Nursing

	Departments	Nursing

	BCMH Bioterrorism Medical Reserve Corps Family and Children First Council Help Me Grow Teen Pregnancy Prevention	BCMH What is BCMH? BCMH, the Bureau for Children with Medical Handicaps, is a health care program in the Ohio Department of Health. BCMH links families of children with special health care needs to a network of quality providers and helps families obtain payment for services their children needs. BCMH can be broken down into four areas: 1) Public Health Nurse Services A registered nurse employed by your local health department skilled in working with children and families works with you to identify health care needs for your child. The nurse can also provide information to families about available resources and services and helps the family learn about their child’s growth and development. This service is available for children who are enrolled in the Help Me Grow program. 2) The Diagnostic Program Children can receive services for three months, from BCMH-approved providers, to rule out or diagnose a special health care need or establish a plan of treatment. There is no financial requirement for diagnostic services. 3) The Treatment Program Children can receive services for one year, from BCMH-approved providers, for treatment of an eligible condition. Both medical and financial eligibility are required for the Treatment Program. If the child remains eligible, services may be renewed each year until the child reaches age 21. 4) The Service Coordination Program This program helps families locate and coordinate services for their child. This is a limited program available to children, with specific conditions, who are seen by a team of providers at hospitals approved by BCMH for service coordination. Which children are eligible for BCMH? Those who are: ∙ Age 0-21 ∙ Permanent residents of Ohio ∙ Children who are at risk for, may have or have a chronic medical condition ∙ Under the care of a BCMH-approved physician (For the diagnostic and treatment programs) Please call the Henry County Health Department for more information. Bioterrorism Our goal is for the Henry County Health Department to respond quickly and efficiently to intentional, accidental, or natural disasters affecting public health or jeopardize the safety of Henry County citizens. We accomplish this goal by working in a Unified Command System and with other emergency responders (police, fire, EMA, hospitals and others) to assess and respond to emergency situations.Since the attack on the Twin Towers in New York City and the use of anthrax against citizens in 2001, there is an increase awareness of our vulnerability as a nation. With this realization, the government established the Department of Homeland Security. Grant money was made available to states and communities for improving preparedness on a state and local level. The Henry County Health Department has used this grant to develop plans and resources so the health department is able to respond to a bioterrorists incident, infectious disease outbreak or other public health emergency. Emergency preparedness is and an extension of the mission of public health which is to promote physical and medical health and prevent disease, injury, and disability. Websites to visit to help you prepare for emergencies: http://www.ready.gov \| http://www.pandemicflu.gov \| http://www.ohiopandemicflu.gov/ \| http://www.cdc.gov/ \| http://www.odh.state.oh.us \| http://www.fema.gov http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster \| http://www.serveohio.org
	Top of Page	Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) Volunteers are needed! Henry County Health Department is in the process of starting up the Henry County Medical Reserve Corps (MRC). This group of volunteers will be trained in emergency preparedness and be ready and able to assist the community in time of a disaster. For more information, visit http://www.medicalreservecorps.gov or contact Gloria Arps garps@henrycohd.org.
	Top of Page	Henry County Family & Children First Council Henry County Family & Children First Council is a partnership of agencies and community organizations committed to improving the well being of children and families. Ohio has identified six commitments to child well-being by which county councils can measure their progress in improving child well-being. These commitments and values are listed below: 1. Expectant parents and newborns thrive 2. Infants and toddlers thrive 3. Children are ready for school 4. Children and youth succeed in school 5. Youth choose healthy behaviors 6. Youth successfully transition into adulthood The Henry County Family & Children First Council, which oversees the Help Me Grow program, assists with meeting these first three commitments with their comprehensive services for infants and toddlers ages 0-3. It is the intent of Henry County Family & Children First Council to streamline and coordinate services to families. that is both simple and organized. The FCFC does this with Service Coordination through our Wraparound services. These services are provided to those families with multiple needs, and who receives services from more than one agency. Wraparound services are provided with a team approach that is family driven. The family team develops a service coordination Plan that meets the needs and goals the family has identified. This provides a more organized way for families to access services. Henry County Family and Children First Council operates by the following Mission statement to improve the well-being of children in Henry County: All families are the foundation and future of Henry County. Our mission is to provide services and education, to promote stronger, healthier, and nurturing families. This will be accomplished through a comprehensive, coordinated, interagency system for supporting families and individuals from birth to adulthood. Family and Children First Council Annual Report 2007 (pdf)
	Top of Page	The Henry County Family and Children First Council, in cooperation with the Help Me Grow Program, is committed to the vision that expectant parents and newborns will thrive, infants and toddlers will thrive and children are healthy and ready for school. What is Help Me Grow? The Help Me Grow program provides comprehensive services for infants and toddlers ages 0-3 and their families. This voluntary program is designed to assist families before the birth of a baby and until the child turns three. The first years of life are an important time of learning and development for a child. New parents often have questions about how their child should be growing and learning. Help Me Grow will assist families in their efforts to give their child the best possible start in life. Some of the services offered by the program include the following. Visits by a Registered Nurse to newborns and their families. Referrals to community resources to meet the needs of the family. Home Visitation to provide parenting and child development information. Screenings of development and early identification of delays with referral to specialized services and therapies. Playgroups and family support activities. Up-to-date information on your child’s health, growth and development, and parenting to lay the foundation for later success in school. When should you call Help Me Grow? Your child has been diagnosed with a medical condition that may affect his/her development. You are concerned that your child is not reaching developmental milestones. (see Guide link below) Your family would like additional support or information about the challenges of caring for your baby or toddler. Help Me Grow is offering monthly developmental screenings at the Health Department. Call 419-599-5545 to make an appointment for this free service. Links: A Guide to Your Child's Development (pdf)
	Top of Page Top of Page	Teen Pregnancy Prevention Programs Baby Think It Over Baby Think It Over is a computerized doll that simulates parenting. Baby Think It Over is used primarily in the 8^th and 9^th grade county wide, and electively in some high school classes in Henry County. Henry County has 60 “Real Care Baby Plus II” Baby Think It Over babies, two drug-dependent babies and three fetal alcohol babies. Funding from the Henry County Department of Job and Family Services purchased these babies. Students are responsible for this baby, usually for a weekend. It records how well the baby was cared for and if it was abused, shaken or neglected. The computerized babies are very demanding and frequently require care such as feeding, diaper changes, burping, and rocking. These babies usually go home after a weeklong program taught by nurses discussing teen sexuality, growth and reproduction, sexually transmitted diseases, birth control and abstinence. This program was started in the Henry County Schools in 1996 and approximately 500 babies go out during a school year. The objective of this program is to let students experience how being a parent, as a teen would change their whole family dynamics. This program also educates them regarding sexual health, birth control, abstinence, sexual transmitted diseases, as well as stress the importance of marriage in a parenting situation. The secondary effect of this program, which is almost more important, is the fact that a very loud, visible “baby” is in the home. This promotes parent child interaction and family discussion regarding sexual activity. The overall goal is to reduce out of wedlock teen pregnancies. Individual School /Community Programs (Including Public Awareness) We also will provide individual programs at schools per the school’s request for very specific topics such as: sexual transmitted diseases, birth control, teen pregnancy prevention, sexuality, abstinence, and how to talk to parents/child about sex. These are usually done for just a day or two to address that specific topic. These programs could also include more in depth programs that may last 3-5 days in a particular classroom, depending on teacher requests. Teen pregnancy and out of wedlock pregnancies continue to be a problem in Henry County and public awareness is an important part of the whole picture. We plan to continue teen pregnancy prevention month activities and local health fair and county fair exhibits. The objectives of our school and community programs are to educate and inform students and their families regarding healthy sexual activity, in an attempt to decrease the rate of out of wedlock teen births.

Individual School /Community Programs (Including Public Awareness)