Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-03-25 Board of Health Minutes o�N or Ria Town of Reading Meeting Minutes RECEIVED CLERK READING, MA a+a,waoxv�P' Board - Committee - Commission - council: 2815 APR24 AM 9: 43 Board of Health Date: 2019-03-25 Time: 6:00 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Conference Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Session: Open Session Purpose: General Business Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Kevin M. Sexton- Chair Emmy Dove- Vice Chair Heidi Pfeifer- Associate Members - Not Present: Eleanor Tate Shonkoff- Member Lara Romanowski- Associate Others Present: Jean Delios- Assistant Town Manager Laura Vlasuk- Health Agent Kristin Morello- School Nutrition Director Gail Dowd- Chief Financial Officer Joe Huggins- Director of Facilities Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Kammy Demello Topics of Discussion: 6:02 pm Sexton opened the meeting. Birch Meadow Elementary School Stomach "Bua" Sexton made a motion to approve moving the agenda item of the Birch Meadow School Stomach "Bug" to the first discussion. Motion was seconded by Dove. Motion carries 2-0. Sexton Introduced several employees in the audience from the Town of Reading including: Kristin Morello, School Nutrition Director, Gail Dowd, Chief Financial Officer, and Joe Huggins, Director of Facilities. Dowd mentioned that the numbers of sick kids from 2/28/19 have decreased since the initial report. Sexton reports that the Birch meadow Elementary School was not able to obtain Information about the sick attendance from all schools for that date, only for Birch Meadow. Dowd mentioned that the school cannot mandate parents to give a reason for their child being out of school sick and cannot require parents to bring in a medical note. Dowd stated that out of all the kids who were sick, not one of them came back with an actual diagnosis. Dove asked if any of the staff were out during the time that kids were out. Dowd reported that staff members are out daily, and they also do not have to inform the school of why they are out for the day. Page 1 1 Huggins mentioned that 3 custodians were sent into the school the weekend after the children were out sick to target the nursing room as well as the two classrooms where the kids were sick. He also mentioned that all touchable surfaces were cleaned thoroughly and In the classrooms there were disinfecting foggers used. Dove asked if there is bleach in the foggers and asked if the foggers help to get rid of norovirus too. Huggins reported that there is no bleach in the foggers. Huggins also mentioned that all schools have their filters changed two times a year to protect the air quality throughout the school. He mentioned that there is a person on shift who is responsible for training the custodians how to properly use all of the chemicals that were used to disinfect the school. Vlasuk stated that the Health Division did a full inspection on Monday, March 4'h, 2019 after the"bug", and that it was determined that the children who were out sick were not out due to a food borne illness. Dowd states that there is a policy in place when there is a food recall and they take it very seriously by following basic FDA protocols. Dowd discussed what is done when there is a food recall and that for produce, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) program is followed. Dowd also mentioned that if food is recalled, it Is tagged and pulled off the shelves immediately and not used. Dove brought up the discussion about wanting the sick policy for the Birch Meadow School to be amended. Dove stated that she was wondering if there are any suggestions the BOH can make to the School Committee to have the policy changed. Dowd asked Dove what part of the policy she would like to have amended. Dove stated that she is referring to the 24- hour rule, the exclusion policy. Dove shared that in other states they are asking parents to keep the children home for at least 48 hours after the last diarrhea/vomiting episode, and that she thinks this should be discussed to see if It would help within the Town of Reading as well. Dowd asked that Dove reach out to the School Committee herself to recommend these changes. Dowd reports that the chair of the school committee would want to see all supporting documentation for this change. Dove stated that what happened at the school is similar to Norovirus, and Dowd Interjected stating that this incident was not Norovirus. She stated that some kids were out for other reasons. Dowd reports that a lot of supporting documentation must be brought to the School Committee meeting in order for them to even consider reviewing the request. Pfeifer stated that some parents send their kids to school even when they are sick, so she is wondering how this will be enforced. Dove mentioned how California sends a sick note to all parents letting them know when a virus is confirmed in a student and that she thinks this could be implemented in the schools in Reading. Dowd mentioned that this Is not the best Idea because the schools need to be careful of student's privacy, and cautioned that this might panic other parents. Sexton also mentioned that we should discuss any possible changes that may need to be made to the school sick policy and that possibly a discussion can be had between the two chairs. Sexton mentioned that he thinks the school did a good job of handling the issue with the school stomach "bug". Dowd reports that a much larger discussion needs to happen in order for any changes to be made. Chair report Sexton mentioned that at the last RCASA meeting the topic of CBD oil was brought up. Sexton stated that RCASA does not have any new information on it. Sexton reports that there have been discussions which suggest that officials may want to enforce regulations to make sure that there isn't any THC In the CBD oil that is sold to residents In town. Dove stated that there may need to be an age cap to purchase the product. Sexton commented that sometimes online the CBD oil can have trace amounts of THC in them, so it is hard to regulate if people can just go online and purchase CBD oil with trace amounts of THC In them. Heidi compared CBD oil to Kombucha, how Kombucha has a trace amount of alcohol in it, yet anyone can purchase it. Health Aaent Report Vlasuk reported that there were 26 inspections and re-inspections, and that there were 18 dumpster inspections. Vlasuk also reported that there have been no new Flu shots administered, and that there is nothing new in Maven. Vlasuk reported that there are 16 active Flu cases in Reading, which is considered low for this time of year, compared to other years. Vlasuk also mentioned that tobacco inspections will be starting soon, and reported that the tobacco budget will come directly from Reading and will no longer be funded Page 1 2 through a grant. Vlasuk mentioned that the next BOH meeting will have a conflict with the Town Meeting. Vlasuk asked about the BOH meeting being 4/23 Instead of 4/22. All board members confirmed that 4/23 at 6:30 pm is a good time for the meeting. Vlasuk to check and make sure a room is available for the meeting. Pesticide Regulations in Tree Lawn: Sexton mentioned that at the least meeting the board agreed to upload a link for rodenticides and thought it was the CDC, and it wasn't. A motion was made by Sexton to put the 2 links on the BOH website. Seconded by Dove. Motion carries 3-0-0 M BOH Thee minutes from February 2YI, 2019 were discussed. A motion to approve was made by Sexton, seconded by Dove. Motion carries 3-0-0. Adiournment A motion to adjourn was made by Sexton, seconded by Dove. Motion carries, 3-0-0. The BOH Meeting was adjourned at 6:40 pm. Page 1 3