Greene County Public Health Officials Provide Tips on Food Safety for Picnics and Grilling

From Greene County Public Health

XENIA, OH – With Memorial Day looming, graduations underway, and the summer season officially kicking off, Greene County Public Health officials want to remind everyone about safe food handling during picnic and grilling season. It is important to prepare and transport food safely to prevent foodborne illnesses, such as Salmonella, Norovirus, E. coli, etc. With a little bit of planning, summer parties and family gatherings can be fun and safe for all.

Please keep the following four points in mind:

Cooking Temperatures: It is very important to thoroughly cook raw animal foods to the proper temperatures to kill bacteria and prevent foodborne illnesses. Raw fish and whole muscle meats (steak, ribs, roasts) must be cooked to a minimum temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit. According to the Ohio Food Code, raw hamburgers (ground meats) must be cooked to a minimum of 155 degrees, and raw chicken must be cooked to a minimum of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

Holding Temperatures: Bacteria begin to multiply between 41 degrees Fahrenheit and 135 degrees Fahrenheit, so it is important to keep hot foods HOT and cold foods COLD right up to the moment of cooking and/or serving. Cold food must be kept cold at 41 degrees Fahrenheit or below. Only place small portions of food out at a time and replenish as needed. Hot foods must be maintained at 135 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent bacterial growth. Once any type of melon or tomato is sliced, it must be cooled down and held at 41 degrees Fahrenheit and never held at room temperature for more than 4 hours. Any food held out of temperature for more than 4 hours must be discarded to prevent a potential foodborne illness. It is important to use a clean and calibrated food thermometer to check the internal temperatures of the food you are cooking, holding, and serving.

Clean: According to the Partnership for Food Safety Education, 65% of consumers don’t wash their hands before starting meal preparation. Don’t be a statistic this season. Keep hands clean by using soap and warm water, scrubbing them for a minimum of 20 seconds. Rinse well and dry with a disposable towel. Use soapy water and a clean paper towel for tables and counters. Be sure to rinse and scrub fruits and vegetables under running water prior to cutting, slicing, or other preparation.

Separate: Use separate cutting boards…one for each raw protein (fish, ground meat, chicken) and a different one for fresh, washed produce. Keep utensils separate to keep germs that are naturally occurring on raw proteins from getting onto the fresh, washed produce. Always place cooked meat onto a clean plate. Make sure cooked meat does not come into contact with raw meat juices.

To download a flyer about grilling your foods safely, please visit: https://www.fightbac.org/grill-master/ For more information, please call Environmental Health Services at Greene County Public Health at 937-374-5600.

GCPH to conduct community focus groups to develop a plan to address healthy eating and active living policies through HEAL grant funds.

XENIA, OH – Greene County was awarded a 1-year mini-grant called Healthy Eating, Active Living (HEAL). The focus of this grant is to build capacity for healthy eating and active living policies within various Greene County communities. The grant cycle, which runs from July 1 – June 30, will focus on the jurisdictions of Fairborn, Xenia, and Jamestown.

The first step in the process is to complete a Policy, Systems, and Environmental Change Assessment, reviewing the current policies in each jurisdiction to identify gaps and opportunities. The results of the assessment will later be shared with members of the community to better understand the priorities of that community and work to develop and implement strategies that directly address those priorities. Community engagement is all about ensuring that those most impacted by challenges and inequities have an equal voice in designing and implementing solutions.

Currently, each community is conducting focus groups to explore this subject and begin to come up with a plan to implement those strategies. If you live in one of these communities, you are invited to participate in one of these free events.

Refreshments will be served at each event.

Jamestown

• January 24, 6:00pm – Jamestown Community Library, 86 Seaman Drive, Jamestown

Xenia

• January 26, 1:00pm – Xenia YMCA, 336 Progress Drive, Xenia

• January 31, 6:00pm – Xenia Community Library, 76 E. Market St., Xenia

Fairborn

• February 13, 1:00pm – Fairborn Community Library, 1 E. Main St., Fairborn

• March 1, 5:30pm – Abiding Christ Lutheran Church, 326 E. Dayton-Yellow Springs Rd., Fairborn

These events are open to the residents of each community. Should you have questions about the focus groups, please contact Loressa Gonyer at lgonyer@gcph.info or call her at 937-374-5655.

GCPH Warns Residents of Scammers Posing as Public Health Officials, Sharing Information on Vaccine Availability

GREENE COUNTY, OH – Greene County Public Health officials have been alerted to the possibility of people fraudulently contacting residents by phone, text or email posing as public health officials and sharing information on the vaccine or other topics related to the COVID-19 pandemic. This information is to ensure that our residents get the official information from our agency and are not scammed.

If you are part of Phase 1B and have pre-registered to receive the COVID-19 vaccine through our agency, you will receive a call from 937-347-5030 and the caller ID will read as GREENE COUNTY. It will be a recorded message stating the date, time and location of the next available clinic for you to come to receive your vaccine. If you provide your email on the online registration form, you will get an email from bbrooks@gcph.info. If you can not take the call at the time it comes in, it will leave a voice mail for you to check later.

The only place to register for a clinic provided by Greene County Public Health is on our website at http://www.gcph.info. Once on our site, you can click the center blue box that states: Click This Box to go to the COVID-19 Vaccine Sign-Up Page. Read the information very carefully and then click the link to fill out the form. Once you are on the list, you will remain on the list until you get the call to come to a scheduled clinic. It could take several weeks or even longer, pending vaccine availability, before you receive a call. As a federal asset, the COVID-19 vaccine is free to the public, however, we will attempt to bill your insurance for the administration of the vaccine. There is no fee for you and you will not receive a bill.

There are other vaccine providers in Greene County. There is no affiliation between Greene County Public Health and the other providers. Please visit vaccine.coronavirus.ohio.gov for the list of other providers which can be sorted by county. You are encouraged to get vaccinated in your home county as vaccine allotment to the counties is based on population. Pending vaccine availability, we are running clinics on Wednesdays from 10am – 3pm and Thursdays from 11am-5:30pm at the Russ Research Center, 2730 Indian Ripple Road in Beavercreek.

In addition, to avoid loss of personal information, we encourage you not to share a picture of your vaccination card on social media as it does contain personal information. For official information on Greene County Public Health, our response to the pandemic, and the vaccine rollout, please contact Laurie Fox, Public Information Officer, at 937-374-5600, ext. 5669 or by email at lfox@gcph.info. GCPH shares this information on several social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. You can also visit GCPH’s COVID-19 FAQ page at healthalert.gcph.info/COVID19.

Family Fun Day and Touch-a-Truck expanded

Annual Family Fitness Challenge changes to “Family Fun Day & Touch-a-Truck” Greene County Public Health Partners with Michael’s House to Expand Event

XENIA, OH – This year, Greene County Public Health is proud to partner with Michael’s House in Fairborn to host Family Fun Day & Touch-a-Truck on Saturday, June 17th from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Michael’s House located at 1016 Rainbow Ct. in Fairborn. The event is FREE and open to the public. Click to download the flier.

For thirteen years, the event planned by Greene County Public Health was called the Family Fitness Challenge and it introduced children and their families to proper nutrition and the importance of physical activity. By partnering with Michael’s House, it opens the door for additional activities for families, including a Touch-a-Truck event. Michael’s House is Greene County’s advocacy center for child victims of abuse and neglect. Its mission is to provide a multidisciplinary team response to child abuse to protect and support children and their non-offending family members, hold offenders accountable, and educate the community.

Greene County Public Health’s mission is to prevent disease, protect our environment, and promote healthy communities and wellness in Greene County. Injury prevention and the overall wellbeing, as well as the mental and physical health of our youngest residents in Greene County, is a huge part of that mission, which makes this partnership even sweeter.

The team of professionals at Michael’s House work together to ensure children are kept from further harm, provide an immediate comprehensive response to child abuse victims, and educate the community to better recognize, respond to, and prevent child abuse. Necessary medical, emotional, legal, investigative, and victim advocacy services exist in one child-friendly location, ensuring that children are not further victimized by the systems intended to protect them. This reimagined event is designed to motivate and challenge youth and families to engage in healthy lifestyles both physically and mentally.

Participants can visit fitness stations (including a fun bounce house) and interactive health information booths, fill up their “passport”, and receive a free prize (while supplies last). Child fingerprinting and ID services, healthy snacks, fun games, and prizes will round out the day. For more information, call contact jdrew@gcph.info or wilest@childrensdayton.org. The event is also on Facebook, just search for Family Fun Day & Touch a Truck 2017.