Dover – Start your January 2016 right with the help of the Division of Public Health’s (DPH) “31 Days to a Healthier You” social media campaign.  Use the hashtag #31DaysDE to view how-to videos, tips, photos, and contact information for starting the New Year right.

“Healthy habits will lead to a healthier Delaware,” said Delaware Health and Social Services (DHSS) Secretary Rita Landgraf.  “I encourage all Delawareans to have at least one New Year’s resolution that is health-oriented:  walking more, eating wiser portions, or visiting your doctor or dentist.  Small steps can lead to big health improvements.”

“We all need refreshing and inspirational ideas for taking charge of our health,” said Dr. Karyl Rattay, DPH director.  “If Delawareans are more physically active, make healthier food choices, quit smoking, and get regular medical screenings and immunizations, they are at reduced risk of certain cancers, heart attacks and strokes, diabetes, and obesity.”

Secretary Landgraf and Director Rattay’s comments are reinforced by the newly issued 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.  New in this update of the Dietary Guidelines is the recommendation that less than 10 percent of calories should come from added sugars and saturated fats.  View the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans here.

Under the Affordable Care Act, Delawareans have access to free health screenings (like mammograms, blood pressure checks and autism screening for toddlers) and prevention opportunities (like free immunizations, nutrition counseling and more). To learn about Delaware’s health insurance marketplace, go to www.choosehealthde.com.

To learn about preventive benefits, visit healthcare.gov and search for “prevention.”

DPH offers these healthy lifestyle suggestions:

·      Re-thinking your drink to sugarless drinks can lead to a weight loss of up to 15 pounds in one year.  Visit http://www.deheal.org/projects/rethinkyourdrink/.

·      People at increased risk for type 2 diabetes can prevent or delay the disease’s onset by losing 5 to 7 percent of their body weight. Delawareans who lose weight might also lower their blood pressure and cholesterol, and lessen pressure on their joints.

·      DPH recommends following the 5-2-1 Almost None concept: eating at least five servings of fruit or vegetables a day, watching no more than two hours of recreational screen time daily, getting one hour of physical activity each day, and drinking almost no sugar-sweetened drinks.

·      Becoming more physically active reduces the chance of developing chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. Most people feel better after taking a brisk walk or run, or participating in other activities such as ice skating, swimming, or working out.  Find out how much physical activity you need by clicking here.

·      Monitoring your blood pressure regularly and being aware of your recommended waist circumference can reduce the possibility of a heart attack or stroke. An ideal blood pressure is less than 120/80. The goal for waist size is less than 35 inches for women and less than 40 inches for men. (If you are South Asian, Chinese, or Japanese, the waist size goal is 32 inches for women and 35 inches for men.) Visit the Million Hearts® Delaware partnership.

·      Delaware residents 18 and older smoke can quit through a free program. Visit the Delaware Quitline’s website or call toll-free: 866-409-1858.

·      Visit the immunization schedules page on the DPH website to see immunization schedules recommended for adults and children, and then make an appointment with your provider.

·      Parent, teachers, and child care providers can find helpful physical activity ideas and resources at Making Health Easier.

Individuals seeking TTY services should call 7-1-1 or 800-232-5460. A person who is deaf, hard-of-hearing, deaf-blind, or speech-disabled can use a TTY to type his/her conversation to a relay operator, who then reads the typed conversation to a hearing person at the DPH call center. The relay operator relays the hearing person’s spoken words by typing them back to the TTY user. To learn more about translation services and TTY availability in Delaware, visit delawarerelay.com.
 
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, drink almost no sugary beverages.

DOVER ─ The Division of Public Health’s Office of Animal Welfare’s Delaware Animal Services enforcement unit will provide dog control services to New Castle, Kent, and Sussex counties beginning January 1, 2016. Delaware Animal Services (DAS) has been providing animal cruelty and rabies control since September, and with the expansion of services to include animal control, all animal law enforcement services will be consolidated into one statewide unit. The City of Wilmington will continue to provide animal control services through a contracted provider until June 30, 2016.

After January 1, a team of 20 Animal Welfare Officers will respond to complaints of animal cruelty, incidents of human rabies exposure, and stray animals, including stray dogs, livestock, and seriously injured, ill, or endangered stray cats.

DAS officers will represent the most highly trained animal control officers in Delaware’s history. In addition to more than 90 years of combined law enforcement experience, Animal Welfare Officers completed state Animal Control and Cruelty Certification Training, the Delaware Constable Academy through Delaware Technical Community College, and field training with animal handling. In December, officers were also trained by a national leader in the field on Community Policing Techniques for Animal Control. The training focused on community-centric approaches to animal control to reduce pet relinquishment and prevent animal neglect through compassionate resources and education to animal owners in need of such services.

“Our officers serve as pet ambassadors in the community to solve underlying issues that cause animals to become homeless or abused. Our ultimate goal is preventing cruelty to animals and animal homelessness, and training is critical to accomplishing that goal,” said Chief Mark Tobin, DAS Supervisor.

“The public should expect that those enforcing animal welfare laws are highly trained and field-tested,” said Hetti Brown, Director of the Office of Animal Welfare (OAW). “With the consolidation of animal control services at the state level, we had an opportunity to ensure all officers received consistent law enforcement and animal services training.”

For the sheltering due to the new enforcement duties, the Delaware Office of Animal Welfare selected Chester County SPCA, which will operate shelters and kennels in Delaware, to provide humane sheltering and adoption services for homeless animals and rehabilitative services for abused animals. The selection was the result of a Request-for-Proposal issued by the OAW last August.

Delaware Animal Services will also focus on preventing pet relinquishment and cruelty through public education and the launch of a compassionate resources program. This program, set to launch in early 2016, will offer resources such as pet food and litter, dog houses, and other animal care items to pet owners in need.

Formation of the new unit began after the Delaware General Assembly passed enabling legislation last June to centralize animal control responsibilities within the state, an action that was first requested in 2013 by the Delaware Animal Welfare Task Force in published recommendations. After the recommendations were published, the OAW worked closely with county, city, and state representatives, local animal shelters and animal welfare organizations, and members of the public to draft two sets of recommendations calling for the establishment of a state-run animal control function.

Residents wishing to report potential animal cruelty or an exposure to rabies through an animal bite or scratch can do so through the Delaware Animal Services Hotline at 302-255-4646. After January 1, the hotline will also accept calls concerning stray or injured animals, or concerns about housing and care of animals. Non-emergency reports may also be submitted by email at DelawareAnimalServices@delaware.gov.

DAS will receive calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from Delaware residents wishing to report stray or injured animals, animal cruelty, or rabies exposures. The in-house dispatch service operates between 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. Monday-Friday, and 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. on weekends and holidays. After-hours calls are received by our call service, which will dispatch emergency calls to on-call officers.

With the Jan. 1 launch of Delaware Animal Services, a new state website, AnimalServices.delaware.gov, will provide a Lost and Found Pet Registry. Photos and descriptions of all found stray animals will be posted in the searchable registry to help pet owners looking for their companions. A second phase, which will launch later this winter, will include updates to the Lost and Found Registry that will allow residents and organizations to post lost or found animals. The revised website will also offer new options for purchasing dog licenses, reporting non-emergency animal cruelty, and educational resources for the community.

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 – 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.

Dover – With temperatures starting to drop, especially at night, many Delawareans are beginning to pull out their home heating devices. Now is the time to educate yourself about carbon monoxide, the colorless, odorless gas that is produced by fuel-burning heating sources, appliances, and engines. Furnaces, vehicles, snow blowers, portable generators, stoves, lanterns, gas ranges, and charcoal or wood grills are all potential sources of this dangerous gas. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include feeling dizzy, light-headed, or nauseous.

“Each year, more than 400 Americans die from unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning, more than 20,000 visit the emergency room and over 4,000 are hospitalized,” said Ming Lau, DPM, environmental health toxicologist at the Division of Public Health. “Pregnant women, infants, elderly people and those who suffer from anemia, respiratory or heart disease are most susceptible.”

When power outages occur during emergencies such as hurricanes or winter storms, the use of alternative sources of power for heating, cooling, or cooking can cause carbon monoxide to build up in a home, garage, or camper.

PREVENTION
The best way to protect yourself and be aware of potential carbon monoxide in your home or garage is to purchase and install a reliable battery-operated carbon monoxide detector. These devices are similar to a smoke alarm, and are available at stores that sell home hardware. Follow these additional steps to prevent poisonings:

• Don’t heat your house with a gas oven.
• Have your heating system, water heater and any other gas, oil, or coal burning appliances serviced by a qualified technician every year.
• Test your battery-operated carbon monoxide detector monthly and replace the battery at the same time each year.
• Don’t use a generator, charcoal grill, camp stove, or other gasoline or charcoal-burning device inside your home, basement, or garage or outdoors less than 20 feet from a window, door, or vent.
• Don’t run a car or truck inside a garage attached to your house, even if you leave the door open.
• Don’t light a stove or fireplace that isn’t vented.

Carbon monoxide poisoning is entirely preventable. For more information, go to http://www.dhss.delaware.gov/dph/hsp/hhinsideco.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.