One of the challenges to reducing recidivism across our state and around the country is the need to address the high levels of unemployment experienced by individuals who are involved in the criminal justice system and have completed their sentence of incarceration. For those individuals, finding and maintaining employment is a persistent barrier to their successful reentry that is difficult to overcome.

That’s why, for example, as part of our I-ADAPT program we’re making sure that inmates who are preparing to return to the streets have access to services from agencies across state government, like the Department of Labor, which connects them to existing employment services that it offers to all citizens. We’re also taking new steps to help prepare incarcerated individuals with practical employment skills that businesses in the community are looking for, and we’re focusing on industries that are willing to hire workers who may have a criminal record.

Perhaps the biggest single employer of ex-offenders is the hospitality industry, and that’s opening doors for Delawareans who find not only employment, but the opportunity to advance in a meaningful career. For several years the Department of Correction has offered culinary training on a limited basis at the Baylor Women’s Correctional Center, but this year that training program has been expanded to work release inmates and others who are incarcerated at the Sussex Community Corrections Center. Recently I had the opportunity to meet with a dozen women at its recently expanded training facility who have graduated from a new certificate program offered through a partnership with Delaware Tech. For these graduates, many of whom have been in and out of the criminal justice system and have struggled with addiction and unemployment, this training has given them the first real hope that they can build a career, take care of their families, and chart a new path for their lives. One of the graduates I met, Sandra, has since made the successful transition to the community. She credits the treatment she has received and her culinary training as the spark that has ignited her renewed passion for cooking, her desire to continue her training, and her confidence that she will succeed in building a new life. By helping all Delawareans receive training they can use to build productive law-abiding lives, we’ll keep Delaware moving forward.

ONE HERO AT A TIME: UPDATE ON DELAWARE’S CHALLENGE

TO HOUSE HOMELESS VETERANS

December 23, 2015 (Dover, DE) – On any given night, 100 Veterans in Delaware are homeless. For seven years, Henry Smith was one of them. An honorably discharged Veteran of the U.S. Army, Mr. Smith lived off and on in rooming houses and in 2015 was referred by the Wilmington VA Medical Center to Connections’ VA-funded Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program. SSVF provides a range of supportive services and assistance to help Veterans secure housing stability. He entered the program on November 5, 2015 and was housed on December 3. “After being homeless for seven years, I thought housing was impossible,” said Mr. Smith. “My apartment is quiet, clean, and well-kept. Connections worked hard to establish a rapport with the landlord, and I hope more vets get the opportunity to be housed.”

Helping all homeless Veterans reach the same outcome Mr. Smith achieved with the help of Connections is the goal of the Delaware Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness. Today, the Delaware State Housing Authority and partners in the Challenge announced a progress update. Earlier this year, the state working group steering the effort used methodology developed by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to estimate that 277 Veterans are expected to experience homelessness in Delaware in 2015. Since January 29, 2015, 282 homeless Veterans have been identified in Delaware. Two hundred seventy eight of these have been stabilized and are off the streets. Of these, 169 have been placed in permanent housing. One hundred nine are in temporary housing (emergency or transitional housing: still homeless by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)’s definition, but stabilized), and only four remain unsheltered.

After announcing his intent to end homelessness among Veterans in Delaware in his State of the State Address, in May 2015 Governor Markell unveiled the State’s plan to achieve this goal and signed on to the national Challenge. A state working group brings together key state and federal partners and representatives from local committees on a monthly basis to steer and monitor progress on the statewide effort. Key partners include the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Delaware Commission for Veterans Affairs, Homeless Planning Council of Delaware, Connections CSP, Veterans Multi-Service Center, all three counties in Delaware, and the cities of Wilmington, Newark, Dover, Seaford, Georgetown, Bridgeville, Greenwood, and Blades have also signed on. Local groups are working in all three counties on direct outreach and community mobilization.

On October 23, Governor Markell and other officials announced several new initiatives to end Veteran homelessness in Delaware, including a statewide 100-day challenge to permanently house 96 homeless Veterans, starting October 23 and ending with the annual Point in Time study in late January, 2016. The Point in Time study is the process by which Veteran homelessness is measured nationally each year. In the 100-day Challenge to date, 29 homeless Veterans have been placed in permanent housing. Also announced in October, the Veterans Count outreach event identified eight unsheltered homeless Veterans who had not been in contact with services previously and are now being engaged in services. On November 10, 11, and 12, volunteers statewide canvassed the state at 4:00 AM to seek and identify unsheltered homeless Veterans.

The Challenge is not only about housing Veterans who are currently homeless, but putting the systems in place to ensure that Veterans who become homeless in the future are quickly connected to permanent housing, resources are available to house them, and homeless Veterans do not fall through cracks between the VA and mainstream systems. Many such system changes are underway in Delaware, to ensure the commitment to end Veteran homelessness is not just temporary but permanent.

Governor Markell stated, “With the hard work of everyone involved in this effort, we are showing that stories like Henry Smith’s can represent the new norm. We can ensure homeless Veterans are quickly and effectively connected to services and permanent housing assistance, while service providers are committed to help ensure their success and Delaware landlords are willing to give Veterans a hand up.”

Phyllis Chamberlain, Executive Director of the Homeless Planning Council of Delaware, added: “This initiative is really about providing housing first opportunities to Veterans as quickly as possible. Housing provides a safe and stable foundation for Veterans and their families, and from that safety and stability, they can better deal with any other issues they may be experiencing, including lack of employment and mental illness.”

Progress on the Challenge will again be measured with the 2016 Point in Time count in late January 2016, a statewide outreach and census event to identify individuals who are homeless on a given night. For more information about the national and Delaware Challenges, please see:

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Mayors Challenge

Delaware Challenge

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About the Delaware State Housing Authority

The Delaware State Housing Authority (DSHA), formed in 1968, is dedicated to providing quality, affordable housing opportunities and appropriate supportive services to low- and moderate-income Delawareans. For more information about the Delaware State Housing Authority, please call: (302) 739-4263 or visit our website at: www.destatehousing.com

DOVER – Governor Jack Markell announced today that Thursday, December 24, 2015, will be an additional holiday for state government.

“Our state employees have an unwavering dedication to serving our friends and neighbors. In spite of increased demands and fewer resources, they continue to provide excellent service and support, delivering every day for the citizens of Delaware,” said Governor Markell. “In appreciation of all of their hard work and their commitment to Delaware, I am allowing them to spend an extra day with their families this holiday season.”

Employees at 24-hour facilities, such as state hospitals and correctional centers, will report to work. State offices will re-open on Monday, December 28, 2015, with normal business hours.

DOVER – While the likelihood of new U.S. cases of Ebola continues to drop, the lessons learned from the epidemic continue to evolve as Delaware prepares for potential threats from it and other infectious diseases. In partnership with the Division of Public Health (DPH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently visited Delaware to offer​ assistance to DPH, Christiana Care Health System’s Wilmington Hospital, and Saint Francis Healthcare on their readiness to identify, diagnose, and treat patients suspected of having Ebola or other emerging infectious diseases.

“The Ebola epidemic was an important milestone in public health development,” said Dr. Karyl Rattay, DPH director. “It was a reminder that serious diseases can travel anywhere a plane travels and that there is a very real need to update our infectious disease prevention and containment plans as we prepare for the worst and hope for the best.”

In early December, the CDC provided training to DPH staff to “train the trainer” so that the state can provide Ebola and other infectious disease technical assistance to Delaware health care facilities. This is exciting because going forward, the DPH team is well trained in the latest techniques and will be able to provide this service to any health care facility in the state that has an interest.  The DPH consultations will start in January 2016 and two facilities already have expressed interest.

Delaware hospitals also continue to work very closely together with the state and one another to prepare for a significant event. “The hospitals have made tremendous strides and have done some amazing work getting ready for a potentially infectious disease,” said Dr. Awele Maduka-Ezeh, DPH medical director. “Even those hospitals who did not receive a CDC team site visit are learning from the CCHS and Saint Francis Healthcare experience and participating in the larger conversations.”

During the Christiana Care and St. Francis site visits, the CDC team reviewed an Ebola and emerging infectious disease response plan that included:

· ​Screening for potential Ebola patients
· Transportation of patients to and from the facility
· Safe placement of the patient while in the hospital
· Use of personal protective equipment for patient care and safety
· Staffing of health care providers
· Monitoring of potential for exposure among employees, laboratory testing, room cleaning
· Infection control, waste management, staff training, a communication plan for family members, hospital staff and the community

“Our health system is prepared with protocols in place to safely and effectively identify and care for any patients suspected of contracting Ebola, and to protect our patients, visitors and employees against infection,” said Marci Drees, M.D., MS, FACP, DTMH, infection prevention officer and hospital epidemiologist for Christiana Care. “We greatly benefitted from the Delaware Division of Public Health’s support and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s external evaluation as it helps fine-tune our protocols and confirms our readiness to care for a patient with Ebola or another emerging infectious disease.”

“Saint Francis was the first to respond to last year’s Ebola crisis by offering transport of Ebola patients from any location in New Castle County to Delaware hospitals. The CDC’s visit validated our processes and procedures as best practice for handling Ebola patients and other emerging infectious diseases; it will help us manage those patients in a direct and forthright manner while protecting our staff and community,” said Wesley Emmons, M.D., FACP, chief of Infectious Diseases at Saint Francis Healthcare.

While the risk of an Ebola outbreak affecting multiple people in the U.S. is very low, it and other emerging infectious disease are unpredictable and require preparation across the health care system. The CDC, World Health Organization, DPH, and state public health agencies across the country are always monitoring for infectious diseases, including most recently Ebola, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, influenza, and antibiotic resistant infections, among others.

Ebola is a rare and deadly disease caused by infection with a strain of Ebola virus. The recent Ebola epidemic is the largest in history, affecting multiple countries in West Africa and resulting in an estimated 11,300 deaths with 28,600 cases to date. There were two Ebola cases contracted in the United States after two Texas health care workers treated an African man in the end stages of the disease. The two health care workers recovered, while the man died from the illness.

For the latest infectious disease information on Delaware health alerts, visit http://dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/php/alerts/dhan354.html.

Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware’s citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations. DPH, a division of DHSS, urges Delawareans to make healthier choices with the 5-2-1 Almost None campaign: eat 5 or more fruits and vegetables each day, have no more than 2 hours of recreational screen time each day (includes TV, computer, gaming), get 1 or more hours of physical activity each day, and drink almost no sugary beverages.

DOVER – Due to construction, the Division of Public Health (DPH) Tuberculosis and Prevention Control Service at the Sussex County Health Unit, 544 South Bedford St., Georgetown, will be changing its service offerings for some patients from December 21, 2015 – January 24, 2016. During this period, patients needing to see a physician will be directed to Kent County Health Unit Tuberculosis Prevention and Control Clinic, 805 River Road, Dover. All other patients may be seen as normal at the Sussex County Health Unit.  Anyone with questions about which location to visit or to learn if you qualify for transportation to the Kent County Unit doctor’s office visit during construction, call 302-515-3177.
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The advanced planning and notification are intended to reduce any inconvenience to providers, employers, and clients. Once completed, the construction project will provide a more comfortable client waiting room and behind-the-scenes improvements for tuberculosis prevention and control services at the health unit.

Clients are encouraged to find their own transportation to the Kent County Health Unit on Wednesdays during the construction period but may qualify for free transportation. Due to travel time and transportation availability for Wednesday clinics in Dover, clients who opt to be transported by DPH staff should plan for their appointments to take a minimum of three (3) hours. Transportation will only be provided for the client and a translator, as necessary. Clients will not be permitted to bring additional persons or children for transport. If the client is a child, the parent or guardian must provide appropriate car seat safety equipment in order to use transportation provided by the health unit.

TB remains a serious public health concern in Delaware and throughout the country. Once the leading cause of death in the United States, aggressive diagnosis and treatment has significantly reduced the number of cases and fatalities. Aggressive treatment is vital to keeping the disease under control, particularly as antibiotic resistant strains of the disease have emerged. A disease caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis, TB usually attack the lungs, but can attack any part of the body such as the kidney, spine, and brain. If not treated properly, TB disease can be fatal.

There were 22 cases of active TB in Delaware in 2014. If TB bacteria become active in the body and multiply, the person will go from having latent TB infection to being sick with TB disease. For people whose immune systems are weak, especially those with HIV infection, the risk of developing TB disease is much higher than for people with normal immune systems. People with active TB can spread the disease by putting the bacteria in the air by coughing, sneezing, speaking, or singing. People nearby may breathe in these bacteria and become infected.

The DPH Sussex Clinic reports approximately 5,000 client visits a year for evaluation, the majority of whom have latent TB and are under treatment to prevent the development of active TB. An estimated 5 ​percent to 10 percent of latent cases become active without treatment.
For further information on the DPH Tuberculosis services, visit:  http://dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/dpc/tbservices.html. For further information on TB, visit http://www.cdc.gov/tb/.

Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware’s citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations. DPH, a division of DHSS, urges Delawareans to make healthier choices with the 5-2-1 Almost None campaign: eat 5 or more fruits and vegetables each day, have no more than 2 hours of recreational screen time each day (includes TV, computer, gaming), get 1 or more hours of physical activity each day, and drink almost no sugary beverages.