One seat for a three-year term
The Board of Health (BOH) provides leadership on Town health and human service matters. The mission of the BOH is to protect and improve the health and quality of life of the town's residents and workforce.
Question: As you know, Town Meeting passed the Select Board’s Resolution to Address the Impact of Climate Change in 2020. How can the Board of Health play a bigger role in curbing environmental health risks, or at least educating the public about them? For example, the recent studies on the dangers of gas stoves, the PFAS issue, persistent pesticide use, the use of noisy and polluting lawn equipment, the 200+ methane leaks under our streets and in our homes, and of course, the risks to our health of climate change in general.
Shira Doron-
Public education and risk communication are a core function of public health. As an infectious disease specialist and healthcare epidemiologist, I have been intensely and constantly involved in education and communication regarding the pandemic for the past three years . We all have experienced muddled messaging from federal and state governmental agencies and, worse, dangerous, anti-science information from a variety of sources.
In contrast, the Wellesley Health Department, under the oversight and support of the elected Board of Health, has consistently delivered factual, clear, readable information, advisories and guidance regarding COVID-19, making it a trusted source of information.
The Health Department must communicate to the public and to other town departments on a very wide range of public health topics: from communicable diseases to water safety to vector borne diseases to food sanitation to behavioral health to opioid dangers. Because of this multitude of issues, the Department will always need to focus its energy and resources on a limited number of public education topics, also being mindful of what other educators, such as Sustainability Wellesley, are covering so as not to duplicate.
As I begin my new role on the Board of Health and learn about the Department’s programs and priorities regarding environmental risk mediation, I will look for climate change topics that might be woven into the Department’s public education/risk management portfolio while not diluting the Department's educational efforts.
The Board of Health (BOH) provides leadership on Town health and human service matters. The mission of the BOH is to protect and improve the health and quality of life of the town's residents and workforce.
Question: As you know, Town Meeting passed the Select Board’s Resolution to Address the Impact of Climate Change in 2020. How can the Board of Health play a bigger role in curbing environmental health risks, or at least educating the public about them? For example, the recent studies on the dangers of gas stoves, the PFAS issue, persistent pesticide use, the use of noisy and polluting lawn equipment, the 200+ methane leaks under our streets and in our homes, and of course, the risks to our health of climate change in general.
Shira Doron-
Public education and risk communication are a core function of public health. As an infectious disease specialist and healthcare epidemiologist, I have been intensely and constantly involved in education and communication regarding the pandemic for the past three years . We all have experienced muddled messaging from federal and state governmental agencies and, worse, dangerous, anti-science information from a variety of sources.
In contrast, the Wellesley Health Department, under the oversight and support of the elected Board of Health, has consistently delivered factual, clear, readable information, advisories and guidance regarding COVID-19, making it a trusted source of information.
The Health Department must communicate to the public and to other town departments on a very wide range of public health topics: from communicable diseases to water safety to vector borne diseases to food sanitation to behavioral health to opioid dangers. Because of this multitude of issues, the Department will always need to focus its energy and resources on a limited number of public education topics, also being mindful of what other educators, such as Sustainability Wellesley, are covering so as not to duplicate.
As I begin my new role on the Board of Health and learn about the Department’s programs and priorities regarding environmental risk mediation, I will look for climate change topics that might be woven into the Department’s public education/risk management portfolio while not diluting the Department's educational efforts.