Commissioners Discuss Various Health Issues

Prowers County Courthouse

Joined by members of Janea Aguilera’s family, the Prowers County Commissioners signed a proclamation recognizing the first week in November as Childhood Cancer Awareness Week in Prowers County. Janea Aguilera passed away in April earlier this year, a young teenage girl who had battled several forms of cancer for several years.  Her struggle prompted numerous fundraising and awareness events throughout the community, including receiving the Voces Unidas Spirit Award during their annual banquet last year.  The proclamation notes cancer is the leading cause of death among children between infancy and age 15.  More than 15,000 youngsters are diagnosed annually with various forms of cancer in the United States.

The commissioners conducted their meeting at the Wiley High School this past Tuesday, October 28, providing an opportunity for school students to observe how local government functions on a day to day basis.

Tammi Clark, Director of the Prowers County Public Health Department, noted that plans are underway for a table-top, Ebola-related exercise for county health officials. This will be regional in scope and will inform various health departments of the quarantine protocols needed when dealing with a potential Ebola disease outbreak.  On that note, Clark informed the commissioners that a dog is being quarantined for 90 days after coming in contact with a rabid bat.  Unfortunately, a young girl was bitten by the dog, a stray the family had taken in, so there was no way to determine how up to date its rabies shots were, if any at all.  “The girl is undergoing a series of treatments at this time, and the dog is being kept in strict isolation for the period,” Clark explained.  She added that rabies was detected in Prowers County five years ago when a skunk was confirmed to have the disease.  “This is one of the reasons why veterinarians stress the need for updated rabies shots on family pets,” she said.

In other action, a multi-use contract for the Prowers County Fairgrounds with the Sagebrush Sams was approved for each month between November, 2014 to April, 2015. The commissioners approved the transfer of $500,000 from the Sales Tax Fund to the General Fund.  The county employee holiday schedule for 2015 was approved for ten dates in the year, several of which are falling on Fridays.  The commissioners opened bids for a new vehicle for the Department of Human Services and opted for the low bid of $20,380 for a 2015 Ford Taurus from Tri County Ford in Lamar.  That included a $1,500 trade-in on the current department car.

By Russ Baldwin