Martin reports on the county's health

Feb. 14—LENOIR — Caldwell County Health Director Anna Martin presented the Health Department's 2022 annual report to the Caldwell County Board of Commissioners during their regular meeting on Monday, Feb. 13.

Starting with the vital records department, in 2022, there were 777 births and six at-home births in Caldwell County, a number that increased since last year.

"We saw this increase due to the closing of the OB department at the hospital," Martin explained.

The Health Department also reported 1,193 deaths in Caldwell County.

"We do have a new system called NCDAVE," said Martin. "So for the longest time we received paper records of birth certificates, death certificates, now it's all electronic."

Moving on to clinical and community services, in the past year, the Health Department saw 11,234 patient visits. There were a total of 37,474 immunizations, a large number of which are tied in with COVID-19. The department conducted children's physicals and back-to-school immunization events that also count towards the total number.

There were 349 new CMARC referrals (Care Management for At-Risk Children), which is the children's health department. Along with this, the department had 756 adult visits, 742 family planning visits, and 471 maternity visits.

The maternity department saw 814 returns which could include a number of duplicated patients who came more than once. There were 280 pregnancy tests reported, as well as 231 new patients and 335 ultrasounds.

The health department identified 57 Hepatitis C infections. Twenty-three were referred to treatment, 16 referred by outside practices for treatment, and 18 refused or lost to follow-up. Moreover, there were 23 syphilis infections requiring testing, treatment, and follow-up, and four newly diagnosed HIV infections and patients referred into care. The Health Department also dealt with one monkeypox case and one VRSA case.

"VRSA is very rare," Martin said. "It's basically the same as MRSA, but this was contained within the hospital and then they were discharged. This patient's now doing great."

Additionally, the health department dealt with 14,078 cases of COVID-19 infections and 102 deaths related to COVID-19.

In 2022, the dental department saw over 1,200 patients, and 3,731 procedures were completed, including 367 sealants placed, over 125 new patients, and fluoride varnishes.

"These numbers also included adults, but we see adults through the Helping Hands Clinic who are referred," said Martin. "Most of our patients are children met through Medicaid or Health Choice from birth to age 19."

The WIC department, a supplemental assistance program for women, infants, and children, has seen its current base reach 108.2%.

"This is a fantastic number," Martin said. "For a lot of health departments, this decreased due to COVID-19 because patients couldn't come in, moms were unable to come in, so it was a lot of phone calls. That's how health departments were doing business at the time. Now, though, we're able to bring them in and they're counting as a visit ... this is a very good number compared to other departments."

For environmental health, the Health Department conducts onsite and food and lodging inspections throughout Caldwell County. In 2022, the department completed 675 onsite permits, saw 34 complaints, 164 repairs, 315 new systems, and 123 new wells.

Additionally, there were 533 restaurant inspections (some restaurants are inspected more than once a year), as well as inspections for 74 mobile food units, 84 child care centers, 17 nursing homes, 18 residential care, 22 public swimming pools/spas/wading pools (seasonal and annual), and 128 tattoo parlors.

The Health Department has taken part in a number of educational outreach activities, such as the Child Health & Safety Fair, celebrating World Breastfeeding Week (Aug. 1-Aug. 7), Celebration of Life with Department of Social Services (DSS), the Butterfly Festival, the Blackberry Festival, and more.

Other programs that contributed to the success of the Health Department include implementing NCDAVE for vital records, becoming a re-accredited agency, collaborating with community paramedics and Emergency Services, continued support of the RESTART opioid treatment program, and others.

"We have a great team," said Martin. "It's wonderful seeing them work together, getting the job done, they really have a good work ethic."

In other news, County Manager Donald Duncan read a proclamation honoring Black History Month in February 2023.

In 1926, Carter G. Woodson created "Negro History Week" in order to honor the successes of African Americans and to show appreciation for the many ways that African Americans have helped to shape the nation's history.

Fifty years after the first "Negro History Week," in 1976, President Gerald R. Ford officially declared the month of February as Black History Month.

The 2023 Black History Month theme is Black Resistance, highlighting the strength that African Americans have shown when faced with oppression.

"Caldwell County recognizes the month of February as a time to honor the contributions made by African Americans to our nation and our country," Duncan read. "The Caldwell County Board of Commissioners proudly recognizes the month of February 2023 as Black History Month and encourages its citizens and employees to engage in Black History Month activities held throughout Caldwell County."