The county's health administrator creates a do-it-together atmosphere that puts wellness out on top.
By BETH N. GRAY
Published August 25, 2004
BROOKSVILLE - Elizabeth A. Callaghan's blue eyes sparkle when she talks about how important it is for community groups and agencies to work together to create a healthy population.
As administrator of the Hernando County Department of Health since 1993, Callaghan has also encouraged her team of 10 managers to pursue cooperative relationships with other agencies and organizations. Such an approach saves money and gets results.
Callaghan's approach and initiatives have been grabbing attention in public health circles.
Dr. Bonnie Sorensen, deputy state health officer and the second ranking administrator with the Florida Department of Health, nominated Callaghan for national recognition.
"She has unique partnerships, collaborative joint ventures, to improve community health, so unique compared to other counties," Sorensen said.
As a result, Callaghan, 52, returned recently from the National Association of Local Boards of Health convention in Denver, where she was honored as national health officer of the year.
In her acceptance speech, Callaghan encouraged her peers to seek out community co-sponsors to implement health and fitness programs.
"All things are possible," she said. "If you don't have enough resources, create community partners, stakeholders that will participate in creating a plan, identifying additional resources, implementing and evaluating that plan."
The latest partnership project involved a mock health clinic in the event of a disaster and brought together fire rescue departments, sheriff's office, police, emergency medical services, medical staff and health department employees. The mock clinic was equipped to provide medical care for 1,000 people.
Of 31 such exercises across the state, Hernando was one of only nine that reached the goal of establishing a mock clinic.
In another cooperative effort, the Hernando health department joined with the county Parks and Recreation Department to create a walking trail at Veterans Park. Establishing fitness stations along the trail is one way the health department can encourage physical activity, fight obesity and promote a healthy lifestyle, Callaghan said.
The health department chipped in money from a grant awarded by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Neither the parks nor health department could have built the trail alone, Callaghan said.
"You've got to build these partnerships because there's never enough money," Callaghan said. "Partnerships find new resources."
By working with outside groups, the health department can take services to where people need them most. Responding to rising teen pregnancy rates, health professionals joined with Hernando High School in setting up a program that keeps young mothers in school while counseling them against a second pregnancy before they are ready to take on responsible parenthood.
Second pregnancies among teens have been reduced by 50 percent for those in the program, Callaghan said.
Even though her managers have specific responsibilities, they share a common purpose. For instance, nutrition director Sandra Dixon said buttons and stickers for the Snack Smart-Move More anti-obsesity initiative are being distributed at the women, infants and children centers.
"I have a complete team approach," said Callaghan, a 23-year veteran with the state health department. "I enjoy working outside the box. You have to have a vision and, if not, you're not going to be able to survive."
She urges her managers not to think day to day but long term: five years, 10 years.
In a recent monthly management team meeting, Callaghan heard about such future initiatives:
Medical director Dr. Kelli Maw said she's thinking of starting a small pharmacy at the department headquarters for indigent patients. Also, in the last month she has floated a self-administered form to determine incidents of domestic violence and another for children, "Tell Us About Yourself," to ascertain developmental skills.
Dental manager Dr. Madeline Berk reported that a new initiative to administer a long-term cavity-deterrent sealant to school-age children's teeth registered a good number of participants but improvements are needed in communicating the program to school administrators and teachers.
Organization development manager Kathleen Sauskojus briefed her peers on a new program, Building Cooperation and Commitment, that grew out of an employment satisfaction survey. It will address hiring, leadership training and peer coaching within the health department.
Callaghan reported that medical programs for adults are being consolidated in the Brooksville office at 300 S Main Street, being removed from the satellite office in the Forest Oaks county Government Center because space is limited.
A review of zip codes revealed that most adult clients live in central Hernando. The consolidation will mean a more efficient use of staff and recordkeeping, she said.
Callaghan's contribution to community health has ranged beyond county boundaries. She was instrumental, said health department deputy Sorensen, in organizing the Governor of Florida's Obesity Task Force, based on her college education as a nutrition major.
The task force invited community members to participate in a statewide public listening tour, about the science of nutrition and how to fight obesity, said Sorensen.
The task force recommended that solutions be local. And, in Callaghan's style, it added that the initiative should branch out beyond the health department.
Callaghan also initiated and coordinated a "very unique" statewide fitness challenge to encourage healthy eating habits and increase physical activities among health department employees, Sorensen said. The challenge was taken up by 2,418 employees in 35 county health departments.
They reported via a Web site the servings of vegetables and fruits they ate per day and the time they spent exercising. Points were recorded and prizes awarded.
