Healthcare

County’s Use Of Hybrids Is On The Rise

Supervisor Don Knabe, Chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, lauded a recent report that shows a dramatic increase in the County’s use of hybrid vehicles.

Earlier this month, the Los Angeles County Internal Services Department released its annual Clean Fuels Report. The report shows that hybrids now make up over 20-percent of the County’s entire passenger car fleet. The County currently has a total of 268 hybrids, which is an increase of over 1,400-percent since the Board of Supervisors made acquiring hybrids a priority four years ago. This number does not include vehicles within the Department of Public Works, the Fire Department, or the Sheriff’s Department, which each maintains their own vehicles and fleet management.

In November 2005, the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to modify the County Clean Fuels Policy to ensure that hybrid vehicles become the standard for new non-emergency passenger vehicles acquired for routine County business. The Board also directed County Departments to begin purchasing hybrids as they replaced their gasoline powered passenger vehicles, whenever practical and economically feasible.

I am very pleased with the results of this report, said Supervisor Knabe. The County of Los Angeles is one of the largest employers in the region, and it is important that we are at the forefront of reducing energy use. By increasing the use of hybrids, we are not only saving money on fuel costs, but we are also reducing the amount of resources that we consume.

Knabe Seeks To Create Thousands Of Local Jobs

Supervisor Don Knabe, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, is seeking to create as many as 10,000 temporary jobs in Los Angeles County thanks to funding available in the Federal Stimulus Package. Knabe introduced legislation this week that would utilize over $100 million in federal funding to create subsidized employment opportunities in County departments, private sector employers, non-profit organizations, and in cities across Los Angeles County.

There is a limited timeframe when this federal funding is available, so we have no time to waste to make sure our unemployed residents can benefit from the thousands of jobs we can create right here in Los Angeles County, said Supervisor Knabe. Our local unemployment rate is hovering around 10-percent and we have a major opportunity to help our residents by creating immediate jobs thanks to this funding.

The goal of the motion is to place 10,000 unemployed local workers in financially subsidized positions from May 2009 through March 2010. The funding would come from the federal Emergency Temporary Aid for Needy Families Contingency Fund and would provide a minimum of $100 million to the County to create temporary jobs. The federal portion of the funding provides 80-percent of the subsidy, and the County would have to provide a 20-percent share.

Subsidized employment is one of the major priorities of this fund, and we intend to take full advantage of the significant network we have in place to provide training and employment to ensure this funding gets out the door and put towards jobs, said Knabe. We cannot do this alone – we will be engaging both our County Workforce Investment Board, as well as the other eight Workforce Investment Boards across the County to help us employ these folks.

Under Knabe’s motion, the County’s Chief Executive Officer will determine the feasibility of creating and coordinating employment opportunities that are possible through the available federal funding.

It’s Not Too Late To Vaccinate

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and the Department of Public Health is urging all residents to get a flu shot or the FluMist nasal spray vaccine if they have not done so already. Flu season can last until spring, so it is not too late to vaccinate against the flu.

Many people mistakenly believe that there is no benefit to getting a flu vaccine after November, said Jonathan E. Fielding, MD, MPH, Director of Public Health and Health Officer. In fact, influenza activity does not often peak until after the start of the new year and can continue through March, so vaccinations received in December provide protection at the time when people are most likely to catch the flu. Free flu vaccines continue to be offered through our Public Health clinics for those that do not have a regular doctor or insurance coverage.

Each year in the United States, between 5 and 20 percent of the population is infected with influenza, a serious disease that can lead to complications including pneumonia, hospitalization, and even death. In Los Angeles County in 2005, flu and pneumonia complications led to over 2,000 deaths. The flu also has a significant day-to-day impact on families and communities, leading to missed days of work and school, hardships for family care givers, and preventing people from participating in the activities they enjoy.

Yearly flu vaccinations are the best way to prevent influenza. The vaccine can prevent 70-90% of cases in healthy adults under 65 years of age. The vaccine is safe and does not cause the flu. Some minor side effects can occur, signaling that the immune system is responding to the vaccine and building immunity. Such side effects, which usually last only 1 to 2 days, include soreness, redness, or swelling where the shot was given; a low-grade fever; and aches and pains. These side effects are minor and are far less risky than suffering through the flu.

Residents are encouraged to first contact their regular doctor for recommended vaccinations. Those who do not have a regular doctor or insurance coverage for vaccines may be eligible for reduced-cost or no-cost vaccines. Free flu vaccines are readily available in LA County, and the traditional shot, FluMist nasal spray vaccine and thimerosal-free (preservative-free) vaccine continues to be offered through Public Health clinics, while supplies last. To find a Public Health clinic near you, contact LA County’s information line at 2-1-1 from any land line or cell phone.

For information on the web regarding low-cost flu vaccines through a health care organization or other vaccination clinic, visit the Public Health Immunization Program’s website by clicking here or at www.findaflushot.com

LA County Celebrates 25 Years Of Trauma Services

December 2008 marks the 25th anniversary of Los Angeles County’s trauma system. Nearly 400,000 critically injured trauma patients have been treated in local trauma centers since the first trauma centers were designated in 1983. Traumatic injuries continue to be the leading cause of death for people between the ages of 1 and 44.

Critically injured trauma patients include those who require immediate life-saving surgical intervention because of major blood loss or shock as a result of motor vehicle crashes, gunshot or knife wounds, falls, or other violent accidents. These patients are brought by ambulance directly to a trauma center for specialized care rather than being transported to the nearest emergency room.

Unlike regular community hospitals, trauma centers maintain an entire team of specialized medical personnel, including a trauma surgeon, who are available 24 hours a day to ensure that life-threatening injuries to be treated at a moment’s notice. There are currently 13 trauma centers in Los Angeles County, making it the largest organized trauma system in the country.

As we saw during the recent train collision in Chatsworth, trauma centers are crucial to disaster response, says Cathy Chidester, Director of the Emergency Medical Services Agency. There are four to five multi-casualty incidents every month in the county, where critically injured victims are taken to a trauma center.

Over the past 25 years, the number of trauma patients treated annually has grown from 15,138 in 1984, to 19,481 in 2007. The most recent data shows that males have more traumatic injuries than females (14,584 males vs. 4,897 females) and that the top five mechanisms of injury are: motor vehicle crashes (5,039), falls (4,045), auto vs. pedestrian/bicycle (2,947), gunshot wounds (2,366), and motorcycle crashes (1,339). Out of 19,481 trauma patients, nearly 1,800 were pediatric.

Trauma System History

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors officially designated the first eight trauma centers on December 15, 1983. The system grew to a peak in 1985 with a total of 22 designated trauma centers. The county currently has 13 trauma centers.

During the initial period of growth, there were many perceived advantages in seeking trauma center designation, such as marketing advantages, prestige, and favorable impact on post-graduate training programs. However, it quickly became evident that the perceived benefits were not enough to offset the high levels of uncompensated care for trauma patients.

The decline of trauma centers was finally halted with the implementation of secure trauma catchment areas, which helped keep patient numbers high enough for trauma centers to maintain high-quality training programs, and the Board of Supervisors’ decision to allocate newly available Proposition 99 tobacco tax monies to offset the trauma centers’ financial losses.

Additionally, the recent stability of the trauma system network is largely due to the voter-approved special parcel tax (called Measure B: Trauma, Emergency and Bioterrorism Response Assessment) that was approved in 2002. Part of the money that is collected allows the county to maintain and enhance the trauma network.

The trauma system has proven to be cost effective because it lowers mortality and morbidity rates, decreases permanent disabilities, and decreases the number of productive years lost to society, says Chidester. More importantly, the system saves lives every day by providing highly specialized care for the most life-threatening injuries.

It’s Time For Your Flu Shot LA County

Los Angeles County Health Officer Jonathan E. Fielding, MD, MPH, would like to remind everyone that a yearly flu vaccine is the most important step in protecting against influenza. Flu vaccination is the best way for people to protect themselves and the ones they care about from influenza.

Public Health will be hosting a number of free flu vaccine clinics at schools, churches, and other community sites. We encourage everyone who wants a flu vaccine to get one, said Dr. Fielding. The time to get a flu vaccine begins in October and extends into March because we sometimes see flu cases as late as May.

The flu vaccine clinic schedule and the listing of LA County Public Health Center locations and hours of operation can be found on the Public Health website at: www.publichealth.lacounty.gov. People who do not have access to the Internet can call the LA County information and referral line by dialing 2-1-1 from any landline or cell phone. Operators can assist people in locating a flu vaccine clinic or a Public Health Center near them.

Parents should know that recommendations for flu vaccinations have recently changed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all children six months through 18 years of age receive a flu vaccine against influenza every year, unless they have a serious egg allergy. s

When people, especially school-aged children, receive a flu vaccine, they not only protect themselves, they also protect people around them who are susceptible to getting sick, said Dr. Fielding. Flu can easily spread from child-to-child in school settings.

The best way to prevent the spread of flu is to wash your hands often, especially after visiting the restroom, or coming into contact with someone who has flu-like symptoms; cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze; avoid touching your mouth, nose and eyes; stay home if you are sick or keep your children out of school if they are sick; and get vaccinated against the flu, added Dr. Fielding.

Many pharmacies are also administering the flu vaccine. For these and

Knabe Hosts Youth Trauma Conference

Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe sponsored a conference for mental health professionals, probation officers, community workers, school administrators and teachers that examined how trauma and violence shapes the behaviors of young people.

The one-day training was developed in partnership with the Probation Department, Department of Mental Health, Los Angeles Unified School District and the Children’s Council of Los Angeles County, and focused on those engaged in delinquent behavior and under the supervision of the Probation Department.

For far too long, we have viewed kids involved in the juvenile justice system, over 27,000 in Los Angeles County alone, from primarily a prosecutorial standpoint, and that really impairs our ability to help them move past their delinquent behaviors and overcome the significant obstacles they face, said Supervisor Knabe. The goal of the conference is to impart upon staff who work with these young people everyday specific, concrete practices that take into account the trauma and violence these kids grew up with and are continually exposed to. I hope that these new groundbreaking practices will be a positive and significant step towards improving their lives and ultimately eliminating violence and the pervasive influence of gangs in their communities.

Norwalk Clinic Receives Funding To Provide For More Visits

The Norwalk Regional Health Center will be able to accept roughly 1,600 additional medical visits after the Board of Supervisors approved an agreement with JWCH Institute, Inc., Supervisor Don Knabe announced today.

The Norwalk clinic, which provides free and low-cost medical care and social services to the residents of the surrounding communities, will now be able to see over 1,500 more patients. These newly-funded visits will go primarily to uninsured or indigent adult patients that are not eligible for any publicly funded programs. According to the County’s Health Department, nearly 27,000 people in the City of Norwalk have no health care insurance.

Health centers like the one in Norwalk are absolutely vital to the County’s healthcare system, and the more patients they can see the better, said Supervisor Knabe. A clinic visit is substantially more cost effective than a trip to the emergency room, and by making our clinics more accessible we are reducing the strain on a very fragile ER system.

The $150,212 for the Norwalk clinic was part of a larger $2,075,708 Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Program Health Care Services Agreement with JWCH. PPP agreements are critical to the healthcare safety net of the County and through private partners like JWCH they provide primary, specialty, and/or dental care to the indigent, low-income, uninsured patient population throughout Los Angeles County. The Norwalk Regional Health Center is located at 12360 Firestone Boulevard in the City of Norwalk.

Interim Director And Chief Medical Director To Be Appointed To Department Of Health Services

Effective May 16, 2008, John F. Schunhoff, Ph.D., will be appointed as Interim Director and Robert G. Splawn, M.D., will serve as the Interim Chief Medical Director for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services.

Dr. Bruce Chernof, Director and Chief Medical Officer, recently announced his resignation from County service effective May 15, 2008. Mr. Schunhoff and Dr. Splawn will serve these posts to ensure that the mission and responsibilities of this highly critical department are carried out without interruption. The Chief Executive Office is working with the Department of Human Resources to identify a highly qualified recruitment firm to conduct a nationwide search to identify candidates for the permanent position as Director of the Department of Health Services.

In these positions, Mr. Schunhoff and Dr. Splawn will operate in a collaborative manner and function as a team to address various critical issues facing the department. The Chief Executive Office will be working closely with both individuals to ensure that the County and the Department of Health Services move forward with critical initiatives, such as the Financial Stabilization and Deficit Reduction Plans, reopening Martin Luther King, Jr. Hospital, the LAC+USC Replacement Project, and restructuring departmental programs and services.

First Measles Case In 2008 Diagnosed In LA County

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has confirmed that a young child has been diagnosed with measles. Currently there is no identified source of the disease and the investigation is ongoing. The child was not vaccinated against measles.

At this time, we have not identified any additional cases, but we are continuing to investigate as we try to determine where and how this patient contracted the disease. We are alerting doctors to be on alert for any patients that might have symptoms associated with measles. What we do know is that the patient was not vaccinated against this highly preventable disease, said Jonathan E. Fielding, MD, MPH, Director of Public Health and County Health Officer. This is the first childhood case of measles in Los Angeles County since 2002. The child with measles in that year also was not vaccinated and acquired the disease during foreign travel.

Public Health would like to remind parents how important childhood immunizations are to everyone’s health. Because of vaccines, there are very few cases of measles in the United States today. Parents concerned about vaccine safety should speak to their child’s health care provider.

A Note About Vaccine Safety:

Recent media attention regarding vaccines and questions of a possible link to autism has focused on a mercury-containing preservative called thimerosal. However,

– According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and other leading medical study groups, thimerosal has never been proven to cause any harm.

– None of the vaccines recommended for children age 6 and under, except for certain doses of inactivated influenza vaccine, contain thimerosal, and have not since 1999. In the state of California, thimerosal-free vaccine must be used in children under the age of three. The measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, along with several other vaccines, has never contained thimerosal.

– Currently available childhood vaccines have an excellent safety record. There is no scientific data to link vaccines to such serious conditions such as autism.

Knabe Responds To Plan To Close Clinics

Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe issued the following statement today in response to the County’s Chief Executive Officer’s recommendation to close and/or reduce clinic services throughout the County, as a means to balance the County’s Department of Health Services Fiscal Year 2008-09 Budget:

In the upcoming fiscal year, our Department of Health Services is looking at a budget shortfall of up to $300 million. In an effort to balance the budget, the CEO has brought forward a recommendation that calls on this Board to close or reduce services at most of our health centers and comprehensive health centers throughout the County. And although, this is only a starting point of the conversation, I am shocked by the proposal and deeply concerned by it.

It is true that this plan will generate millions in savings, but what it fails to address is the effect that closing clinics will have on our already overworked emergency rooms. With the recent overcrowding issues at Harbor-UCLA and the closures of the emergency rooms at King-Harbor and Daniel Freeman Hospitals, the system can ill-afford any further strain. The emergency care system at both private and County hospitals is already in a fragile state, and further increasing the workload of our emergency rooms is creating a time-bomb waiting to explode. We need to be opening more clinics in the County, not closing them.

I will be introducing a motion at Tuesday’s Board Meeting that will ask the CEO to come up with a comprehensive list of all possible options to balance the Health Department’s budget. We have some very difficult decisions on the horizon, but this proposal should be viewed as our last resort and not just a quick fix.