Cooperative Public Health Service
About Cooperative Public Health Service
The mission of the Cooperative Public Health Service (CPHS) is to be a comprehensive, efficient, sustainable public health resource to the towns of Franklin County which:
- Provides high quality public health protections for our residents
- Maximizes grant funds in support of local health services
- Gives participating towns meaningful oversight of policies, budget, fee schedule and staff hiring
- Enhances the capacity of local Boards of Health
Supported by a one-year grant from the Massachusetts Division of Administration and Finance, the CPHS will officially be up and running as of July 1, 2012. The state funding will allow FRCOG’s regional health agent and regional public health nurse to expand their services into six towns, and to provide a comprehensive set of public health protections to local residents.
The CPHS has an Oversight Board made up of participating Board of Health members, and allows towns to join either for comprehensive services or for one of four shared services.
The Shared Services Membership options are one or more of the following:
- Community Sanitation: Housing complaints & code enforcement /recreational camp inspection and permitting/pool inspections/lead determination and code enforcement/hoarding
- Food and temporary food inspections, including restaurants, schools, public kitchens and Bed and Breakfasts
- Septic plan review, perc tests & septic inspections/private well regulation and permitting
- Public health nursing/prevention services/clinics/communicable disease management
Comprehensive Member Towns receive all of the above services.
Both Comprehensive and Shared Service members have access to training, policy and regulation drafting, and grant-writing services.
Towns served: Buckland (Comprehensive), Charlemont (Comprehensive), Conway (Shared Services: Public Health Nursing), Deerfield (Shared Services: Public Health Nursing, Community Sanitation), Gill (Comprehensive), Hawley (Comprehensive), Heath (Comprehensive minus Nursing), and Monroe (Comprehensive).
Program Overview
Oversight Board
The CPHS Oversight Board, made up of a representative of each participating Board of Health, shares oversight of policy, budget and hiring for the CPHS with the FRCOG administration. The Board meets monthly. Click here for copies of their minutes and agendas. Here are the Operating Procedures of the Oversight Board.
Regional Health Agent
Regional Health Agent Glen Ayers supports Boards of Health by providing member towns with professional support for all of their public health responsibilities, including:
- Community Sanitation
- Housing complaints & code enforcement
- Recreational camp inspection and permitting
- Pool inspections
- Lead determination and code enforcement
- Hoarding
- Food and temporary food inspections
- Restaurants
- School kitchens
- Public kitchens
- Residential kitchens
- Farmers markets
- Bed and breakfast operations
- Septic plan review, perc tests & septic inspections/private well regulation and permitting
- Regulation review, drafting, and adoption
- Grant-writing to address local needs
- Training and education
Public Health Nurse
Regional Public Health Nurse Lisa White provides the following services to member towns:
- Weekly walk-in clinic Weds at Deerfield Town offices 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. assisting residents of any member town with a variety of health care needs (medication management, assessment and monitoring of health conditions, medication information). Walk-in clinics at the Conway Town Hall on the first Friday of each month from 9-11.
- State-mandated infectious disease surveillance, reporting and case monitoring, including assistance to residents and local agencies regarding the prevention and spread of disease and to assure appropriate treatment.
- Blood pressure, blood glucose and other preventative and diagnostic health screenings.
- Community vaccination clinics providing Seasonal Flu, pneumonia and tetanus/diphtheria. Home vaccination to residents in need.
- Emergency Dispensing Site and Flu Clinic coordination assistance planning, purchasing and medical inventory
- Mercury thermometer and sharps disposal and container exchange (collaboration with the Franklin County Solid Waste Mgmt. Program).
- Skin testing for residents and town employees at risk for Tuberculosis.
Contact information for other Franklin County town nurses:
- Montague Public Health Nurse – 413-863-3202
- Greenfield Public Health Nurse – 413-772-1404
- Rowe Public Health Nurse – 413-339-9943
- Heath Public Health Nurse – 413-337-4934
This page was last updated on 08/06/2012