Not many people know exactly what public health partners do or what services local health departments provide. Our website goes into more details about our services, but we’d like to highlight a few of those services that are either provided by us or our partners. Would you like to be a public health partner? We have some suggestions for you!
Breathe easier by signing up for MORPCs Air Quality Alerts. MORPC tracks air pollution levels and tells us if the air is healthy or unhealthy to breathe. High pollution levels can be especially unsafe for sensitive groups such as those with asthma or other breathing issues. Even if you are not directly impacted by air pollution, be a good neighbor and sign up anyways. There are things that we can do to help others such as not mowing or doing any unnecessary driving during an air quality alert.
Almost 80 million adults in the U.S. have limited or low health literacy skills. This impacts their ability to find, understand and use health information. As a result, these individuals tend to use emergency departments for primary care, have higher hospitalization rates, develop more diseases and have a higher rate of death. If you are an organization or an individual who would like to help or learn more about health literacy, go to https://advancinghl.org/. You could save a life or improve the quality of someone’s health.
If you haven’t signed up for Alert Franklin County, you should do so! It’s a great way to stay informed about severe weather or other high-risk (emergency) situations. Getting alerts will give you more time to respond or plan if needed. Go to https://alertfranklincounty.org/ for details.
We love farmers markets! If you enjoy them as much as we do, check out our Nutrition web page to find a market near you and be sure to take a look at our safety tips offered by our Food Safety staff.
No one knows your community better than you do, and if your community’s health is important to you, consider joining or starting a CHAT, which stands for Community Health Action Team (CHAT). You will work with other community members and Franklin County Public Health to decide which important health issues that you’d like to tackle in your community.
Recycling isn’t only good for the environment. It’s good for our health. Recycling improves air quality and reduces health risks; and no one knows more about recycling than SWACO. Their resources for the community are endless! Visit SWACO's website to learn about backyard composting, find a recycling drop-off location, what to do with hazardous household waste or find a prescription drug drop-off site. You can also partner with SWACO to organize a community green event.
Did you know that you can find food service and retail food establishment inspection reports on our website? Check out your favorite restaurant but if you can't find it, check out Columbus Public Health’s website; your favorite restaurant could be in their jurisdiction.
The Behavioral Health and Addiction Services section at FCPH works to educate and engage individuals and communities about prevention, harm reduction strategies and treatment options for substance-use disorders. If you want to prevent overdose deaths, consider requesting a free Naloxone (NARCAN) kit, which you will receive by mail.
Community partners can work with us to host a community NARCAN training. Learn more at https://myfcph.org/health-systems-planning/ep/opiate-crisis/.
Hate mosquitoes? So do we. Besides being a nuisance, they can spread diseases. Reducing potential mosquito breeding sites reduces the number of mosquitoes in your backyard. Did you know that you can submit a service request to our Mosquito Management Program to help find mosquito breeding sites on your property? We are also partnering with Columbus Public Health to host several scrap tire turn-in events in May. Spare tires provide the perfect environment for mosquitoes to reproduce. Watch for details about our tire turn-in events and learn more about requesting service at https://mosquito.myfcph.org/.
Sadly, hunger causes a host of health problems for those living in poverty: obesity, chronic diseases, undernourishment, poor health and nutrition-related health problems.
Hungry kids suffer from poor academic performance, inability to concentrate, lack of motivation, tiredness, behavioral problems and feeling sick. Even if families can scrape together enough food, a balanced and healthy diet is often beyond their reach. Thankfully, we have the Mid-Ohio Food Collective (MOFC), whose work is invaluable, but they welcome any support from the community that they can get. If you want to help put an end to hunger, check out MOFC’s website at https://mofc.org/get-involved/.
More information about FCPH is available throughout our website. Feel free to call us at (614) 525-3160 or email us at fcph@franklincountyohio.gov for questions or comments.