MONTEREY BOARD OF HEALTH MEETING MINUTES
Date: November 21, 2011
Present: Peter Kolodziej, Stephen Enoch, Robert Annelli and John Makuc
Also present: Jason BenDavid
The meeting began at 3:30pm
1. The minutes from 11.7.11 were approved as written.
2. Jason Ben David came in to talk about plans to remodel 109 Pixley Rd. The contractor brought in revised plans from the engineer which were never submitted to the Board of Health. The Board stated a new application and letter should’ve been submitted stating the need for the modification to the plans. The plans on file state the septic is for a 3 bedroom home and the revise plans show a 4 bedroom septic. The contractor stated the house is currently 3 bedrooms and they aren’t adding any additional bedrooms.
3. The Board continued the discussions on the town nurse proposal and reviewed information requested from the Berkshire VNA. John stated that he reviewed the written proposal again and wasn’t convinced that the statistics provided were supportive as there were other factors involved such as does the person live alone, etc. John felt the idea is a good idea but he’s not convinced it’s something that Monterey needs. Peter suggested that the first step really needs to be a study done by an outside, objective 3rd party that can provide data supported by public health to determine if our current services are lacking and if there is a need for an additional position to be created. It was asked if the Towns of West Stockbridge and Richmond did a study prior to creating
their town nurse position or if they just implemented it without any supporting data. Everyone agreed that if there are any elderly in the town that need assistance or if they need help finding assistance that there are several organizations such as Elder Services, the Council on Aging that are there for just that purpose. John questioned whether there were any technical difficulties with the advisory committee, how it is set up, how you would fill those positions, who the nurse reports to, etc. Bob is not in favor of this until it is determined there is a need for it. The following will be sent to Kathie:
The BOH has reviewed your proposal for the creation of the position of a Town Nurse and has given it further thought and discussion. ~The basic idea, having a nurse in town to serve its community, is a good idea; however, at this time without further information, the board cannot extend its support to the proposal. The board's concerns center on whether or not there is enough need for such a position in Monterey. ~To retain further support an independent, objective study on public health would need to provide further evidence that such a need exists, specifically what the needs are, and some sense of the hours needed to meet those needs. ~While your proposal does offer some figures in this regard, there is no data to specifically support what services the residents of the Town of Monterey feel they need and would
utilize.~ Unfortunately, the commissioning of such a study may be too large for the Town of Monterey to undertake by itself. One further area of concern with the proposal is the need for details on selection of a nurse(s) for such a position. ~ In today's politically charged environment such a selection process would need to follow current guidelines relative to advertising for the position and also conflict of interest concerns. Please understand, the board is not dismissing this proposal altogether. ~As you yourself state, it would be appropriate for the town to take care of its own residents. ~We need more information before we can support creation of such a position. ~The BOH will continue to research this proposal.
4. The next Board of Health meeting will be on Monday, December 5th at 3:30.
The meeting adjourned at 4:30pm
Submitted by,
Melissa Noe
Inter-Departmental Secretary
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