News Flash

WCHHS's 2025 Annual Report is here: view now

After Washington State Department of Health sunsetted their Kiosk Program in March of 2025, Wahkiakum County lost its only discreet, 24-hour free healthcare product dispenser. Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services was fortunate to operate one of the 20 kiosks in the entire state, and residents made good use of it. The latest numbers provided showed an average of 121 dispenses each month that the machine was in operation.

These numbers showed a dramatic increase from many of the same products that were already available at the health department and the Hope Center and Johnson Park Campuses. The increase could have been due to its central location, ease of access, or simply because it required no interaction with other people.

Encouraged by the steady use of the kiosk, Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services saw a need to keep this service in the community. The cost of operating the machine from DOH was prohibitive, so WCHHS explored grant options to keep this needed resource in Wahkiakum. After a few months, WCHHS brought back not one but two self-serve machines: one on the porch of town hall in Cathlamet, and another outside Johnson Park by the food pantry entrance.

Residents can expect many of the same healthcare products as the first machine DOH supplied – products that help protect the community from the spread of infectious disease, as well as preventing injury and death. Many of these products were supplied by CHOICE Regional Health Network, who gave $2,500 to support the startup of the kiosks.

Leading up to the delivery of the new machines, the community voiced its support on social media.

“What a wonderful resource,” one resident commented, “Thank you so much!”

 Another added: “Narcan does save lives.”

At the end of February, a ribbon cutting was held at Johnson Park, where the first machine was placed, stocked, and put online. Attendees included local residents, West End Food Pantry volunteers, Wahkiakum County Commissioner Mark Letham, and employees of Health & Human Services.

Earlier this month, WCHHS held a second ribbon cutting for the machine on the porch of Cathlamet Town Hall.

Before cutting the ribbon, Mayor Nick Sevald made a speech to mark the occasion.

“We are all friends and neighbors,” he stated. “We are all a family. We help others in need as others are there for us when we need them. WCHHS embodies this spirit. While they may not have a cup of sugar for us to borrow, the hardworking people of HHS have been able to provide the community with things we rely on every day. For example, the kiosks, Wahkiakum on the Move, the food pantries, and mental health services are just a few of the many offerings that make living here that much better.”

For questions about products or to become a sponsor, please call Public Health Nurse Stacy Wynn at (360) 795-8630.

Teresa Howell, the senior services-focused Healthy Community Specialist at WCHHS, was honored at the Senior Heroes awards for her work with seniors in Wahkiakum. The Area Agency on Ageing & Disabilities of Southwest Washington gave her the award for her passion for connecting Wahkiakum seniors to vital services and resources. 

"Teresa is so passionate about helping older adults in the community,” her nomination stated. “She responds to people’s needs with the utmost care, really sitting down and listening to their stories.”

Living Well in Wahkiakum is the fall resource event hosted by WCHHS. The agencies and resources have a strong focus on senior well-being, but anyone is welcome to come and get assistance from dozens of local and regional partners! 

For a full list of agencies and resources, follow us on Facebook at Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services or call Diana at 360-795-8630 ext. 236

Since March 2024, 70 cases of avian influenza A(H5) (H5 bird flu) have occurred in humans in the United States, mostly among workers exposed to infected dairy cows and commercial poultry farms. However, cases have also occurred among people exposed to birds kept in non-commercial, backyard flocks.

This anonymous survey collects the following information about backyard flock owners and their flocks to help improve bird flu prevention activities:

o Characteristics of backyard flock owners, their families, and their flocks.

o Knowledge of H5 bird flu and signs and symptoms of H5 bird flu in birds and humans. 

o Perceived risk of and concern about H5 bird flu to their backyard flock and themselves/families.

o Attitudes towards reporting sick or dead birds and protective measures like vaccination of their flock.

o Practices they use to protect their flock and themselves from H5 bird flu.

https://airc.cdc.gov/surveys/?s=NRPKTT7RCDRJEP8F

Last Thursday over two dozen Wahkiakum County residents met in the sanctuary of the Hope Center to learn how to protect their homes against the ever-present threat of wildfire. Brandi Beedle, Local Emergency Response Coordinator for Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services, and Austin Smith, the Emergency Management Coordinator for Wahkiakum County, organized the event. They invited Dan Friesz, the Forest Resilience District Manager from Washington State Department of Natural Resources, to present on steps homeowners can take, as well as resources provided by the DNR. 

Friesz began the meeting with a video from the National Fire Protection Association, which demonstrated an encouraging amount of control that residents possess in the face of wildfire. 

“We have great opportunities as homeowners,” Dr. Jack Cohen explained in the video, “to prevent our houses from igniting during wildfires. Most of our perceptions are that these big wildfires are something we can’t do anything about – They’re overwhelming. If huge organizations can’t control the wildfire, how is it that somehow I can do something to my house to keep it from burning down? It’s not a matter of controlling the wildfire, it’s a matter of changing those conditions of the house and its immediate surroundings.” 

Dr. Cohen goes on to explain numerous studies he and his colleagues conducted to explore the relationship between a wildfire and a home destroyed by one. He found that the high-intensity flames - the chilling scenes we see on the news from time to time - are not actually what’s responsible for a destroyed home. The leap from wildfire to housefire is generated by little opportunities existing within 100 feet from the house; wicker chairs on the porch, firewood stacked up against the house, and leaves piled up in the gutters. The video offers several examples like these, as well as some quick tips for reducing liability. 

“There’s a lot of little things that we can do to our house and its immediate surroundings in order to reduce the ignition potential of that house,” Dr. Cohen stated.

Following the video, Friesz explained how the Department of Natural Resources involved themselves in prevention. 

“To be proactive of what we’re seeing in California and in Oregon is to help landowners improve the forest health,” Friesz stated. His team at the DNR offer free home assessments, focusing on everything 100 feet out from structures. 

“We do a lot of these. We go to a neighbor that’s requested a call and the word gets out and we have 4 or 5 landowners that kind of tag along and watch what we do.” 

As an example, Friesz pointed out a few specifics around the Hope Center, from highly flammable bushes to tree limbs that hang over gutters. 

“It’s really eye-opening,” he commented. “There’s tons of little things to talk about. Every little thing helps.”

Freisz addressed financial assistance for those affected by wildfire as well as funds available for prevention. To qualify for site visits and financial assistance, Friesz pointed out that you must be a small forest landowner, owning anywhere from ½ an acre to 5,000 acres. “The average landowner owns about 20 acres or less,” he stated.

Friesz then gave an overview of how financial assistance works, whether a landowner contracts the work out, or if they choose to get personally reimbursed for sweat equity. 

This initial event is the start of getting Wahkiakum more fire resilient. Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services will be working with local fire departments to be able to do home assessments for any size of home or land in the community in the future. If you would like to get involved with this project, please contact Brandi Beedle at beedleb@co.wahkiakum.wa.us or Austin Smith em@co.wahkiakum.wa.us.

To contact Dan Freisz for more information on service forestry assessment or financial assistance, please contact him at daniel.friesz@dnr.wa.gov.

Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services serves residents of our rural community with vital services like housing, behavioral health, transportation, and so much more. 2024 was a year a growth and innovation for our agency. See what we did in our 2024 Annual Report.

In 2023, Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services began the process of taking a very localized approach to health needs in our community. Our process began by creating a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) survey to gather information from community members about their most pressing health priorities. This survey was distributed physically and electronically to community members between March and July 2023.

The next step of our process was creating the community health assessment (CHA), where your input further informed our focus and efforts. We used measurable mathematical and statistical data to help understand patterns and trends in our local public health, exclusive to Wahkiakum County. To understand how we measured and used data for our community, see the presentation to the Wahkiakum County Board of Health. The proposed health indicators for Wahkiakum County can be found here.

We have released the Community Health Assessment here: Wahkiakum County CHA

Following the CHA data analysis, we will develop a long-term, community-driven systematic plan that addresses public health problems and needs in the community, called the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). 

Finally, we will implement the CHIP, working with the community to take collaborative action to improve county health and wellbeing.

Wahkiakum County, October 22, 2024 — The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) reported that 4 people have tested presumptive positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI H5N1), commonly known as bird flu, in Washington state. These agricultural workers tested positive after working with infected poultry at a commercial farm in Franklin County. The presumptive positive samples have been forwarded to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for confirmatory testing. This is an active investigation and the number of cases under investigation may change as further test results are received.

HPAI H5N1 has been reported in wild birds, backyard poultry, and commercial poultry in Washington state and any ongoing cases and outbreaks in animals will continue to increase the risk of exposure and infection among responders, agricultural workers, and others who may be exposed to infected animals.

At this point, HPAI H5N1 does not pose a serious threat to public health, but Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services (WCHHS) urges those with job-related or recreational exposures to infected birds, cattle, or other potentially impacted domestic or wild animals to take precaution, including wearing personal protective equipment (PPE).

The severity of symptoms in humans has been low with reported cases. Farmworkers have been observed to have flu-like symptoms, such as fever; cough; sore throat; eye tearing, redness, or irritation; and runny or stuffy nose. Conjunctivitis (pink eye) has been the most reported indication of illness. If you are experiencing flu-like symptoms, please notify your doctor if you associate with birds or cattle.

Farmers may report sick/dead domestic birds or livestock to the Washington State Department of Agriculture’s Avian Health Program by calling 1-800-606-3056 or going online at https://wdfw.wa.gov/get-involved/report-observations

For information on highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1, and links to detailed information on PPE, please visit https://www.co.wahkiakum.wa.us/625/Bird-Flu-Highly-Pathogenic-Avian-Influen

On Saturday Wahkiakum County Health and Human Services (WCHHS), in collaboration with E-Cycle Washington, held the County’s first coordinated electronics recycling event. Residents began dropping off unwanted electronics at the Wahkiakum Highschool parking lot starting at 10am. Staff from UpTekk Recycling, along with WCHHS Community Health Advocates, took many items that sat in people’s homes and businesses that were collecting dust. Flatscreen televisions seemed the most popularly donated item of the day, but the program had the capacity to recycle a number of aging and unused items; computer monitors, laptops, tablets, tube tv’s, and portable DVD players were among the accepted donations.

Emma Diffendal, WCHHS’s Environmental Health Specialist, organized the event in collaboration with E-Cycle Washington and the Department of Ecology.

“We were really excited to get an electronics recycling event going out here,” Diffendal commented. “People don’t have a lot of options for getting rid of unwanted electronics in this county, so we were really grateful to everyone for making this happen.”

Diffendal enlisted the help of Community Health Advocates from Wahkiakum High School as well. “The volunteer turnout was great,” Diffendal stated. “It was a great opportunity to work with the Community Health Advocates, promoting another side of public health.”

Residents who dropped off devices had positive comments for the staff and volunteers.

“You guys did a great job promoting this,” one resident said, loading a flatscreen onto the UpTekk truck. “I saw the event posted online and in the paper.”

Another resident brought by a few small electronic items.

“Thank you for allowing this thing to be done,” she expressed.

In addition to reducing burden to residents, e-cycling also keeps a lot of lot of waste out of landfills. UpTekk Recycling estimates that 90% of what is normally thrown away could potentially be recovered and used in new products. The tally of weight from recycled items will come in the next few weeks, after devices get sorted.

“Hopefully we can continue offering these recycling events in the future,” Diffendal stated. “It’s so needed, especially in a rural setting. I’d like to thank Department of Ecology, UpTekk, and all of the volunteers for coming through for our small community. Because we need events like this as well.”

If you have barriers to accessing the COVID-19 vaccine, please give Wahkiakum County Health & Human Services a call and schedule an appointment: (360) 795-8630

Importance of staying up to date

Getting the 2024–2025 COVID-19 vaccine is important because:

Protection from the COVID-19 vaccine decreases with time.

COVID-19 vaccines are updated to give you the best protection from the currently circulating strains.

Getting the 2024–2025 COVID-19 vaccine is especially important if you:

Never received a COVID-19 vaccine

Are ages 65 years and older

Are at high risk for severe COVID-19

Are living in a long-term care facility

Are pregnant, breastfeeding, trying to get pregnant, or might become pregnant in the future.

Want to lower your risk of getting Long COVID

Keep in mind‎

Getting a COVID-19 vaccine is a safer, more reliable way to build protection than getting sick with COVID-19.

The federal agency Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is continuing to monitor and respond to a multistate outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 (commonly known as bird flu) virus. H5N1 is widespread in wild birds worldwide and is causing outbreaks in U.S. poultry and dairy cows. As of July 14, 2024, there have been eight recent human cases in U.S. dairy workers in Texas, Michigan, and Colorado. Each case reported no severe symptoms. Avian influenza A(H5N1) viruses have only rarely been transmitted from person to person, but officials are taking precautions to mitigate transmission from animals to people.

This current outbreak has been circulating in wild birds around the world and was first detected in the U.S. in January 2022. H5N1 has also infected domestic poultry, including commercial and backyard flocks, as well as wild and domestic mammals. It was first identified in Washington State in a backyard flock in May 2022. Public health officials are working with local, state, and federal partners to monitor H5N1 in Washington. There are currently no confirmed or suspected cases in Washington State.

While the current risk to the public is low, farmers can take extra measures to reduce illness in their workers, animals, and neighboring farms that they may regularly interact with. People who own or have contact with poultry, livestock, or other animals should be aware of the risk of exposure to avian influenza so that they can take proper precautions and wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE).

Washington state has PPE in stock and can make it available to your farm upon request. Currently, available PPE includes disposable gloves, face masks, and eye protection including safety goggles, safety glasses, and face shields. This is a one-time provision of PPE. Should you have sick animals or a detection of H5N1 on your farm, this may serve as a stopgap until you can order more and in an ongoing way.

PPE is available on request for:

Dairy producers

Poultry producers

Milk processing facilities

Slaughterhouses

Facilities that routinely handle animals or animal products that might be infected with HPAI H5N1

Current available PPE includes:

Disposable gloves

Face masks

Eye protection - safety goggles, safety glasses, and face shields

Order PPE here.