As the New Year has already entered its second month, the Grays Harbor County Public Health department’s 2025 outreach efforts are in full swing.
This year’s tour began back on January 8 at the Montesano Timberland Public Library and includes the use of the new mobile health van, which made its debut at the Grays Harbor County Fair last summer. These free Public Health Emergency Preparedness events are being held just about every Wednesday through November at various Timberland Library locations through the County.
The Grays Harbor County Public Health team is providing information about Public Health Emergency Preparedness including earthquakes, flooding and evacuation, as well as administering A1C and blood pressure screenings.
The latest such event was held at the Elma Timberland Library on Wednesday, sans van due to inclement weather. Grays Harbor County Public Health Nurse Lena Stoddard and non-medical volunteer Sue Bucy handed out brochures and swag, spoke with library visitors and tested blood sugar levels and blood pressure for interested residents.
The threat of natural disasters and extreme weather looms large in the Pacific Northwest, with the recent wildfires in Southern California driving the need for disaster preparedness home.
“We are wanting people to be prepared if there was some kind of emergency in our county, whether it’s weather related or a pandemic, or whatever it might be, we want people to be aware and to be able to access information quickly and efficiently,” said Grays Harbor County Public Health Nurse Lena Stoddard. “As far as the medical side of it, with the A1C and blood pressure screenings, the more education we can provide our community with these types of chronic conditions, helping them access resources, longer life expectancy is always a great thing.”
According to Summit Pacific’s 2023–2025 Community Health Needs Assessment, 10% of Grays Harbor County residents are diabetic. The assessment also states, “Grays Harbor County currently ranks 37 out of 39 Washington counties for Health Outcomes (length and quality of life) and 36 in overall Health Factors on the County Health Rankings and Roadmaps compiled by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.”
According to the National Institute of Health, as of 2022, healthcare costs attributable to diagnosed diabetes in the United States is $413 billion, including $307 billion in direct medical costs and $106 billion in indirect costs, and according to the Washington State Department of Health, $6.7 billion for Washington state during the 2021–2023 biennium.
Stoddard says the visibility of county health professionals in the community allows them to reach people in person instead of just online.
“It is important, having a visual is a good reminder, a lot of times we get into the digital, we can shoot out things on Facebook and on our website, but to actually see people in the community and working letting people know we care about their health and that we care about their well-being,” Stoddard said. “It’s a touchpoint that we can access and Timberland has been key in wanting to also do community outreach and they are in all the small communities.”
As for the van, the ADA-compliant vehicle is equipped with an exam room, lavatory, blood draw chair, wheelchair lift and other accessories to deliver mobile services like vaccination clinics, nutrition programs and more.
The next free Public Health Emergency Preparedness event is set for Wednesday, Feb. 12, from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the McCleary Timberland Library located at 121 S. 4th St. The Aberdeen Timberland Library will host an event on Wednesday, Feb. 19. An event at the Westport Timberland Library on Feb. 26 will close out the month. The complete schedule can be found at https://www.healthygh.org/
