Letters to the Editor: Call Ottawa Impact what it really is