• From pulling teeth to testing water, the county health department is a busy operation.

By NICOLE CARTRETTE
Staff Writer

It started in 1911 with one part-time physician.

Today the Columbus County Health Department employs more than 73 full-time staff members and offers everything from dental and maternal health to tattoo parlor inspection.
Of the department’s $6.8 million budget in 2006, local appropriations accounted for 18 percent, according to a report Health Director Kim Smith presented to the Board of Commissioners recently.

The bulk of the department’s budget comes from Medicare (32 percent) and Medicaid (29 percent). Other funding comes from third party payers, and federal and state appropriations, the report details.

The department is responsible for dealing with public health issues such as a bioterrorism attack, pandemic influenza, methamphetamine labs and other health crises in addition to providing medical and nutrition services to clients.

Vaccines

In the area of adult health, the agency provides employment physicals, college physicals, blood pressure checks, immunizations, and visual and hearing screening.

The agency administered 1877 flu vaccinations, and seven pneumonia vaccinations in 2006.
In the area of child health, the department served 619 existing and 38 new patients in 2006. More than 10,700 services provided were Medicaid-reimbursed and 1,864 were classified as non-Medicaid.

More than 4,000 children received their immunizations from the health department. Of all immunizations given in the county, 87 percent of child immunizations are given at the health department, according to the report.

A rising cost of contraceptives has driven up the cost of providing family planning, the report states. In 2006, 1,746 established patients were served and 324 new patients. While 2,329 were Medicaid reimbursed services, 4,765 were non-Medicaid reimbursed.

WIC

Women, Infants and Children (WIC) is a federally supported program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It is administered at the Columbus County Health Department.
Eligible families with pregnant women and children under 5 years receive vouchers for certain types of food and milk.

In 2006, more than $1.4 million in WIC purchases were generated in Columbus County.
The vouchers can be redeemed at local food markets, pharmacies and farmers markets.
On average, the program brings $4.50 in revenue to Columbus County businesses for every $1 spent on the WIC program, according to the report.

No insurance

Health Check and Health Choice are state-mandated health insurance programs for children ages birth to 19 years who are under-insured or not eligible for Medicaid.

The coordinator, based at the health department, works to ensure Medicaid-eligible children have access to health care and to identify children eligible for Health Choice.

The department operates a dental clinic and two tooth mobile sites. In 2006, sites included Edgewood Elementary and Whiteville Primary schools.

Of 2,473 dental patients seen in 2006, 1,990 were on Medicaid, 333 were Health Choice-insured and 150 were uninsured.

“We are the envy of all counties around us,” Smith said, pointing out that finding dentists to work in the program can be difficult.

Home health

In fiscal year 2005-2006, the agency provided 38,046 home visits with nurses and aides. Services included physical, speech and occupational therapy.

Columbus County Home Health remained the home health provider to the majority of county citizens, the report states.

In the area of environmental health the department completed 892 food and lodging inspections in 2006.

Water samples at facilities under inspection and of the lake water at Lake Waccamaw totaled 121. Site evaluations reached 1514 and 570 septic tank permits were issued.

Revenues collected from improvement permits from January to December 2006 totaled $38,850, new construction authorization brought in another $20,475 and re-inspections accounted for $10,650. Total revenues from permit and inspection fees were $82,001.

HIV up

The health department deals with a number of sexually transmitted disease cases annually. In 2006 the report identifies five cases of tuberculosis, up one from 2005. The department also identified 25 new cases of HIV/AIDS, up from 17 in 2005.

Columbus County ranks 17 out of 100 counties for HIV cases, according to the report. More than 300 other sexually transmitted disease cases were identified in 2006 and included 202 cases of chlamydia,gonorrhea, hepatitis B and one case of syphilis. “All patients seen in the health department’s STD clinic are counseled regarding safe sex and use of birth control,” the report explains.