FOR THE RECORD MY NAME IS BRIAN. WE'RE OUT DISTRICT FOR CITY COUNCILOR AND I'M CHAIR OF THE BOSTON CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS. TODAY'S MAY EIGHT, 2025 IT IS
10:12 A.M. IS BEING RECORDED IS ALSO BEING LIVE STREAM AT BOSTON.COM OF BACKSLASH CITY DOES COUNCIL DASH TV AND BROADCAST ON EXPANDED CHANNEL
EIGHT RCN CHANNEL 82 AND FIOS CHANNEL 964. THE COUNCIL'S BUDGET REVIEW PROCESS WILL ENCOMPASS A SERIES OF PUBLIC HEARINGS BEGINNING IN APRIL AND RUNNING THROUGH JUNE. WE STRONGLY ENCOURAGE RESIDENTS TO TAKE A MOMENT TO ENGAGE IN
THIS PROCESS BY GIVING TESTIMONY FOR THE RECORD YOU CAN DO THIS IN SEVERAL WAYS ONE ATTEND ONE OF OUR HEARINGS AND GET PUBLIC TESTIMONY THROUGH TAPED PUBLIC TESTIMONY AT THE
END OF EACH DEPARTMENTAL HEARING AND ALSO ADD TO HEARING IS DEDICATED TO PUBLIC TESTIMONY BEFORE HEARINGS GO TO IS ON OUR WEBSITE AT BOSTON DOT GOV BACKSLASH COUNCILOR DASH BUDGET YOU CAN GIVE TESTIMONY
IN PERSON HERE IN THE CHAMBER VIRTUALLY VIA ZOOM FOR IN-PERSON TESTIMONY PLEASE COME TO THE CHAMBER AND SIGN UP ON A SEAT NEAR THE ENTRANCE. HE'LL BE TAKEN AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS HEARING FOLLOWING THE
PANELISTS PRESENTATION INDIVIDUALS BE CALLED ON IN THE ORDER WHICH THEY SIGNED UP WILL HAVE 2 MINUTES TO TESTIFY FOR VIRTUAL TESTIMONY. YOU CAN SIGN UP USING OUR ONLINE FORM ON OUR COUNCIL BUDGET REVIEW WEBSITE
OR BY EMAILING THE COMMITTEE ASK THE IWM AT BOSTON.COM OR BY EMAILING KARISHMA CHAUHAN AT BOSTON DOT GOV THAT IS K.R. ICE AGE, M.A.S.H.
OH YOU AGE AT BOSTON.COM YOU RECEIVE THE ZOOM LINK YOUR NAME WILL BE ADDED TO THE LIST WHEN YOU ARE CALLED TO TESTIFY PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND AFFILIATION OR RESIDENCE AND LIMIT YOUR COMMENTS TO A FEW
MINUTES TO ENSURE THAT ALL COMMENTS AND CONCERNS CAN BE HEARD. THE SECOND WAY YOU CAN TESTIFY IS EMAIL YOUR WRITTEN TESTIMONY TO THE COMMITTEE AT IWM AT BOSTON.COM ABOVE OR THE THIRD
WAY IS TO SUBMIT A TWO MINUTE VIDEO OF YOUR TESTIMONY THROUGH THE FORUM ON OUR WEBSITE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE CITY COUNCIL BUDGET PROCESS AND HOW TO TESTIFY, PLEASE VISIT THE CITY COUNCIL BUDGET WEBSITE AT
BOSTON DOT GOV BACK GLASS COUNCIL DAS BUDGET FOR THOSE WHO HAVE SUBMITTED VIDEO TESTIMONY WE WILL BE PLAYING IT AT THIS AFTERNOON'S 2 P.M. HEARING AND WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR TESTIMONY.
TODAY'S HEARING IS ON DOCKETS NUMBER 082220830 THESE MATTERS WERE SPONSORED BY MAYOR MICHEL WHOM REFERRED TO THE COMMITTEE ON APRIL NINE, 2025. TODAY I AM JOINED BY MY
COLLEAGUES IN ORDER TO REVOKE COUNCILOR FLYNN AND COUNCILOR BRAD BREADON. I WILL NOW TURN IT OVER TO THE PANELISTS TO INTRODUCE THEMSELVES AND TO DIVE INTO THE
PRESENTATION. THE FLOOR IS NOW YOURS. GOOD MORNING CHAIRMAN MAURO AND DISTINGUISHED CITY COUNCILORS. I'M HONORED TO BE HERE TODAY ON BEHALF OF THE BOSTON PUBLIC
HEALTH COMMISSION AND OUR OVER 1300 DEDICATED EMPLOYEES WHO ARE WORKING EVERY DAY TO BUILD A HEALTHIER BOSTON. FOR THE RECORD, MY NAME IS DR. PATHOLOGY TWO TWO AND THE COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC HEALTH FOR THE CITY OF BOSTON AND THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE
BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION. I AM JOINED BY CHRISTOPHER VALDEZ BUDGET DIRECTOR WHO WILL DISCUSS DETAILS OF OUR PROPOSED FY 25 BUDGET THIS MORNING I WILL BE PROVIDING OVERVIEW
OF THE COMMISSION'S WORK FOCUSING ON OUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS OVER THE PAST FISCAL YEAR AND THE AREAS THAT I WILL SPEND TIME ON THIS MORNING ARE MATERNAL AND INFANT HEALTH, YOUTH AND FAMILIES VIOLENCE PREVENTION, INFECTIOUS DISEASES
AND MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH. AT THIS AFTERNOON'S HEARING I'LL PROVIDE FURTHER DETAILS REGARDING THE SERVICES AND RECOVERY SERVICES AND CHIEF HOOLEY FROM BOSTON EMS WILL BE
JOINING ME TO DISCUSS BOSTON HEALTH'S OKAY SO THOUGH THERE ARE MANY THREATS TO PUBLIC HEALTH BEING MADE AT THE
FEDERAL LEVEL HERE IN BOSTON, WE REMAIN FOCUSED ON OUR MISSION WHICH IS HERE ON THIS SLIDE TO WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH COMMUNITIES TO PROTECT AND PROMOTE THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF ALL BOSTON RESIDENTS PARTICULARLY ESPECIALLY THOSE IMPACTED BY
RACISM AND SYSTEMIC INEQUITIES FOLLOWING THE LEADERSHIP OF MAYOR WU, OUR EFFORTS ARE FOCUSED AROUND THE IDEA OF MAKING BOSTON A HEALTHIER HOME FOR EVERYONE CARRIES OUT
OUR MISSION UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF A SEVEN MEMBER BOARD OF HEALTH WHICH IS APPOINTED BY THE MAYOR AND COMPRISED OF LEADERS FROM ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS, COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AND LABOR UNIONS. THE BOARD IS RESPONSIBLE FOR
APPOINTING THE COMMISSION EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR APPROVING OUR BUDGET HAS INDEPENDENT REGULATORY AUTHORITY CONSISTENT WITH ITS ROLE AS A BOARD OF HEALTH UNDER STATE LAW. THE BOARD ALSO HELPS PROVIDE
STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR OUR ORGANIZATION BASED SEE ALSO ACTS AS THE CHIEF CITY'S CHIEF HEALTH STRATEGIST ORGANIZING CROSS-SECTOR PARTNERSHIPS AND ADVANCING COLLABORATIONS TO ADVANCE HEALTH EQUITY SO I'M
GOING TO SHARE SOME OF OUR WORK OVER THE PAST YEAR SHORTLY FOR NOW I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO CHRIS TO DISCUSS OUR FY 26 PROPOSED BUDGET. THANK YOU DR. OJUKWU. TWO GOOD MORNING COUNCILORS IN
THE NEXT FEW SLIDES I'LL PROVIDE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF OUR PROPOSALS FOR 26 BUDGETS AND A BRIEF UPDATE ON OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AS WELL AS A TOUCH ON OUR FEDERAL FUNDS.
BUT BEFORE I BEGIN I'D LIKE TO THANK MY SENIOR ANALYST AARON BRUNET AND OUR OBM ANALYST HARRY DAM WHO WORKED VERY CLOSELY WITH US TO DEVELOP THIS BUDGET.
THIS SLIDE SHOWS OUR PROPOSED FY 26 BUDGET AT THE BUREAU LEVEL. YOU CAN SEE US THERE IS A MIX OF LEVEL FUNDING AND INCREASES ACROSS OUR BUREAUS AND OFFICES . THIS IS MAINLY DUE TO INCREASES
IN PERSONNEL COSTS AS A RESULT OF THE SETTLING OF THREE OF OUR UNION COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS AS WELL AS STEP AND COLA INCREASES FOR SEVERAL OTHER UNIONS. THE RECOVERY SERVICES BUREAU IS
GOING UP BY 3%. THIS IS DRIVEN BY THESE UNION AGREEMENTS AND SOME MODEST NON PERSONNEL BUDGET INCREASES CHILD ADOLESCENT AND FAMILY
HEALTH BUREAU IS GOING UP BY JUST UNDER 1% IN OUR COMMUNITY INITIATIVES BUREAU IS INCREASING BY AROUND 2%. EMS IS NET BUDGET AFTER REVENUE IS INCREASING BY 4.6% AND YOU WILL HEAR MORE ABOUT THIS IN THE AFTERNOON SESSION FROM
CHIEF HOOLEY. HOMELESS SERVICES IS GOING UP BY 3.7% AND THIS IS DRIVEN BY THE SELLING OF THE HOMELESS COORDINATOR AND COUNCIL COLLECTIVE BARGAINING UNITS AND INFECTIOUS DISEASE
BUREAU IS DECREASING SLIGHTLY BUT THIS IS A RESULT PRIMARILY DUE TO PERSONNEL FLUX BETWEEN INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL SOURCES. OUR PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE CENTERS WHICH NOW INCLUDES THE
OFFICE OF VIOLENCE PREVENTION ARE GOING UP BY 4% AND CONTAINED IN THIS IS A TRANSFER OF $500,000 FROM HUMAN SERVICES FOR TRAUMA IMPACTED FAMILIES ADMINISTRATIONS NET COST IS
GOING UP BY 3% THE RESULT OF PERSONNEL SHIFTS AND NON PERSONNEL INCREASES WHILE PROPERTIES NET IS INCREASING BY JUST OVER 1%. FINALLY WE HAVE BEGUN BUDGETING A MODEST AMOUNT UNDER OTHER
PROGRAM REVENUE ON OUR BUDGET PRESENTATION. THIS IS FROM MEDICAID ADMINISTRATIVE CLAIMS THAT WE RECOVER WHEN STAFF HELPED TO SIGN UP OUR CLIENTS FOR MEDICAID BENEFITS. THIS HAS HISTORICALLY BROUGHT
IN AROUND $200,000 PER YEAR WHICH IS REFLECTED NOW. THE TOTAL PROPOSED INCREASE FOR OUR BUDGET IN FY 26 IS 3%. A QUICK UPDATE ON EXISTING CAPITAL PROJECTS SPECIFICALLY
THE NORTHAMPTON SQUARE GARAGE RENOVATIONS. THIS PROJECT IS STILL IN THE DESIGN PHASE AIMING FOR COMPLETION OF DESIGN BY THE FALL WITH CONSTRUCTION LIKELY TO COMMENCE IN SUMMER 2026. IT WILL INCLUDE REPAIRS TO ALL
CEMENT WORK AND DRAINAGE SYSTEMS THROUGHOUT THE GARAGE BEGINNING ON THE ROOF DECK AND THEN CONTINUING ONTO THE INTERIOR. THIS PROJECT IS MANAGED BY THE CITY'S PUBLIC FACILITIES DEPARTMENT AND IS FUNDED AS
PART OF THE CITY'S CAPITAL PLAN . THIS SLIDE PROVIDES A SNAPSHOT OF OUR EFFORTS 26 FEDERAL FUNDING, OUR ANTICIPATED 26 BUDGETS FOR FEDERALLY FUNDED
PROJECTS AND 50.7 MILLION OR 19% OF THE TOTAL AGENCY BUDGET. THE MAJORITY OF THIS FUNDING COMES FROM THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES WITH THE PRIMARY OFFICE BEING THE HUMAN RESOURCES AND SERVICES AGENCY BETTER KNOWN AS
HERSELF. EARLIER THIS YEAR THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT MET WITH EVERY PEOPLE IN DEPARTMENT TO REVIEW OUR ENTIRE PORTFOLIO OF FEDERAL GRANT FUNDS AND HAVE BEEN MAINTAINING CLOSE MONITORING OF FEDERAL ACTIONS AND
MITIGATIONS. ADDITIONALLY, THERE IS STANDING WEEKLY MEETINGS THAT INCLUDE MEMBERS FROM OUR FINANCE, LEGAL COMMUNICATIONS AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS TEAMS TO DISCUSS ANY NEW ISSUES
OR DEVELOPMENTS AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL THAT MAY HAVE AN EFFECT ON OPERATIONS. I'LL NOW TURN IT BACK TO DR. OJUKWU TO CHAIR. THANKS CHRIS.
SO OUR WAY TO MAKE BOSTON YOUR HOME FOR ALL RESIDENTS IS FOCUSED ON ADDRESSING HEALTH INEQUITY. AND IN ORDER TO ADDRESS HEALTH DISPARITIES WE NEED TO KNOW WHERE THEY EXIST. SO MUCH OF OUR WORK
PARTICULARLY WITHIN THE CENTER FOR PUBLIC HEALTH SCIENCE INNOVATION HAS BEEN TO DO DATA ANALYSIS AND YOU WILL SEE THOSE OR SEE THOSE IN AN AGGREGATE FORM IN OUR HEALTH AT BOSTON REPORTS.
MORE IMPORTANTLY, THESE DATA ARE REALLY A CALL TO ACTION FOR OUR WORK. AND ONE OF THE DATA POINTS THAT WE'VE BEEN FOLLOWING VERY CLOSELY IS LIFE EXPECTANCY. SO AS MOST OF YOU ALL ARE AWARE, WE DO HAVE A LARGE LIFE
EXPECTANCY GAP ACROSS THE CITY OF 23 YEARS BETWEEN A CENSUS TRACK AND ROXBURY AND ONE IN BACK PAY. WE RECENTLY UPDATED THESE DATA AND WE'LL HAVE THESE DATA POSTED ONLINE SOON. WHERE WE BASICALLY FOUND
SIMILAR LIFE EXPECTANCY GAPS IN OTHER NEIGHBORHOODS INCLUDING MATTAPAN, DORCHESTER HERSELF, SOUTH BOSTON AND EAST BOSTON. SO I MENTION THIS BECAUSE WE REALLY NEED A CITY WIDE
RESPONSE AND THAT IS WHY WE ISSUED A LIVE LONG AND WELL REPORT AND AGENDA. THIS IS THE FIRST POPULATION HEALTH EQUITY AGENDA WE ACTUALLY ANNOUNCED THIS LAST
YEAR. SO DURING THE FISCAL YEAR AND IT'S VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WHAT WE'VE TRIED TO DO WITHIN THIS AGENDA IS NOT ONLY BE VERY CLEAR ABOUT OUR GOAL WHICH IS
TO CLOSE THE LIFE EXPECTANCY GAP IN BOSTON BY THE YEAR 2035. BUT TO BE VERY SPECIFIC ABOUT THE AREAS WHERE OUR WORK WILL BE MOST INTENSE AND THAT IS IN THOSE AREAS THAT ARE THE LEADING CAUSES OF PREMATURE
MORTALITY IN BOSTON. SO DRUG OVERDOSES, CARDIO METABOLIC DISEASE AND PREVENTABLE CANCERS. THIS IS NOT TO THE EXCLUSION OF OTHER DISORDERS, OTHER ILLNESSES. CERTAINLY MENTAL HEALTH IS A
PRIORITY OF THE ADMINISTRATION AND SEE IF AND INFINIUM MATERNAL HEALTH WHICH I'LL TALK ABOUT NEXT IS A CLEAR PRIORITY. AND THEN OF COURSE OLDER ADULT
HEALTH. SO TURNING TO MATERNAL AND INFANT HEALTH ACROSS THE COUNTRY, I THINK WE'RE ALL AWARE THAT WE HAVE CHALLENGES IN REGARDS TO SEVERE MATERNAL
MORBIDITY AS WELL AS MATERNAL MORTALITY, PARTICULARLY AMONGST BLACK WOMEN. WE ALSO HAVE CHALLENGES WITH INFANT MORTALITY ACROSS OUR COUNTRY. SO HERE YOU SEE DATA FROM BOSTON.
THIS IS REALLY A LONG STANDING GAP AS YOU SEE THIS DATA DATES BACK TO 2010 WHERE WE'RE SHOWING THAT THERE'S BEEN A GAP IN INFANT MORTALITY, BLACK
INFANTS AND WHITE INFANTS AND ACTUALLY MOST RECENTLY IS THREE TIMES HIGHER IN REGARDS TO INFANT MORTALITY AMONGST BLACK INFANTS. SO THOUGH WE'VE SEEN THIS GAP OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
WE'RE DOING WE LIVE LONG AND WELL IS REALLY BEING INTENTIONAL ABOUT THE WORK WE'RE DOING TO ADDRESS IT. SO WE'RE TAKING A LOOK AT ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS AND REALLY WITHIN THE LAST YEAR WE'VE
WORKED TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO STRENGTHEN THEM. SO LET ME TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR WORK IN THIS AREA. SO HEALTHY START SYSTEMS IS ONE OF OUR OLDEST INITIATIVES IS COMPRISED OF MULTIPLE PROGRAMS THAT YOU SEE ON THIS SLIDE
INCLUDING INCLUDING HEALTH BABY HEALTHY CHILD BOSTON HEALTHY START INITIATIVE EARLY CHILDHOOD MENTAL HEALTH OTHER FRIENDLY HEALTHY START HOUSE OUR FOOD PANTRY AND WELCOME
FAMILY BOSTON WITHIN THE LAST YEAR WE'VE INITIATED SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN REALLY CRITICAL AND LONG OVERDUE AND THAT'S THE FETAL AND INFANT MORTALITY REVIEW AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR INVESTING IN THAT IN OUR IN
OUR LAST YEAR BUDGET OUR LAST YEAR'S BUDGET. THAT REVIEW IS ACTUALLY WHAT WE'RE GOING TO USE TO LOOK AT HOW WE CAN BEST TACKLE THE PROBLEM OF INFANT MORTALITY AND
WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN TERMS OF THIS ENORMOUS GAP BETWEEN BLACK INFANTS AND WHITE INFANTS THROUGHOUT OUR CITY. I THINK THAT UNFORTUNATELY WE HADN'T BEEN ABLE TO DO THAT PREVIOUSLY BECAUSE WE DIDN'T HAVE THE FUNDING TO DO IT.
BUT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S REALLY MOVING FORWARD. WE'RE HIRING. WE'RE GETTING TO GET A PLAN TOGETHER AND IT'S GOING TO BE A VERY IMPORTANT TOOL TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE COMPLEX FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH INFANT
MORTALITY AND TO TO REALLY SYSTEMS LEVEL REALLY CREATE CHANGE. I THINK OTHER ACTIVITIES THAT HAVE BEEN IMPORTANT ARE HIRING KEY PERSONNEL AT THROUGHOUT HEALTHY STAR SYSTEMS,
ESTABLISHING STRONGER PROCEDURES AND PROTOCOLS PROTOCOLS LOOKING AT ISSUES RELATED TO DATA COLLECTION AND IMPROVING OUR DATA COLLECTION AND EXPANDING OUR CONNECTION
OF NETWORK PARTNERS. JUST A FEW WORDS SPECIFICALLY ABOUT HEALTHY BABY HEALTHY CHILD. AS MANY OF YOU ARE AWARE, THIS IS A HOME VISITING PROGRAM THAT PROVIDES NURSING ADVOCACY AND
SOCIAL WORK SERVICES FROM PREGNANCY THROUGH EARLY CHILDHOOD WITH NEW INVESTMENTS FROM FY 25. THANK YOU AGAIN CITY COUNCILORS WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO INCREASE AWARENESS OF HEALTHY BABY
HEALTHY CHILD THROUGHOUT OUR CITY AND ENHANCE SERVICES AND THAT HAS INCLUDED HIRING A NEW OUTREACH COORDINATOR COORDINATOR INTENTIONALLY REACH OUT TO MORE FAMILIES AND TO ENROLL THEM AND TO IMPROVE NAVIGATION TO HEALTH AND SOCIAL
SERVICES INCLUDING BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES, TULA SERVICES AND OTHER SUPPORTS. IN REGARDS TO THE SERVICES, I THINK THIS IS AN IMPORTANT ENHANCEMENT WITHIN OUR WORK
LOOKING AT MATERNAL AND INFANT HEALTH AS YOU ARE PROBABLY AWARE JULIE SERVICES ARE ASSOCIATED WITH IMPROVED OUTCOMES FOR BOTH THE PREGNANT INDIVIDUAL AND AND THE INFANT.
SO WE ESTABLISHED BOSTON COMMUNITY PERINATAL HEALTH INITIATIVE OR KOFI IN FALL OF 2023 BUT IT'S REALLY HIT ITS STRIDE THIS LAST YEAR SUPPORTING WOMEN AND FAMILIES PARTICULARLY FAMILIES OF COLOR
THROUGH THE BIRTHING PROCESS BY CONNECTING MOTHERS IN SOME CASE FATHERS TO SUPPORT THROUGH THIS PROGRAM BOSS PRESIDENTS ARE ALSO TRAINED AS DO US SO WE'RE ENHANCING OUR OWN HEALTH CARE
WORKFORCE THROUGH THIS PROGRAM WHICH IS SUPPORTED BY A FEDERAL GRANT FROM WILLIAM H. WE'VE ALSO BEEN ABLE TO MAKE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN DOULA SUPPORT AND OUR OTHER PROGRAMING LIKE HEALTHY BABY
HEALTHY CHILD. AND SO WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO SORT OF BRAID FUNDING FROM THE FEDERAL LEVEL TO OUR LOCAL CITY APPROPRIATE OKAY. SO SHIFTING TO VIOLENCE
PREVENTION. I'M GOING TO SPEND A BIT OF TIME ON THIS SLIDE BECAUSE I KNOW THIS HAS BEEN A A CONCERN OF THE CITY COUNCIL AND BEYOND . YOU KNOW, I REALLY THINK THAT
WE'VE SPENT A LOT OF TIME TRYING TO ENHANCE OUR WORK IN VIOLENCE PREVENTION IN THE LAST YEAR AND WHAT WE DID WAS ALONG WITH FOLKS WITHIN CITY HALL, WE'VE REEVALUATED OUR VIOLENCE
PREVENTION WORK AND WE'VE ESSENTIALLY CREATED A NEW OFFICE OF VIOLENCE PREVENTION REPORTING DIRECTLY TO THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE AT THE BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION. SO AS YOU PROBABLY RECALL
PREVIOUSLY THE OFFICE OF VIOLENCE PREVENTION WAS WITHIN THE CAF BUREAU OR THE CHILD ADOLESCENT FAMILY HEALTH BUREAU. WE WANTED TO AMPLIFY OUR WORK AND TO ELEVATE AND MAKE SURE THAT IT WAS A FOCUS POINT, A
FOCAL POINT OF WHAT WE DO AS A PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND TO ACTUALLY REALLY GET TO THE POINT WHERE WE'RE ALL THINKING ABOUT HOW WE END VIOLENCE IN THE CITY OF BOSTON. WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO
ANNOUNCING A NEW DIRECTOR OF THIS OFFICE IN THE COMING WEEKS. WE CURRENTLY HAVE AN INTERIM DIRECTOR MARK SCOTT. SO AS YOU SEE HERE ON THE SLIDE THERE ARE FIVE PROGRAMS WITHIN THE OFFICE OF VIOLENCE
PREVENTION, ALL OF WHICH ARE FOCUSED ON PREVENTION INTERVENTION AND THE RESPONSE TO VIOLENCE. SO I'LL JUST TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT EACH ONE I'M SURE THAT YOU ALL ARE FAMILIAR WITH WITH MOST OF THESE.
SO CAPACITY BUILDING AND TRAINING INITIATIVE THAT PROGRAM TRAIN SERVICE PROVIDERS SO THAT THEY HAVE THE SKILLS AND RESOURCES THEY NEED TO SUPPORT RESIDENTS IMPACTED BY VIOLENCE AND TRAUMA THE VIP OR
VIOLENCE INTERVENTION PROGRAM WORKS WITH COMMUNITIES DIRECTLY TO STRENGTHEN NEIGHBORHOODS AND ULTIMATELY PREVENT GUN VIOLENCE. I THINK ONE OF THE IMPORTANT PIECES THERE IS PROMOTING COMMUNITY RESILIENCE AND
LOOKING AT COMMUNITY STRENGTHS AND HOW THAT IS IMPORTANT IN TERMS OF PREVENTION AND INTERVENTION. THERE'S ALSO THE COMMUNITY HEALING RESPONSE NETWORK WHICH I'M GOING TO SEPARATE AND TALK
ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE IN A MINUTE. THAT IS THE NEW NAME FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD TRAUMA TEAM NETWORK BUT WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE TO SAY ABOUT THAT. WE NEWLY HAVE A PROGRAM ON DOMESTIC SEXUAL AND GENDER
BASED VIOLENCE PREVENTION WHICH I BELIEVE YOU ALL WERE INTRODUCED TO RECENTLY DURING A HEARING. SO THIS INITIATIVE WAS LAUNCHED IN JANUARY OF THIS YEAR AND AS MANY OF YOU ALL KNOW, BPC HAS
LONG COORDINATED AND WORKED WITH THE FAMILY JUSTICE CENTER. WITH THIS PARTICULAR INITIATIVE WE'RE REALLY BRINGING OUR DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE WORK OUTSIDE THE WALLS OF FGC AND FAMILY JUSTICE CENTER AND
THINKING ABOUT HOW TO REALLY INTEGRATE IT INTO OTHER PROGRAMING AND TO LOOK WITHIN THE COMMUNITY AT THE CHALLENGES THAT ARE BEING FACED AND A LOT OF THE CHALLENGES RELATED TO DATA COLLECTION AND ADVOCACY
THAT WE WEREN'T ABLE TO DO BEFORE. SO IT'S REALLY AN INTENTIONAL INTENTIONAL EFFORT EFFORT TO UNDERSTAND THAT VIOLENCE ISN'T JUST ABOUT, YOU KNOW, PENETRATIVE VIOLENCE. WE REALLY NEED TO THINK BEYOND
THAT ABOUT ALL THE DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF VIOLENCE THAT PEOPLE SUFFER FROM WITHIN OUR CITY. WE ALSO HAVE THE LIFE COURSE UNIT SO THE LIFE FORCE UNIT IS COMPRISED OF THREE DIFFERENT
INITIATIVES AND I THINK THE OLDEST AMONGST THOSE IS THE SAFE AND SUCCESSFUL YOUTH INITIATIVE OR WHY I'M IT'S LONG BEEN A PART OF OUR CORE PROGRAMING IN 2024 I THINK
BEFORE THEN BUT IN 2024 WE REALLY WANTED TO MEET THE NEED TO EXPAND CASE MANAGEMENT SERVICES TO EXPAND THE SUCCESS OF THIS Y TO BOTH YOUNGER CHILDREN OR ADOLESCENTS AND
OLDER INDIVIDUALS BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT VIOLENCE ISN'T JUST A PROBLEM FOR THOSE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 17 AND 24 WHICH IS THE TARGET AGE FOR US IS QUITE HIGH. SO WE NOW HAVE PROMOTING
POTENTIAL BOSTON OR P2P OF THE YOUNGEST IT'S IT'S UNDER 16 BUT YOU KNOW IT'S MOST OF THE KIDS ARE BETWEEN 14 AND 16. THEN THERE'S ALSO THE MEN'S
HEALTH INITIATIVE WHICH ENROLLS INDIVIDUALS 25 AND OLDER. I DO WANT TO PARTICULARLY CELEBRATE THAT PROGRAM. IT WAS FUNDED WITH THE HELP OF THE COUNCIL IN THE FBI 24
BUDGET PROCESS AND I WANT TO ADD THAT THE MEN'S HEALTH INITIATIVE IS REALLY THE ONLY COMMUNITY VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAM IN BOSTON DEDICATED TO SERVING MEN WHO ARE OF THAT AGE GROUP.
SO MEN 25 YEARS OR OLDER AND BECAUSE IT'S THE ONLY ONE WE'RE CURRENTLY AT 207% OF OUR TARGET ENROLLMENT FOR 25 THE GOAL WAS
45 CLIENTS AND WE'RE NOW AT 93. I THINK THAT THAT SPEAKS TO THE NEED FOR THE PROGRAM BUT ALSO IT SPEAKS TO THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR THE PROGRAM. I ALSO WANT TO GO BACK AND
MENTION THAT P2P IF YOU LOOK ACROSS THE STATE IS ONE OF THE I GUESS IT'S A PILOT PROGRAM FOR YOUNGER AGE KIDS TO BE DOING SIMILAR WORK TO WHAT'S BEEN DONE WITH SS BY AND WE'RE
HOPING THAT THE LESSONS LEARNED HERE IN BOSTON WILL BE SPREAD AROUND THE STATE AND THAT WILL BE A PROGRAM THAT CONTINUES TO BE FUNDED.
SO LET ME TURN TO SPECIFICALLY I MENTIONED I WAS GOING TO SAY A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE COMMUNITY HEALTH RESPONSE NETWORK. AS I MENTIONED, THIS IS THE FORMER NEIGHBORHOOD TRAUMA TEAM
NETWORK. IS IT STILL A NETWORK OF NEIGHBORHOOD LEVEL COMMUNITY HEALING RESPONSE TEAM TEAMS WHICH IS LED AND COORDINATED BY THE BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION.
THE GOAL OF THIS PARTICULAR NETWORK IS AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT BUT ALSO PROVIDING SHORT TERM CRISIS INTERVENTION IN CASE MANAGEMENT AS WELL AS
LONG TERM CRISIS INTERVENTION AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES . DURING THIS PAST YEAR WE HAVE SUCCESSFULLY RESTRUCTURED TO BRING ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES IN-HOUSE AS
OPPOSED TO CONTRACTING IT OUT. THE NETWORK'S TEAM IS FULLY STAFFED AT THIS POINT INCLUDING ON CALL RESPONDERS. I BELIEVE WE HAVE A FEW PER TEAM POSITIONS THAT ARE OPEN
BUT REALLY FULLY STAFFED IN TERMS OF THE FULL TIME POSITIONS AND THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE ON A DAILY REGULAR BASIS. NEW PARTNERSHIPS ARE BEING CREATED WHICH IS EXCITING WITH COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS
AND OUR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AND WE'RE WORKING TO STRENGTHEN OUR EXISTING PARTNERSHIPS. JUST SO YOU'RE AWARE AS OF APRIL 1ST OF THIS YEAR THE
NETWORK HAS SERVED 120 INDIVIDUALS WITH IMMEDIATE INSURED SHORT TERM SUPPORT. SO I THINK THIS IS INDICATIVE OF THE NEED BUT ALSO INDICATIVE OF THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE
ON A REGULAR BASIS. I ALSO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO SAY A COUPLE OF OTHER THINGS BECAUSE THE NETWORK DOES HAVE SERVICES THAT ARE WORKING CITYWIDE. WE DON'T HAVE TEAMS IN EVERY
SINGLE NEIGHBORHOOD BUT WE DO HAVE SERVICES. WE DO RESPOND TO ISSUES THAT ARE OCCURRING ACROSS THE CITY. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT PENETRATIVE VIOLENCE THOUGH THAT HAS BEEN A FOCUS.
WE ALSO DEPLOY FOR OTHER KINDS OF SERIOUS INCIDENTS THAT HAVE A BROAD COMMUNITY IMPACT. FOR EXAMPLE, THE NETWORK WAS ACTIVATED FOR THE RECENT VERY TRAGIC DEATH OF THE FIVE YEAR
OLD BOY WHO WAS HIT BY A BUS IN HIGH PARK. WE DID DEPLOY A TEAM TO BE THERE AT THE SCENE TO SUPPORT RESIDENTS AND HAVE PROVIDED
CONTINUAL SUPPORT SINCE THEM AS WELL AS IS THESE TEAMS AND I'M SURE CHIEF HOOLEY COULD TELL YOU MORE ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON THERE. BUT YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S REALLY CRITICAL TO SAY THAT TRAUMA IS OCCURRING IN MANY
WAYS THROUGHOUT OUR CITY AND WE HAVE A SYSTEM THAT IS EFFECTIVE AND WE WOULD LOVE TO CONTINUE TO BUILD TO DO THIS WORK AND ONGOING BASIS. OKAY.
SO I WANT TO TURN FROM THERE TO MENTAL HEALTH AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AS I'M SURE EVERYBODY IS WHERE WE HAVE A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS AND IT'S HAS BEEN A IMPORTANT AND PRIORITY AREA FOR
THE ADMINISTRATION AND AT THE BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION, I THINK THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO SOME VERY EXCITING THINGS THIS YEAR. YOU KNOW, WE DID ANNOUNCE A VERY LARGE, YOU KNOW, YOUTH
MENTAL HEALTH INITIATIVE THAT INVOLVE MULTIPLE PARTNERS AND WE'VE REALLY BEEN ABLE TO MOVE THAT WORK ALONG. IT'S ALWAYS EXCITING YOU ANNOUNCE SOMETHING IS GREAT BUT YOU KNOW, CAN YOU GET IT GOING
? I THINK WE'VE DONE A GREAT JOB OF GETTING THIS WORK GOING WITH OUR CENTER FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS AT THE COMMISSION WORKING WITH PARTNERS ACROSS THE CITY SO I PARTICULARLY WANT TO POINT OUT
OUR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT BECAUSE THAT'S A KEY GAP THAT WE JUST DON'T HAVE PROVIDERS ACROSS THE CITY AND WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH PROVIDERS WHO ARE CULTURALLY OR LINGUISTICALLY DIVERSE.
SO THAT THEY CAN MEET THE NEEDS OF MANY OF OUR RESIDENTS ACROSS THE CITY THROUGH THIS PROGRAM THROUGH WHAT THE CENTER HAS BEEN WORKING ON. WE'VE DEVELOPED PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE UMASS BOSTON AND FRANCISCAN CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL
AND WE HAVE PROVIDED TRAINING TO 238 INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE CLINICIANS NOW TO SERVE BOSTON RESIDENTS AND MEET THE CITY'S NEED FOR ACCESSIBLE RESPONSIVE CARE. I'M SPECIFICALLY FOCUSED IN ON
HIGH NEEDS YOUTH. SO THIS INCLUDES 53 FELLOWS IN UMASS BOSTON'S MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING PROGRAM, 160 FELLOWS IN UMASS PROCESS THERAPEUTIC MENTORING CERTIFICATE PROGRAM. THERE ARE SIX SCHOOL
PSYCHOLOGISTS WHO ARE UNDERGOING TRAINING AND THROUGH FRANCISCAN 12 CLINICIANS HAVE BEEN PLACED IN EIGHT SCHOOLS. 51 STAFF HAVE RECEIVED ADDITIONAL TRAINING ACROSS FRANCISCAN CLINICAL SETTINGS.
SO I THINK THAT WE MAY NOT SEE THE IMPACT OF THIS FOR YEARS BUT I THINK THIS IS REALLY ABOUT THINKING ABOUT HOW WE HOW WE BUILD A SUSTAINABLE PROGRAM AND SUSTAINABLE SYSTEM FOR OUR
RESIDENTS TO MEET THEIR NEEDS SO THAT WE CAN TRULY ADDRESS THIS CRISIS IN A SUSTAINABLE WAY. OTHER KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS THIS YEAR INCLUDE PILOTING TRAUMA INFORMED SCHOOL TRANSFORMATION
AT TEN SCHOOLS FIVE OF WHICH ARE ELEMENTARY AND FIVE HIGH SCHOOLS WHICH HAS BEEN VERY IMPORTANT. AND WHAT YOU SEE ON THIS SLIDE IS OUR OUR YOUTH FOCUSED HEADS UP CAMPAIGN SCHOOL.
WE'RE TRYING TO DECREASE THE STIGMA ASSOCIATED WITH TALKING ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES AND REALLY THINKING ABOUT HOW TO DEVELOP A PEER SUPPORT AND OTHER SUPPORT SYSTEMS FOR YOUNG
PEOPLE. SO I ALSO WANT TO TALK ABOUT ACCESS TO HEALTH SERVICES WHICH IS AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT TO THE LIVE LONG AND WELL PLAN AND
IT'S A LARGE COMPONENT OF OUR WORK ACROSS THE COMMISSION THIS YEAR YOU KNOW ACCESS TO HOSPITAL AND EMERGENCY SERVICES WAS OBVIOUSLY THREATENED BY THE CLOSURE OF CARDY HOSPITAL IN
DORCHESTER AS A RESULT OF THE UNFORTUNATE STEWART HEALTH BANKRUPTCY. AND IN RESPONSE MAYOR WU AND GOVERNOR HEALEY FORM THE DORCHESTER HEALTH PLAN WORKGROUP. AND I JUST WANT TO THANK THOSE
OF YOU WHO ARE PART OF THAT WORK GROUP INCLUDING COUNCIL OFFICE CHARLES AND OTHER CITY COUNCILORS INCLUDING PRESIDENT LOUIJEUNE WHO WAS A KEY MEMBER OF THE GROUP.
I CO-CHAIRED THIS GROUP WITH MICHAEL CURRY WHO'S THE PRESIDENT OF THE MASS COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AND I AM SPECIFICALLY STARTING WITH THAT AND HIGHLIGHTED THAT IN PICTURES ON THE SLIDE BECAUSE I
THINK THAT ONE OF OUR ROLES IS TO, YOU KNOW, STEP IN AND RESPOND WHEN THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPEN AND I THINK THAT'S PART OF WHAT WE DO AS A PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION AND AS PART OF WHAT WE WILL CONTINUE TO DO
. THE OTHER PIECE OF THIS IS THAT WE DID ISSUE RECOMMENDATIONS PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT THEM WHEN YOU GET A CHANCE. WE ACTUALLY DID LAST WEEK BUT IT'S THE GROUP HASN'T STOPPED THERE AND CERTAINLY WE HAVE
RECOMMENDATIONS BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO TO ACTUALLY MAKE THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS REAL AND MOVE SOMETHING FORWARD SO THAT WE ARE MEETING UNMET LONG TERM UNMET NEEDS WITHIN THE DORCHESTER AND IN SOME OF THE
MATTAPAN COMMUNITY THAT ALSO PREVIOUSLY USED CARDY HOSPITAL. SO I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT IN TERMS OF ACCESS TO SERVICES THAT WE JUST RECENTLY COMPLETED ADMINISTRATION OF OUR CITY WIDE
COMMUNITY HEALTH NEEDS ASSESSMENT SO THE COMMISSION BOSTON THE HEALTH COMMISSION IS THE CO-LEAD OF THAT PROCESS AND ALSO CO-LEADS THE BOSTON COMMUNITY HEALTH COLLABORATIVE.
SO WE HELP ADMINISTER HELP DEVELOP THE SURVEY, HELP ADMINISTER THE SURVEY AND NOW WE'RE HELPING TO DISSEMINATE THOSE FINDINGS. THEY WILL BEGIN DISSEMINATING THE TEAM WILL BEGIN
DISSEMINATING THE FINDINGS IN JUNE AND WE'RE EXCITED TO GET THAT DATA OUT THERE. OF COURSE IT'S JUST DATA AND WE NEED TO MOVE DATA TO ACTION AND
THAT'LL BE THE NEXT STEP IS TO UPDATE THE CHIP OR THE COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT PLAN. SO WE'RE EXCITED FOR ALL THAT WORK AND THE UPCOMING INITIATIVES THAT WILL ARISE FROM THAT.
I ALSO WANT TO RECOGNIZE THE INCREDIBLE WORK OF THE MAYOR'S HEALTH LINE TEAM. OFTENTIMES THEY DON'T GET A LOT OF RECOGNITION BUT I THINK THAT THEY ARE AN IMPORTANT RESOURCE FOR OUR CITY. WE'VE ENROLLED MORE THAN 1200
INDIVIDUALS IN HEALTH INSURANCE AND CONNECTED ONE IN FIVE OR ALMOST 5000 INDIVIDUALS TO HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES AND WHY 24? SO A STRONG TEAM EFFORT AND
LIKE I SAID IT'S A VERY LINGUISTICALLY DIVERSE GROUP BUT I THINK THEY WORK VERY HARD TO ENSURE THAT PEOPLE FEEL WELCOMED AND AS THOUGH THIS IS A PLACE WHERE THEY CAN RECEIVE
SUPPORT AND THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, GET NAVIGATION TO HEALTH SERVICES AROUND THE CITY. AND THEN LASTLY ON THE SLIDE I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT WE HELD WHAT WE HOPE WILL BE THE
FIRST SUBSEQUENT WOMEN'S CONFERENCES. THIS WAS A FOCUS ON BLACK WOMEN'S HEALTH. WE THAT LAST YEAR DURING THE FISCAL YEAR IT WAS AN IMPORTANT TIME TO LOOK AT THESE ISSUES OF MATERNAL HEALTH.
THE SEVERE MATERNAL MORBIDITY BUT NOT JUST THAT REALLY THINKING ABOUT GENDER EQUITY ISSUES OR GENDER INEQUITY ISSUES AND THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, CHRONIC DISEASE AMONGST
WOMEN AND OTHER ISSUES THAT YOU KNOW, WE DON'T TALK ABOUT VERY OFTEN IN PUBLIC HEALTH. I THINK IT GENERATED A LOT OF ENTHUSIASM AND EXCITEMENT AND WE'RE HOPING TO LAUNCH SOME
INITIATIVES BASED ON THE WORK THAT WAS DISSEMINATED AND THE NETWORKING THAT WAS ACCOMPLISHED DURING THAT MEETING. SO THE LAST SLIDE IS AROUND
INFECTIOUS DISEASES. SO I THINK YOU ALL KNOW I'M AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE DOCTOR AND THIS IS AN AREA OF STRONG PASSIONS. THE BUT YOU KNOW, IN ADDITION TO MY OWN PERSONAL INTEREST, OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE A LOT
OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE CHALLENGES FACING WORLD TODAY. OUR WORK IN THIS AREA IS CENTERED AROUND THE INFECTIOUS DISEASE BUREAU AND THEY LEAD DISEASE SURVEILLANCE ALONG WITH
OUR CENTER FOR PUBLIC HEALTH SCIENCE INNOVATION INVESTIGATION OF CASES AND OUTBREAKS FUNDING THE CONTINUUM OF HIV CARE AND REALLY THINKING ABOUT HOW BETTER TO EDUCATE
PEOPLE ABOUT INFECTIOUS DISEASES. AND SO I KNOW YOU ALL HAVE SEEN IN THE NEWS WE HAVE A MEASLES OUTBREAK IN THE U.S. RIGHT NOW NATIONALLY THERE ARE MORE THAN 1000 CASES THOUGH THERE ARE NO
ACTIVE CASES HERE IN BOSTON. IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO BE PREPARED AS BEST AS WE CAN IN CASE OF AN OUTBREAK DOES OCCUR . SO OVER THE PAST MONTHS WE'VE HAD WE'VE BEEN IDENTIFYING
OPPORTUNITIES TO INCREASE UPTAKE OF MMR, THE MEASLES, MUMPS RUBELLA VACCINE AMONGST PEOPLE, PEDIATRIC AND ADULT POPULATIONS. WE'VE BEEN PROVIDING BROAD EDUCATION TO BOSTON RESIDENTS
AND TARGETED OUTREACH OUTREACH TO HIGHER RISK COMMUNITIES. WE'VE BEEN WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH PBS AS WELL AS THE CHARTER PRIVATE AND PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS
TO IDENTIFY SCHOOLS WITH LOWER MMR UPTAKE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION AND EDUCATION. WE'VE ALSO BEEN COORDINATING VACCINE CLINICS SO WE DO HAVE
VACCINE CLINICS SCHEDULED AT A NUMBER OF THE SCHOOLS WHERE THERE IS LOWER DOCUMENTED UPTAKE. WE ALSO PLAN TO DO A CITYWIDE VACCINE CLINIC SOMETIME THIS
SUMMER BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS IN THE FALL. SO LATER ON IN THE SUMMER. SO THAT'S AN IMPORTANT AREA THAT WE'VE BEEN GEARING UP FOR. WE WANT TO BE PREPARED.
WE ARE IN VERY CLOSE CONTACT WITH EVERY OTHER CITY WHERE THEY'VE SEEN AN UPTICK OF CASES AND YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN SHARING INFORMATION WITH THEM. THEY'VE BEEN GIVING US A LOT OF THEIR INFORMATION SO THAT, YOU KNOW, BOSTONIANS SHOULD
FEEL AT LEAST CONFIDENT THAT WE ARE PREPARED AND WE'RE ON TOP OF THE SITUATION. I ALSO WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HIV PREVENTION, CARE AND TREATMENT. WE DON'T PROBABLY SPEND AS MUCH
TIME AS WE SHOULD IN THIS AREA AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE WE DO HAVE A CLUSTER MEANING A GROUP OF NEWER HIV INFECTIONS THAT ARE LINKED AND IT'S IN THE MASS
AND CLASS AREA NOT NOT SURPRISINGLY AND IT'S LINKED IT'S ASSOCIATED PEOPLE WHO INJECT DRUGS. SO IT WAS FIRST IDENTIFIED IN 2018 AND IS ONGOING THAT TO
DATE IT INCLUDES OVER 200 INDIVIDUALS. SO WHAT WE'RE DOING IS WORKING WITH OUR PROVIDERS VERY CLOSELY WORKING WITH THE STATE, VERY CLOSELY TRACKING PEOPLE, GETTING THEM INTO CARE, MAKING
SURE THAT THAT PEOPLE WHO DO INJECT DRUGS HAVE ACCESS TO HARM REDUCTION WHICH OBVIOUSLY IS YOU KNOW, SORT OF ONE OF OUR FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE CERTAINLY
THINKING ABOUT ANTIRETROVIRAL THERAPY AND PRE-EXPOSURE PROPHYLAXIS IN OUR POPULATION. AS I MENTIONED, WE DO LEAD THE RYAN WHITE HIV AIDS PROGRAM FUNDING NOT JUST FOR BOSTON BUT
ENTIRE SUFFOLK COUNTY. AND WE ALSO HAVE ENDING THE HIV EPIDEMIC FUNDING THAT'S FEDERAL FUNDING THAT WE RECEIVE. I WANT TO MENTION OUR RESPIRATORY VIRAL INFECTION
WORK BECAUSE IT'S ONGOING. YOU KNOW, SOME PEOPLE WOULD SAY OKAY, WELL YOU KNOW, WE'RE DONE WITH COVID AND YOU KNOW, IT'S SORT OF THE END OF FLU SEASON. OUR WORK CONTINUES NOW AND
WE'RE NOT DONE WITH ANY OF OUR RESPIRATORY VIRAL INFECTIONS OR CERTAINLY PEOPLE WHO CONTINUE TO AT RISK FOR COVID 19 AS WELL AS IS OTHER RESPIRATORY VIRUS INFECTIONS EVEN AS IS FLU.
AND THEN WE SEE FEWER RSV CASES YOU KNOW, IN THIS TIME OF THE YEAR TOWARDS THE SPRING. BUT WE ALSO KNOW THAT THERE ARE CASES HUMAN CASES OF BIRD FLU, AVIAN INFLUENZA, H5N1 AROUND
THIS THE ARMS THE COUNTRY WE DON'T HAVE ANY HUMAN INFECTIONS TO DATE HERE IN BOSTON. BUT AGAIN SIMILAR TO MEASLES, IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO BE PREPARED. SO WE HAVE BEEN CONVENING
MEETINGS, GETTING EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS OUT TO THE PUBLIC AND REALLY THINKING STRATEGICALLY ABOUT HOW WE CAN BEST PREPARE TO MAKE SURE OUR RESIDENTS BEST PREPARED IF HUMAN INFECTIONS
OCCUR OR CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, HOPING THAT THERE ISN'T HUMAN TO HUMAN TRANSMISSION IN THIS BECOMES A LARGER ISSUE. LASTLY, I JUST WANT TO MENTION JUST CAUSE THERE ARE TWO
PICTURES ON THIS SLIDE WE DO A LOT OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND CAMPAIGNS. YOU MAY HAVE BEEN YOU KNOW, ON THE MBTA EITHER ON THE BUS OR THE T WE HAD THIS WHOLE LET'S
TALK HIV BOSTON CAMPAIGN IT MYSELF AND A NUMBER OF OTHER PEOPLE AROUND THE COMMISSION AND AROUND BOSTON PARTICIPATING IN REALLY, YOU KNOW, EXCITING WORK TO SORT OF INCREASE AND
AMPLIFY AWARENESS ABOUT HIV AND TO REDUCE HIV RELATED STIGMA WHICH IS STILL A MAJOR ISSUE. I KNOW THIS FROM MY OWN PATIENTS AND REALLY THINK ABOUT WHAT IT IS THAT WE CAN BE DOING
HERE IN BOSTON AND GIVEN THE DEVELOPMENTS AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL AND YOU KNOW, THREATS IN REGARDS TO FUNDING. WE FEEL IT'S EVEN MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER THAT WE CONTINUE TO BE A TRUSTED, RELIABLE SOURCE OF ACCURATE
HEALTH INFORMATION. SO THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION THIS MORNING. I'M FORWARD TO ANSWER ANY AND ALL QUESTIONS HAVE AND AS A REMINDER GOING TO ADDRESS RECOVERY HOMELESS SERVICES AND
EMS IN THE AFTERNOON. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND ALL YOUR WORK AND THANK YOU FOR SENDING YOUR WORK AND DATA AND ALSO THANK YOU FOR BUILDING
OUT THE INFRASTRUCTURE HERE TO TACKLE THE ISSUES IN A REAL SUSTAINABLE WAY. ALL THIS IS AMAZING STUFF IN YOUR PRESENTATION AND YOU GUYS ARE DOING AMAZING. EVERYONE OVER THERE IS DOING
AMAZING WORK. I LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE HAVE BEEN JOINED BY COUNCIL OFFICE GERARD AND COUNCILOR MURPHY. NOW GO TO MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES IN ORDER ARRIVAL FOR FIRST ROUND OF QUESTIONS.
I STARTED WITH COUNCILOR FLYNN COUNCILOR FOR SHORT. THANK YOU MR CHAIR AND THANK YOU TO DR. OJUKWU TOO AND YOUR TEAM AT PUBLIC HEALTH FOR BEING
HERE FOR IMPORTANT WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING. THANK YOU FOR SPENDING A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME TALKING ABOUT HIV EDUCATION
AWARENESS HOW WE CAN SUPPORT PEOPLE WITH HIV OR HEP C AS YOU PROBABLY KNOW AND I KNOW WE SPOKE ABOUT IT MANY TIMES. THE FIRST NEEDLE EXCHANGE
PROGRAM IN THE COUNTRY WAS THROUGH THE CITY OF BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION AND UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF THE MEDICAL TEAM THERE BUT ALSO
UNDER UNDER MAYOR FLYNN AND IT WAS VERY CONTROVERSIAL AT THE TIME JUST TO HAVE A NEEDLE EXCHANGE PROGRAM. I BELIEVE BOSTON THEN SAN FRANCISCO SOON FOLLOWED IT.
THAT'S AN ISSUE THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO ME. HIV AIDS, HEPATITIS. SO DR. AJAOKUTA, CAN YOU TELL
ME WHEN PEOPLE ARE HOMELESS OUT ON THE STREETS OF MASS IN CHAOS? THEY THEY THEY MAY KNOW THAT THEY HAVE HIV. THEY MAY BE HIV POSITIVE OR
THEY MAY BE ENGAGED IN CERTAIN BEHAVIORS THAT COULD CONTRIBUTE TO IT. HOW WILL YOU DETERMINING THAT TYPE OF OUTREACH?
AND ARE YOU ABLE TO TALK TO THEM INDIVIDUALLY IN IN AND TALK TO THEM ABOUT WHAT SERVICES EDUCATION PROGRAMS MIGHT BE AVAILABLE TO ASSIST
THEM DURING THAT DIFFICULT TIME ? MM HMM. THAT'S A THAT'S A REALLY GOOD QUESTION, COUNSELOR FLYNN. IT IS CHALLENGING WHEN YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE UNSHELTERED ON,
YOU KNOW, STREET CORNERS WHEREVER IT IS IN THE CITY. WE DO HAVE OUTREACH PROGRAMING PARTICULARLY I'LL HIGHLIGHT A HOPE THAT VAN GOES OUT BEYOND
IN MASS AND CASTS REALLY THEY HAVE THE FILM BUILDING THE STANDING SITE BUT THEY'RE ALSO THROUGHOUT THE CITY AND THEY OFFER HIV TESTING AND COUNT COUNSELING AND TESTING AS WELL AS NAVIGATION TO SERVICES AS
WELL AS SYRINGE AND SYRINGE SERVICES AND IN HARM REDUCTION AND IT'S FULL PRESS. SO IT'S COMPREHENSIVE IN THE SERVICES THAT THEY PROVIDE. YOU KNOW, WE ALSO PARTNER WITH A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT CLINICAL
SERVICES. SO BOSTON HEALTH CARE FOR THE HOMELESS HAS A VERY EXPANDED HIV TREATMENT PROGRAM. THEY HAVE OUTREACH WORKERS WHO WORK WITH SOME OF US SOME
OF THEM WORK WITH A HOPE. SOME OF THEM WORK SEPARATELY. WE ACTUALLY HAVE FOLKS THAT WE'RE PARTNERING WITH WITH THE STATE FIELD AND ESSENTIALLY THEY'RE OUT THERE LOOKING FOR PEOPLE WHO WE KNOW HAVE TESTED
POSITIVE AND WHO HAVE NOT BEEN FOUND A PROVIDER WHO HAVEN'T BEEN LINKED TO CARE. SO WE'RE WE'RE COMING AT THIS FROM ALL DIFFERENT ANGLES AND I THINK THAT WE'RE TRYING TO BE AS COMPREHENSIVE AS POSSIBLE.
I THINK THAT'S EVIDENCED BY THE FACT THAT I TO BE HONEST WITH YOU WHEN I SAW THESE ONLY 200 CASES FROM 2018 GIVEN THE FACT THAT DURING THIS TIME WE'VE HAD
A NUMBER YOU KNOW, HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE OUT ON THE STREET AND HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE INJECTING DRUGS AND THEY'RE NOT ONLY YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOT THEIR ONLY RISK FACTOR. THEY ALSO MAY BE ENGAGING IN
OTHER RISK FACTORS. SO I THINK THAT WE'RE DOING WHAT WE CAN. WE'RE CERTAINLY LOOKING TO ENHANCE OUR WORK IN THAT AREA BUT IT'S REALLY ABOUT OUTREACH AND ENGAGING PEOPLE AND
COUNSELING, TESTING AND THE NAVIGATION TO TREATMENT. THANK YOU DOCTOR. DOCTOR MAYBE ONE MORE QUESTION ON THIS SUBJECT. SO IF PEOPLE ARE ON A PEOPLE
ARE HOMELESS, ARE THEY AT MASS AND CHAOS AND THEY THEY ARE AWARE OF THEIR DIAGNOSIS
DIAGNOSIS OF HIV OR HEPATITIS C WOULDN'T THEY BE BETTER IN A IN A MEDICAL IN A OUTPATIENT
MEDICAL PROGRAM TO DEAL WITH THEIR ONGOING MEDICAL CHALLENGES THAN THAN BEING IN THAT ENVIRONMENT? I KNOW THE ANSWER IS YES, BUT
BUT WHY WHY DO THEY WHY ARE WE NOT PUSHING THAT TYPE OF MESSAGE OF OF YOU BETTER BE BETTER OFF BEING IN OUTPATIENT
MEDICAL CARE THAN THAN ON THE STREETS OF MASS AND CHAOS. SO I THINK WE ARE, IF YOU WILL ,PUSHING THAT WITH PEOPLE MEANING THAT WE'RE TRYING TO GET THEM CONNECTED TO HEALTH
CARE PROVIDERS. SO THAT'S ONE. SO THERE ARE A LOT OF BOTH. I WOULD SAY THERE ARE SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO ARE GETTING THEIR CARE AT BOSTON HEALTH CARE FOR THE HOMELESS WHICH IS RIGHT THERE
AND WE ALSO PROVIDE CLINICAL SERVICES WITHIN THE FINLAND BUILDING SO WE HAVE MULTIPLE SITES WHERE THEY CAN GO. WE ALSO OFFER CLINICAL SERVICES IN 112 AND WITH MOLINE. SO THERE ARE MULTIPLE PLACES
WHERE PEOPLE CAN GO. SECONDLY, YOU KNOW, THROUGH OUR LOW THRESHOLD HOUSING PROGRAM WHICH I'LL TALK ABOUT MORE THIS AFTERNOON WE GET INTO HOMELESS THIS IS WE STILL HAVE
APPROXIMATELY 180 BEDS WHERE WE ARE STILL TRYING TO GET PEOPLE INTO THOSE BEDS. WHEN PEOPLE GO TO LOW THRESHOLD HOUSING WHETHER THAT'S AT ENVISION OR PINE STREET SHATTUCK PROGRAM OR IT'S WITHIN
OUR SHELTERS THEY ARE OFFERED MEDICAL SERVICES AND WE'VE ACTUALLY DONE A DATA ANALYSIS ON THAT AND WE KNOW THAT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN ENGAGEMENT IN MEDICAL SERVICES WHETHER IT BE MEDICAL SERVICES
GENERALLY OR FOR YOU KNOW, OPIOID USE DISORDER. SO I THINK WE'RE TRYING FROM MULTIPLE DIFFERENT ANGLES TO GET PEOPLE ENGAGED AND IT IS OBVIOUSLY THE BEST THING FOR
FOR PEOPLE TO BE ENGAGED IN CARE AND TREATMENT. THANK YOU, DOCTOR. AND I KNOW DR. OKRAKU TO YOU AND I HAVE WORKED FOR MANY YEARS TOGETHER ON AND HEALTH AS
WELL. I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU FOR PARTNERING WITH ME ON THAT. I ALSO KNOW, DOCTOR, THAT THE HEALTH OF AGING RESIDENTS IN
BOSTON REPORT SECTION HAS BEEN RELEASED YESTERDAY AND I DO HAVE IT. I AM GOING TO READ THE ENTIRE REPORT NOT JUST ON ASIAN HEALTH ,THE ENTIRE REPORT. I THINK IT'S ONE IT'S PROBABLY
THE BEST CITY DOCUMENT THAT I DID. I READ AND I READ EVERY WORD OF IT. SO MY QUESTION DOCTOR AND AGAIN
I NEED TO BE MORE EDUCATED ON ON ASIAN HEALTH. I DO FOLLOW VERY CLOSELY AND I'M GOING TO READ IT READ THE ENTIRE REPORT AFTER THIS. BUT THE REPORT, AS YOU KNOW,
ALSO FOUND THAT ALTHOUGH A PERCENTAGE OF ASIAN ADULTS REPORT THAT THEY WOULD SEEK THERAPY AND MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL HELP IF NEEDED
COMPARED TO THEIR NON ASIAN RESIDENTS 70 74%. SO WE PARTNER ING WITH WITH THE
RIGHT ORGANIZATIONS TO ENSURE THAT ASIAN THE COMMUNITY KNOWS ABOUT SERVICES AND PROGRAMS AVAILABLE WHETHER IT'S IN THE CHINATOWN COMMUNITY, THE
VIETNAMESE COMMUNITY BUT HOW CAN WE IMPROVE THEIR ACCESS TO MEDICAL CARE AND SERVICES? SO I THINK THAT'S A REALLY IMPORTANT POINT.
SO THE DISPARITIES THAT WE'RE SEEING AMONGST ASIAN RESIDENTS IS YOU KNOW, THE MOST STRIKING IS LESS LIKE ACCESSING LIKE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES
THOSE ISSUES ARE CERTAINLY PREVALENT WITHIN THE DIVERSE GROUP OF ASIAN INDIVIDUALS LIVING IN OUR CITY. BUT THERE'S LESS ACCESS TO THEIR BARRIERS, CLEAR BARRIERS.
SO WE HAVE PARTNERED WITH VIET AID AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AROUND THE CITY. YOU KNOW, EVEN WITH THE DORCHESTER WORKING GROUP, YOU KNOW, WE HAD REPRESENTATIVES WHO WERE ON THE WORKING GROUP
FROM THE VIETNAMESE COMMUNITY PARTICULARLY BECAUSE THAT GROUP WAS SERVED BY CARNEY HOSPITAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH WAS A BIG PIECE OF WHAT CARNEY HOSPITAL OFFERED. DO WE NEED TO DO MORE?
ABSOLUTELY. YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN PARTNERING WITH TUFTS. I THINK WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THAT BEFORE BOTH FROM A RESEARCH AND AN OUTREACH STANDPOINT. I THINK WE DO NEED TO DO MORE TO REALLY THINK ABOUT WHAT THE
NEEDS ARE AMONGST ASIAN RESIDENTS. BUT JUST TAKING A STEP BACK FOR A SECOND. OUR CENTER FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS WAS LAUNCHED TO REALLY FOCUS IN ON YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.
AND I THINK WE'RE AT A POINT I GAVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF EVERYTHING THAT WE'VE DONE. WE'RE AT THE POINT WHERE WE'RE REALLY STARTING TO THINK ABOUT OKAY, SO OKAY, WE GOT TO LOOK AT ADULT ISSUES AND WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE REACHING
EVERYONE WHO NEEDS IT. SO WE'VE BEEN IN DISCUSSIONS ABOUT DIFFERENT GROUPS, DIFFERENT NEEDS AND HOW CAN WE TRULY BE RESPONSIVE TO DIVERSITY TO PEOPLE AND
PROVIDING THE RIGHT CULTURAL AND LINGUISTIC SUPPORT FOR INDIVIDUALS. SO THESE ARE THINGS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON. I THINK ONE IMPORTANT STARTING POINT WAS THIS REPORT AND I'M GLAD THAT WE WERE ABLE TO GET
IT OUT. IT SHOULD BE ACTUALLY ONLINE VERY SOON FOR EVERYBODY TO TAKE A LOOK AT. BUT WE LOOK FORWARD TO PARTNERING WITH YOU MORE ON THIS ISSUE. THANK YOU, DOCTOR.
AND I KNOW MY TIME IS UP. I'LL WAIT FOR THE SECOND ROUND TO ASK FOR THE FURTHER QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. THANK YOU. COUNCIL FILLING THE CHAIR NOW RECOGNIZES COUNCIL BRADING
COUNCIL, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR AND GOOD MORNING. GOOD TO SEE YOU BOTH. AND THEN THE FOLKS BACK HERE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HELPING
US NAVIGATE ISSUE WITH THE SHARPS DISPOSAL. WE ARE WORKING WITH ESTY TO MAKE SURE THAT THE CVS CVS IS A PARTICULAR PROBLEM THAT THEY
ACTUALLY TAKE BACK SHARPS SO WE WILL KEEP THAT KEEPING AT IT. I THINK IN A PREVIOUS CONVERSATION YOU MENTIONED THAT IN TERMS OF VIOLENCE ACROSS THE
CITY THAT DIFFERENT NEIGHBORHOODS HAVE DIFFERENT CHALLENGES AND YOU MENTIONED ONCE THAT DISTRICT NINE ALSO IN BRIGHTON HAS A HIGHER THAN
AVERAGE LEVEL OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OR INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE THAN MAYBE OTHER NEIGHBORHOODS. I DON'T KNOW. IS THAT STILL THE KEY? I KNOW THAT'S MAYBE OLD DATA FROM A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.
SO I THINK PART OF OUR DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE INITIATIVE WITHIN THE OFFICE IS THAT WE'RE GOING TO COLLECT DATA. SO I DON'T WANT TO JUMP TO THAT. YOU KNOW, TO SAY THAT THERE'S
HIGHER IN NEIGHBORHOODS WE REALLY NEED TO UPDATE OUR DATA ,UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT'S HAPPENING PARTICULARLY IN DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE. WHAT WE DO KNOW IS THAT THIS IS A PROBLEM ACROSS OUR CITY AND
WE NEED TO DO A BETTER JOB OF DECREASING ANY SORT OF STIGMA THAT'S RELATED TO REPORTING IT AND REALLY ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF PEOPLE IN A BETTER AND MORE
COMPREHENSIVE WAY. AND YOU MENTIONED A FRANCISCAN CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL AND THEY HAVE A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP OR A MERGER, WHATEVER THEY WANT TO CALL IT. THESE DAYS WITH CHILDREN'S
BOSTON CHILDREN'S. HOW MANY WHAT SORT OF SERVICES DO WE DO? WE CONTRACT OUT THOSE LITTLE SERVICES FOR OUR SCHOOL SCHOOLS OR HOW DOES THAT WORK? RIGHT. SO THAT PARTICULAR PARTNERSHIP
IS WITH OUR CENTER FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS. SO WHAT DOING IS FOCUSING IN ON WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT SO ACTUALLY WORKING WITH
FRANCISCAN TO TRAIN INDIVIDUALS TO BE MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS FOR CHILDREN. SO IT'S BOTH WORKING WITH NEW SO YOUNG PROFESSIONALS WHO ARE MAYBE NEW TO THE FIELD BUT THEN
ALSO WORKING WITH CURRENT STAFF AT THEIR SITES TO UPSKILL AND DO SOME RETRAINING AND ALL THE THINGS THAT WE THINK ARE IMPORTANT TO TRULY MEET THE NEEDS OF A WIDE DIVERSITY
OF YOUNG PEOPLE. YEAH. AND YOU KNOW, COMING OUT OF COVID LIKE WE RECOGNIZE THOSE INCREDIBLE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES
WITHIN YOUNG PEOPLE AND THEN IN THE PRESENT MOMENT THIS NEW CHANGE ADMINISTRATION WE'RE SEEING AN INCREASE IN ICE ACTIVITY IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS AND KIDS ARE AFRAID TO GO TO SCHOOL, ETC..
ARE YOU SEEING ANY KNOCK ON IT'S GOING TO BE LIKE IT'S ONLY 100 DAYS BUT ARE YOU ARE YOU HEARING OF IMPACTS IN THAT SPACE? ABSOLUTELY. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING WHICH I THINK IS
IMPORTANT IS CONNECTING WITH OUR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS. SO WE'VE JUST RECENTLY HAD A MEETING WITH THEM AND ONE OF THE KEY THEMES THAT CAME OUT OF THAT MEETING IS THAT AT THE
COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AND MOST OF THEM HAVE A DIVERSE PATIENT POPULATIONS AND HIGH PERCENTAGE OR HIGHER THAN MAYBE NATIONAL AVERAGE OF NINE US BORN INDIVIDUALS. THEY'VE SEEN FEWER OF THEM
ATTENDING APPOINTMENTS. SO I ACTUALLY LOST A FOLLOW UP . SO ONE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER PARTICULARLY CODMAN SQUARE MENTIONED AND HAD TALKED TO US ABOUT DOING MORE MOBILE
OUTREACH FOR NON-U.S. BORN INDIVIDUALS BECAUSE SO FEW OF THEM ARE OLDER OR YOUNGER. JUST ACROSS THE BOARD NOBODY WANTS TO SHOW UP FOR CARE IN FEAR THAT THEY WILL BE REPORTED OR THAT ICE WILL BE WAITING.
I KNOW OF OTHER ISSUES THAT ARE HAPPENING OTHER COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS BUT I REALLY THIS IS A WIDESPREAD ISSUE. YEAH, AND I KNOW WE DID TALK ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY AND THE CHALLENGE OF A COMMUNITY HEALTH
CENTER EXPANDED THEIR CALL CENTER AND IT'S REALLY DOING VERY WELL. BUT TO THIS POINT FOLKS ARE BEING AFRAID ARE AFRAID TO COME IN. SO THEY WANTED TO TRY AND
EXPAND THEIR THEIR TELEHEALTH SO THAT FOLKS COULD ACTUALLY DO A TELEHEALTH VISIT RATHER THAN ACTUALLY COME IN PERSON. I AM REALIZING THIS PRESENT
ALIGNMENT PROBABLY DOESN'T LEND ITSELF TO ANY RFP TO MAYBE OR ANY RESOURCES THAT WE COULD GET OUTSIDE THAT WE COULD HELP BEEF THAT UP. SO I ACTUALLY SPOKE TO THE NEW PRESIDENT.
HE CAME TO THE MEETING THAT I REFER TO WITH THE CEO AND I SAID THAT I WAS GOING TO VISIT AND WE CAN TALK MORE. YOU KNOW, WE DO SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AT A LOCAL LEVEL. YOU KNOW, IT'S IT'S MORE THAN
10 MILLION. WELL, OKAY IF WE GO TO AND YEAH, IT'S IT'S MORE THAN TWO NOW IT'S TEN AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS PER YEAR THAT WE THROUGH OUR CITY MAINLY CITY APPROPRIATION BUT OTHER
PROJECTS TOO TOO. AND LET ME. CHARLES CHARLES COMMUNITY. YEAH. YEAH. SO CHARLES PREFER COMMUNITY HEALTH IS ON THE LIST WE CAN
TAKE A LOOK AT THAT I MEAN WE'RE REALLY CHALLENGED AS YOU SAID I KNOW NOW I APPRECIATE BUT BUT WE ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS ARE UNDER AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF STRESS. YEAH.
AND WHATEVER SUPPORT THAT WE CAN PROVIDE THEM, WE WILL WE WILL DO. AND YOU KNOW, I'LL FOLLOW UP IN CONVERSATIONS WITH. EXCELLENT. AND THEN THE OTHER ISSUE THAT'S
SORT OF A NEW ISSUE WITH THE INCREASE IN ONLINE GAMBLING I I DON'T EVEN KNOW THERE'S SO MANY THINGS TO SO MANY RABBITS YOU
COULD GO DOWN RABBIT HOLES. BUT I DO FEEL THAT ESPECIALLY WITH YOUNG PEOPLE SO THE INSTANTANEOUS ACCESS TO GAMBLING ON YOUR ON YOUR PHONE OR WHATEVER AND IN PARTICULAR
POPULATIONS LIKE IN THE IN THE ASIAN COMMUNITY I'VE HEARD FROM FOLKS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT YOU KNOW WHEN MARIJUANA CAME ALONG THE ONE WAY TO MARIJUANA THERE WERE MORE WORRIED ABOUT A
CASINO IN BOSTON THAN THEY WERE ABOUT MARIJUANA. SO. IS THERE ANY I KNOW IS IT SENATOR KEENAN FROM QUINCY IS VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THAT
ISSUE. IS THERE ANYONE LOOKING AT THAT OR. SO WE ACTUALLY WE DO HAVE SOMEONE AT OUR PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION WHO'S BEEN TALKING
TO THE STATE STATE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH HAS AN OFFICE OF PROBLEM GAMBLING SERVICES AND SO SHE HAS BEEN TALKING TO THEM ABOUT WHAT WE COULD POTENTIALLY BE DOING TOGETHER.
I DON'T KNOW HOW FAR THAT'S MOVED FORWARD. AS YOU SAID, THERE ARE SO MANY ISSUES. BUT I WILL CHECK IN WITH HER AND MAYBE FOLLOW UP WITH YOU AND SEE IF THERE HAS BEEN ANY MOVEMENT THERE.
YEAH. YEAH. THANK YOU. I WOULD DO OVER TIME. GOT 15 SECONDS LEFT. UM, OTHER QUESTIONS WHERE?
THE MAYOR'S HOTLINE. THE MAYOR'S HEALTH HOTLINE. UM, I HAVE TO SAY I WASN'T THAT AWARE OF THAT. HOW DOES THAT SORT OF JUST A NUMBER THAT YOU CALL AND IT IS
IT'S 6175345050534505050. AND MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY YOU CAN CALL AND IT'S A LINGUISTICALLY DIVERSE GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS AND THEY WILL
WORK WITH YOU DEPENDING ON WHAT YOUR ISSUE IS MOST A LOT OF WHAT WE DO IS CONNECTING WITH HEALTH INSURANCE OR EXPLAINING THE DETAILS OF THE HEALTH INSURANCE PARTICULARLY DURING YOU KNOW, YOUR
REDETERMINATION PERIOD. BUT THEY ALSO KNOW THE SERVICES THAT ARE AVAILABLE AROUND THE CITY AND WE HAVE THE STEPS, YOU KNOW, ONLINE APP SO THEY CAN
TELL PEOPLE OKAY, SO YOU HAVE THIS ISSUE WELL LET'S REFER YOU HERE. YEAH. YOU KNOW YOU HAVE A FOOD INSECURITY ISSUE MAYBE YOU WOULD OF FOR FOR SNAP YOU KNOW THESE SORTS OF THINGS I THINK IT'S PARTICULARLY HELPFUL FOR
FOLKS WHO HAVE CHALLENGES, YOU KNOW, JUST NAVIGATING OUR HEALTH SYSTEM. SO WE PROBABLY NEED TO GET THE WORD OUT MORE TO OUR POPULATION IF YOU KNOW WE CAN CERTAINLY
SEND TO THE CITY COUNCILORS JUST AS A GROUP. YEAH. INFORMATION ON THE MAYOR'S. YEAH. THEY'LL BE GREAT. THANK YOU. I'LL PROBABLY COME BACK FOR MORE QUESTIONS, BUT GO AHEAD. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. TAKE EXACERBATE AND THE CHAIR
RECOGNIZES COUNCIL FITZGERALD COUNCILOR, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU, CHAIR AND THANK YOU. GOOD TO SEE YOU ALL. I'M GOING TO TRY AND ASK YOU AS MANY QUESTIONS SO YOU TALK IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU HAVEN'T TALKED ENOUGH TODAY. I FEEL BAD MAKING YOU ANSWER
THESE QUESTIONS BUT YOU DOING ALL RIGHT? I'M GLAD. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL OF YOUR ADVOCACY AND WORK IN THE HEALTH CARE FIELD.
LORD KNOWS WE NEED IT ALL THAT MUCH. I'M VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE HEALTH CARE NOT JUST THROUGH THE COUNTY HOSPITAL AND LOSING THAT BUT JUST ACROSS THE BOARD.
YOU KNOW, ALL FOLKS SEEKING CARE IN THE CITY OF BOSTON MAKING SURE THEY GET INTO THE RIGHT SPOT AND GET DECENT CARE . BUT AS YOU DO, I MEAN EVEN WORK WITH AIDS LIKE YOU SAID AND THE COUNTY AND THE WORKING GROUP AND THE SUPPORT YOU'RE
PROVIDING NEIGHBORHOOD HEALTH CENTERS ESPECIALLY IN THE WAKE OF THE CARNEY WHAT ARE WE THINKING ABOUT IN RELATION OF WHAT ARE WHAT SUPPORT ARE WE
OFFERING THEM AND HOW CAN WE HOW DOES THAT RELATE TO THE RE-ENVISIONING OF THE CAR AND IF YOU COULD JUST SPEAK OF THAT BUT I KNOW IT'S A LONGER AND DEEPER CONVERSATION BUT BRIEFLY LIKE WHAT DO YOU THINK WE'RE DOING NOW THAT WHAT WE'RE
PROVIDING TO THESE HEALTH CENTERS AND IN THE FUTURE WHAT IS THAT RELATIONSHIP TO BE A PIPELINE TO A PLACE LIKE A RE-ENVISION AND THE SERVICES WE HOPEFULLY WILL PROVIDE THERE
AND WHAT SERVICES? YEAH, SO WE HAVE PARTNERSHIPS WITH COMMON SQUARE WHICH IS THE CLOSEST HEALTH CENTER TO THE FORMER KEARNY HOSPITAL DOT HOUSE WHICH IS A LITTLE BIT
FURTHER AND THEN MATTAPAN COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER WHICH IS A LITTLE BIT FURTHER THAN THAT WE HAVE LONGSTANDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH EACH OF THEM AND WE ARE FUNDING THEM AT VARIOUS LEVELS.
WE AREN'T THE PRIMARY FUNDERS OF THESE MOST OF THEIR MONEY IS FEDERAL MONEY AND THEY'RE EACH GOING THROUGH, YOU KNOW, MEETINGS WITH HER TO DETERMINE
THEIR FUNDING SOURCES AS WELL AS YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THERE ARE A LOT OF CONCERNS REGARDING MASS HEALTH AND AND YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN WITH THE STATE AND STATE FUNDING FOR THE
CCS. BUT I THINK THEY'RE THE BIGGER ISSUE AS YOU SAID IS WHAT IS IT THAT WE CAN DO, YOU KNOW, EVEN IF IT IS ON A SMALLER MONETARY SORT OF SCALE? SO WE'RE TRYING TO ENGAGE THEM
IN VARIOUS PARTNERSHIPS LIKE CODMAN SQUARE. WE'VE BEEN TALKING TO THEM ABOUT MOBILE HEALTH SERVICES. WE HAVE THE ATRIUS HEALTH EQUITY GRANT THAT'S GOING TO BE ISSUED SOON AS YOU WILL
PROBABLY REMEMBER WE HAVE A PARTNERSHIP WITH ATRIUS. IT'S A $10 MILLION CATALYTIC GRANT UNDER LIVE LYME. WELL AND THERE WAS AN RFP THAT'S IT'S CURRENTLY WE'VE
RECEIVED GRANTS AND SOME OF THEM HAVE INCLUDED A NUMBER OF THESE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS. SO OUR HOPE IS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE PART OF THIS AND THAT THEY'RE GETTING SOME OF THAT MONEY SO THAT THEY CAN
DO THE WORK THAT WE BELIEVE IS IS NOT ONLY IMPORTANT IN THE WAKE OF CARNEY'S CLOSURE BUT REALLY BIGGER BROADER PICTURE. WHAT IS IT THAT WE NEED TO DO TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T HAVE THESE GAPS IN LIFE EXPECTANCY
THAT ARE SO EXTREME AND STARK ACROSS OUR CITY? SO THOSE ARE THE KINDS OF THINGS THAT WE DO AND TRYING TO INCORPORATE THEM. I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER IN THE AFTERNOON BUT A NUMBER OF OUR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS HAVE
BEEN A PART OF, YOU KNOW, FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR LIKE OPIOID SETTLEMENT GRANTS FOR OUR O.D TWO WAY WHICH IS OUR CDC GRANT AND MANY OF THEM ARE PART OF THAT AND THEY'RE
GETTING THEY'RE GETTING MONEY TO ADD SUBSTANCE USE SERVICES AND IF DRUG OVERDOSE IS THE NUMBER ONE CAUSE OF PREMATURE MORTALITY IN THE CITY, THEY NEED TO BE DOING THAT WORK AND THEY NEED TO BE THEY NEED TO
HAVE THE MONEY TO DO IT. SO WHAT I'VE NOTICED I THINK OUR TEAMS, YOU KNOW, KIND OF ALMOST INTENTIONALLY LOOKING AROUND LIKE HOW CAN WE INCORPORATE THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS IN THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE AND WILL CONTINUE TO
DO THAT. GREAT. THANK YOU. SPEAKING OF FUNDING, 19% OF OF YOUR BUDGET IS FROM THE FEDERAL IS FEDERAL MONEY AND DO WE KNOW ANYTHING RIGHT NOW THAT THAT'S
FOR FY 26 SO THAT THAT'S LOCKED IN? THERE'S NO WORRY ABOUT LOSING THAT WE'RE STILL UNSURE. CHRIS SOME OF THIS I'LL SAY
NOTHING'S SET IN STONE OF COURSE BUT THEY ARE MAJORITY CONTINUING GRANTS THAT HAVE A LONG HISTORY. SO I THINK THAT WE ARE FAIRLY
CONFIDENT THAT WE ARE IN A GOOD POSITION FOR 26. BUT I THINK THE ONE PIECE JUST TO SAY JUST TO ADD ON TO WHAT CHRIS IS SAYING IS THAT YOU
KNOW, WE DID HAVE TWO GRANTS THAT WERE TEMPORARILY YOU KNOW ,WE SAY WE GOT A TERMINATION ORDER ON THEM FOR CC DISPARITIES GRANTED A CC COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKER GRANT
BUT LUCKILY, YOU KNOW THROUGH LEGAL ACTION WE ARE NOW ABLE TO USE THOSE FUNDS AS A TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER. SO WE'RE ACTUALLY ABLE TO USE THOSE GRANTS. SO I THINK AS CHRIS WAS SAYING
THAT NOTHING IS SET IN STONE BUT I THINK THERE'S ALSO A WAYS TO PUSH BACK IN THE CITIES AND THE STATES ARE WORKING TO DO SO . GREAT. THANK YOU TO TWO MORE QUICK
QUESTIONS HERE. I THINK WE GET TO THE $500,000 I SAW THE FRONT FOR TRAUMA RESPONSE. YOU SAID THERE WAS A TRANSFER OF 500,000. I THINK I WROTE THAT DOWN. CORRECT. WAS THAT IT IN ADDITION OR FROM
TRUMP? I DIDN'T CATCH THAT PART THAT IS TO THE TRAUMA RESPONSE OR THE TRANSFER FROM THE TRAUMA RESPONSE LINE ITEM. IT WAS A TRANSFER FROM HUMAN
SERVICES TO OUR VIOLENCE PREVENTION OFFICE FOR TRAUMA RESPONSE. GREAT, GREAT. NO, NO, NO. THAT'S WHAT I WAS HOPING I HEARD I APPRECIATE THAT. AND IN THAT IN THAT TRAUMA RESPONSE IT'S GREAT TO HEAR
THAT WE ARE RESPONDING TO ALL TYPES OF TRAUMA. THERE IS A THERE'S A FOCUS ON VIOLENCE. BUT OF COURSE AS YOU MENTIONED, THERE ARE OTHER THINGS THAT COME UP THAT CAN AFFECT A NEIGHBORHOOD IN TERMS OF TRAUMA .
BUT YOU KNOW, I DO HAVE SOME CONCERN WHEN WHEN SOMETHING HAPPENS ARE WE OUT THERE WHAT JUSTIFIES WHAT WE RESPOND TO AND NOT BECAUSE I KNOW THAT'S
WHAT I HEAR FROM THE COMMUNITY. RIGHT. AND JUST SAYING YEAH, SOMETIMES THEY'RE THERE, SOMETIMES THEY'RE NOT THERE, SOMETIMES THEY SHOW UP AND THEY'RE JUST STANDING IN THE BACKGROUND. OTHER TIMES THEY'RE VERY, VERY INVOLVED. IS THERE ANY REASONING OR IS
THERE A YOU KNOW, SORT OF DESCRIPTION OF HOW TO RESPOND TO WHAT WHATEVER OCCURS? SO MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT,
YOU KNOW, OUR TRAUMA, OUR HEALING NETWORK GETS A NOTIFICATION AND THEY'RE GETTING THAT FROM BPD THAT YOU KNOW, SOMETHING HAS HAPPENED AND IT'S BEEN AN EPISODE
OF PENETRATIVE VIOLENCE BECAUSE THAT IS THE PRIMARY WORK OF THE RESPONSE NETWORK AND THEN THEY DEPLOY INDIVIDUALS WHO WILL GO
TO THE SCENE AND ENSURE THAT THERE ARE PEOPLE AVAILABLE TO SUPPORT BOTH THE FAMILY AS WELL AS THE NEIGHBORS. YOU KNOW, IN IN TALKING TO YOU
KNOW, CHIEF HOOLEY, WE CAN ALSO TALK TO HIM ABOUT THIS THIS AFTERNOON AND TALKING TO HIM YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES SOMETHING MAY BE, YOU KNOW, HIGHER PROFILE THAT THEY HEAR ABOUT,
YOU KNOW, MEANING THAT YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN SOMETHING WHERE MULTIPLE PEOPLE YOU KNOW, IT MAY NOT BE THAT ANYONE IS YOU KNOW, NECESSARILY IT'S NOT A HOMICIDE BUT YOU KNOW, MORE
PEOPLE HAVE BEEN INJURED IN WHICH CASE, YOU KNOW, MORE PEOPLE YOU KNOW, WHEN WE HAVE A STRONGER RESPONSE WHICH IS ALSO INVOLVING THE MAYOR'S OFFICE AND YOU KNOW HER SENIOR ADVISOR
TO VIOLENCE PREVENTION ISAAC PABLO. SO I THINK THAT THERE IS SORT OF A A GREAT ACTION, IF YOU WILL, OF WHEN YOU ACTUALLY RESPOND AND HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE
GOING TO RESPOND TO INCIDENTS. I ALSO THINK THAT WE'RE RECOGNIZING AS YOU SAID AND AS I MENTIONED THAT THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT INSTANCES THAT OCCUR AROUND THE CITY THAT ARE YOU
KNOW, IT'S NECESSARY TO PROVIDE A TRAUMA RESPONSE AND I THINK WE'RE WE'RE MAKING THE EFFORT TO RESPOND TO THOSE ALSO. THANK YOU. ONE ONE JUST QUICK ON TOP OF THAT, IS THERE A FORMAL
PROTOCOL THAT THAT THE TEAM IS SUPPOSED TO FOLLOW WHEN GETTING ON SITE AND YOU KNOW, TO THE FIRING OF NEIGHBORING DOORS AND ALL THAT? BECAUSE I MEAN GOING BACK TWO
YEARS NOW THAT'S WHAT WE ALWAYS HEARD IS YOU KNOW, OH, WE USED TO AT LEAST HAVE SOMETHING PUT IN OUR DOOR TO SAY, YOU KNOW, IF YOU NEED HELP CALL AX OR WHATEVER AND AND THEN WE GOT THE FEEDBACK LIKE WOW, NO ONE'S COME AND TALK TO US. SO IF THAT IS PART OF THE
PROTOCOL AND IF SO LIKE WHAT ARE THE OTHER STEPS IN THAT PROTOCOL TO ENSURE THAT THEY'RE FOLLOWED EVERY TIME THERE IS A PROTOCOL AND I THINK IN THE LAST YEAR THEY'VE WORKED HARDER TO STRENGTHEN THE PROTOCOL.
WE CAN HAVE THIS AND TO USE THAT PLEASE. BUT THE IDEA IS THAT THE EXPECTATIONS ARE GREAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU, JIM. THANK YOU. COUNCILOR FITZGERALD, THANK YOU
AGAIN FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. THANK YOU TO MY COLLEAGUES FOR YOUR QUESTIONS AND THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR AMAZING WORK . I, I WANTED TO START WITH
MATERNAL HEALTH. I KNOW LAST YEAR MY OFFICE ALONG WITH THE OFFICE OF WOMEN'S ADVANCEMENT WE ISSUED I BELIEVE WAS ONE OF THE
FIRST MATERNAL HEALTH GRANT YOUR DEPARTMENT HAS PUT TOGETHER STRATEGY A LOT MORE INITIATIVES. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
I HAVE IS THAT I WOULD LIKE FOR YOU TO SPEAK TO IS WHAT SPECIFIC STEPS ARE BEING TAKEN TO ADDRESS IMPLICIT BIAS WHEN IT COMES TO OUR HEALTH
PROVIDERS, OUR HOSPITALS IN OUR CLINICS BECAUSE I KNOW THAT IS ALSO ONE OF THE UNDERLYING REASONS FOR MATERNAL HEALTH AND MORTALITY. SO I'M GLAD THAT YOU'RE BRINGING THIS UP.
I THINK THIS IS AN IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR US TO DEAL WITH. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT THE ACTUAL CLINICAL CARE THAT BIRTHING INDIVIDUALS RECEIVE.
IT IS ABOUT OFTENTIMES INSTITUTIONAL RACISM AND YOU KNOW, THE BIAS THAT THEY MAY EXPERIENCE. SO THROUGH HEALTHY BABY HEALTHY CHILD AND OUR DUAL PROGRAM THAT
I DISCUSS WE ARE WORKING WITH PRIMARILY PMC BUT ALSO OTHER PLACES WHERE WOMEN ARE GIVING BIRTH AND WORKING WITH THEIR PROVIDER TEAMS. I KNOW THOSE INSTITUTIONS HAVE
THEIR OWN WORK THAT'S OCCURRING WITHIN THEIR INSTITUTIONS BUT WE HAVE THOSE CONNECTIONS SO WE ARE WORKING WITH THEM ON THESE ISSUES. I THINK IT'S JUST AN ONGOING
PROCESS AND IT'S COMPLICATED SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO DO THIS WORK AND IT REALLY I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO STATE THAT IT'S NOT JUST OR IT ISN'T THAT
OUR DATA IS SO BAD IN TERMS OF MATERNAL MORBIDITY AND MATERNAL MORTALITY. IT'S REALLY SEVERE MATERNAL MORBIDITY. SO YOU KNOW, ILLNESSES THAT WOMEN ARE GETTING. SO I THINK WE NEED TO THINK
ABOUT WHAT THOSE PROBLEMS ARE WHEN THEY'RE OCCURRING. IS IT THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF PREEXISTING CONDITIONS THAT WOMEN ARE PRESENTING WITH? SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S OCCURRING BEFORE THEY GET TO
THE BIRTHING PERIOD. SO THEN WE NEED TO BE TALKING TO COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AND ENGAGING THEM IN CARE SOONER EVEN BEFORE THEY GET PREGNANT SO THAT WOMEN ARE HEALTHIER AND SO THAT THEY DON'T FACE THE BARRIERS OF INSTITUTIONAL
RACISM, STRUCTURAL RACISM THAT'S OCCURRING WITHIN THEIR OWN COMMUNITIES. SO IT'S A IT'S A COMPLICATED PROCESS AND WE DO HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO TO IMPROVE THE EXPERIENCE FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO
ARE GIVING BIRTH IN OUR CITY. THANK YOU. VERY IMPRESSED BY THE KOFI STRATEGY IS THIS ENTIRELY 100% FUNDED BY FEDERAL GRANT AND
THEN JUST SEEING THE DESCRIPTION OF IT, ARE WE IN FEAR THAT THIS FUNDING COULD BE IN JEOPARDY? YOU KNOW, SPEAKING TO BIPOC
EQUITY THINGS THAT ARE KIND OF UNDER ATTACK IS ANY OPERATING OR CITY DOLLARS THAT IS BEHIND THIS PROGRAM. SO THIS IS FUNDED BY A FEDERAL GRANT THROUGH THE OFFICE
OF MINORITY HEALTH AND IT ISN'T FUNDED BY NO CITY DOLLARS. WE'RE APPROPRIATION. THAT'S CORRECT. YES AND YES WE ARE CONCERNED AND I THINK WE'RE CONCERNED ABOUT MULTIPLE DIFFERENT AREAS
OF OUR FEDERAL FUNDING. HOWEVER, I THINK THAT WHAT WE'VE TRIED TO DO IN OUR PREPAREDNESS IS REALLY WORK WITH OUR TEAMS TO SEE HOW WE
CAN KEEP THINGS GOING AND I THINK THAT PROCESS HAS GONE VERY WELL. WITH THAT BEING SAID, WE NEED TO REALIZE THAT WE ARE UNDER
THREAT, YOU KNOW, AND THESE KEY SERVICES COULD, YOU KNOW, BE SUBJECT TO REDUCTION AT SOME POINT. BUT WE'RE DOING OUR BEST TO
KEEP OUR WORK GOING EVEN IF THERE'S THIS THREAT IN HERE AND WE'RE OUT WHERE ARE WE IN THE TIMELINE OF THAT FEDERAL GRANT? IT'S A YEAR IN TIME.
IT'S ABOUT A YEAR IN YOU'RE INTO IT IN HOW LONG IS IT TO GET BACK TO YOU ON THAT? OKAY. FULL LENGTH. THANK YOU.
THE MHR THIS MEN'S HEALTH INITIATIVE YOU KNOW WE'RE LOOKING AT YOU SAID 270% TARGETED AND WHAT DOES
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT LOOK LIKE? SO I THINK THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION AND I WOULD LIKE TO DEFER A FULL ANSWER TO THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE DOING THE WORK THE TEAM WITH GIVEN THE
FACT THAT THERE ARE SO MANY INDIVIDUALS WHO NEED THESE SERVICES. I THINK STAFFING YOU KNOW, CLEARLY WE WOULD, YOU KNOW, BENEFIT FROM, YOU KNOW,
EXPANSION OF THE PROGRAM. BUT TO EXPAND WE NEED MORE PEOPLE YOU KNOW, WE NEED MORE RESOURCES, MORE TRAINED RESOURCES, TRAINED CASE MANAGERS. I THINK IT'S AN IMPORTANT PROGRAM AND I THINK THERE ARE A
LOT OF EYES ON IT AROUND THE COUNTRY BECAUSE IT IS THE ONLY ONE THAT'S FOCUSED ON THIS AGE GROUP. SO I THINK IT WOULD BE WELL WORTH IN FURTHER INVESTMENT IN YOU HAD TO PUT A DOLLAR AMOUNT IN TERMS OF STAFF AND CAPACITY.
WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE? I'M NOT SURE ABOUT THAT. ALL RIGHT, BACK TO YOU. APPRECIATE THAT. AND THEN THE THE P2P WHICH IS I
BELIEVE WITHIN THAT SAME NETWORK OR THAT SAME DEPARTMENT LIFE COURSE UNIT RIGHT IS KIND OF SOUNDS SIMILAR TO WHILE YOU WHICH IS UNDER OFFICE
OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT THEY'RE DEALING WITH THAT AT PRIORITY YOUTH ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE PROGRAM AND CAN YOU
SPEAK TO ANY DIFFERENCES? I'M NOT AS FAMILIAR AS I PROBABLY SHOULD BE. OKAY. I JUST HEARD ABOUT IT MORE RECENTLY SO I DON'T HAVE ALL OF THAT INFORMATION. OKAY.
AND THEN WE ALSO HEARD WELL LAST YEAR YOU SPOKE ABOUT THE SHORTAGE OF PUBLIC HEALTH NURSES. THERE WERE JUST 31 AND THE UNEVEN STAFFING STAFFING RATIO
ACROSS THE CITY. AND THEN I ALSO SAW ON YOUR RFI 26 RFI THAT SEVEN NURSE AND PUBLIC HEALTH ADVOCATE POSITIONS REMAIN VACANT. CAN YOU SHARE HOW MANY YOU'RE
ACTIVELY LOOKING FOR LOOKING TO HIRE RIGHT NOW AND WHAT THE IDEAL STAFFING LEVELS ARE FOR PUBLIC HEALTH NURSES, ADVOCATES AND HEALTH EDUCATORS BOTH IN SCHOOLS AND CITYWIDE? THEN CAN YOU ALSO TOUCH ON THE
POINT OF THE CURRENT TURNOVER RATE? HOW LONG DO THESE ROLES TYPICALLY TAKE TO FILL AND HOW IS THIS IMPACTING YOUR ABILITY TO DELIVER PROGRAMING SERVICES SPECIFICALLY FOR NURSE?
IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR? YES. OKAY. SO I THINK I'M PROBABLY GOING TO NEED TO GET MORE INFORMATION TO YOU AFTER THIS THE SPECIFICS BECAUSE THAT WAS THAT WAS
DETAILED BUT WE HAVE HAD A STRUGGLE WITH HIRING NURSES AND I TALKED ABOUT THIS AT OUR LAST MEETING. I BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE AT LEAST IN THE IDB INFECTIOUS DISEASE BUREAU WE HAVE FOUR OPENINGS
BELIEVE BUT AGAIN LET ME CONFIRM THAT YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE CHALLENGES IS THERE ARE MULTIPLE CHALLENGES. I MEAN IT'S TALKING ABOUT SALARY. WE'RE TALKING ABOUT COMPETITIVENESS OF THE POSITION
COMPARED TO OTHER POSITIONS AROUND THE CITY. WE'RE ALSO WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT BOTH HERE AT CITY HALL AND IN OUR OWN OFFICE AROUND OUR NURSING UNION CONTRACT.
SO THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT PIECES THAT WORK THAT WE'RE WORKING ON BUT I'D LIKE TO GET A MORE DETAILED RESPONSE PARTICULARLY AROUND IDEAL STAFFING LEVELS BECAUSE I DO THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF HOW WE MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR
RESIDENTS. THANK YOU. I'LL NOW GO BACK TO MY CATHOLIC COLLEAGUES FOR A SECOND ROUND OF QUESTIONS STARTING WITH COUNCILOR FLYNN COUNCIL YOU HAVE THE FLOOR THEN.
THANK YOU MR CHAIR AGAIN, THANK YOU TO THE FIRST PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION FOR THE IMPORTANT WORK YOU ARE DOING AND THANK YOU DR. HOLGER COUTU.
I WAS FOLLOWING THE COUNTY HOSPITAL CLOSURE VERY CLOSELY. I WORKED THERE FOR SEVERAL YEARS AND ACTUALLY WAS COUNTY HOSPITAL STARTED OUT IN SOUTH BOSTON.
SO I'M VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING AT COUNTY HOSPITAL. I'M NOT PART OF THE WORKING GROUP BUT I KNOW THE CRITICAL
IMPORTANT ROLE THAT THE HOSPITAL PLAYED. SO I GUESS MY QUESTION DR. O'DRISCOLL TOO AS IT RELATES TO THE CLOSING OF THE COUNTY HOSPITAL, THE COMMUNITY HEALTH
CENTERS THAT WE HAVE ACROSS THE CITY. CAN YOU GIVE US AN IDEA OF HOW THEY'RE DOING FINANCIALLY? STABILITY LONG TERM SHORT TERM
OUT? ARE WE LOOKING AT ANY POTENTIAL CLOSING OR DOWNSIZING OF ANY COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AS YOU KNOW? WELL, THEY PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE
IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND SUPPORTING SO MANY RESIDENTS IN NEED. BUT IS THERE IS THERE ANY POTENTIAL THAT DURING THESE
DIFFICULT CHALLENGING TIMES THAT WE COULD SEE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS CLOSE? WELL, I HOPE NOT AND I THINK WE'RE ALL YOU KNOW, HOPEFUL
THAT OUR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS CONTINUE TO EXIST AS THEY ARE. WE HAVE A REALLY INCREDIBLE
NETWORK OF 22 COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AROUND THE CITY. IT ISN'T. OTHER CITIES DON'T HAVE THAT TYPE OF RESOURCE AROUND THE CITY. SO WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT THEY WILL
NOT CLOSE. HOWEVER, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO RECOGNIZE AS WE SORT OF TALKED ABOUT BEFORE THAT ALL OF THEM ARE UNDER FINANCIAL STRAIN RIGHT NOW AND THAT FOR
THOSE IN THE KEARNY CATCHMENT PRECEDED CURRENT CLOSURE. THIS HAS BEEN A LONG STANDING ISSUE. YOU KNOW IN TERMS OF THEIR THEIR PAYER MIX WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MEDICAID.
AND THAT'S GOING TO PAY THEM LESS FOR THE WORK THAT THEY'RE ACTUALLY DOING THAN COMMERCIAL INSURANCE AND PRIVATE INSURANCE . WE'RE TALKING ABOUT SAFETY NET FUNDING THAT'S COMING FROM FROM
THE STATE AND I THINK THAT A LOT OF THEM HAVE HAD CHALLENGES WITH STAFF RETENTION. IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO WORK IN IN AN ENVIRONMENT THAT IS IS STRESSFUL AND WHERE YOU KNOW,
THERE'S OTHER PLACES YOU JUST TALKED ABOUT NURSES AND COMPETITION AROUND THE CITY THERE OTHER PLACES FOR HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS TO TO WORK. SO I THINK THERE ARE MANY, MANY STRESSORS.
WE DID HOLD A MEETING WITH MAJORITY OF THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS JUST THIS WEEK WHERE WE TALKED ABOUT A LOT OF THESE PRESSURES AND WHAT IT IS THAT WE SHOULD BE DOING AND
THINKING ABOUT GOING FORWARD TO SUPPORT THEM. I THINK WHAT WE CAN DO FROM PUBLIC HEALTH STANDPOINT IS AS I MENTIONED FINANCIALLY WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE
INCLUDING THEM IN THE RFP THAT WE DO HAVE AVAILABLE ESPECIALLY YOU KNOW, THE LARGER RFP IS MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE LEAVING THEM IN AND INTEGRATING THEM AND IN TERMS OF PROGRAMING AND WHATEVER, YOU KNOW, BENEFITS
AND THINGS THAT COME OUT OF OUR DIFFERENT RFP. BUT OTHER THAN THAT, YOU KNOW, IT REALLY IS ABOUT ADVOCATING FOR THEM AND ADVOCATING FOR THEM AT THE STATE LEVEL, AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL SO THAT THEIR
FUNDING STREAMS CONTINUE. THANK YOU, DOCTOR. DOCTOR, IN YOUR OPENING COMMENTS I KNOW YOU HIGHLIGHTED THE MORTALITY RATES OF MANY
NEIGHBORHOODS IN THE CITY HIGHER PERCENTAGE INCLUDING MANY COMMUNITIES OF COLOR BUT YOU ALSO MENTIONED SOUTH BOSTON AS WELL. CAN YOU GIVE ME AN IDEA OF WHAT
THE CHALLENGES ARE THAT WOULD PLACE SOUTH BOSTON HIGH ON THAT LIST? MM HMM. SO IN OUR NEWEST REPORT WE WERE LOOKING AT BOTH PREMATURE
MORTALITY AND LIFE EXPECTANCY GAPS IN BY GAP TO MEAN LIKE LOWEST LIFE EXPECTANCY VERSUS VERSUS HIGHEST. AND SO THE REASON THAT SOUTH BOSTON WAS INCLUDED WAS BECAUSE
THERE WAS A CENSUS TRACT IN AMONGST THEM THAT DID HAVE A LOWER LIFE EXPECTANCY THAT COULD BE FOR A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT REASONS. WE HAVE TO LOOK AT THE CONDITIONS THAT ARE CAUSING LOWER LIFE EXPECTANCY AND HIGHER PREMATURE MORTALITY
WHICH I STATED THE CARDIOMETABOLIC C'S PREVENTABLE CANCERS AND DRUG OVERDOSES. AND SO ALL THREE OF THOSE ARE CONTRIBUTING AND THEY MAY BE CONTRIBUTING AT HIGHER RATES
AROUND OUR CITY PARTICULARLY AS YOU LOOK AT DEMOGRAPHICS WITHIN THE DIFFERENT CENSUS TRACTS THAT GIVE YOU SOME DEMOCRATS, SOME CENSUS TRACTS HAVE A HIGHER NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO ARE OLDER, THERE MAY BE MORE CHRONIC DISEASE IN THOSE
PARTICULAR AREAS SO WE HAVE TO DIG IN FURTHER. THAT PARTICULAR REPORT WILL PROBABLY TAKE A COUPLE MORE MONTHS TO PUT OUT AND IT'LL HAVE MORE INFORMATION. OKAY. OH, THAT'S A THAT'S A SEPARATE REPORT. IT IS A SEPARATE.
OKAY. SO AT SOME POINT, DOCTOR, DURING THE SUMMERTIME AFTER THE BUDGET IS OVER, COULD WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT.
I KNOW I WOULD LOVE TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT THE THE THE REPORT ABOUT THE ASIAN COMMUNITY ACROSS BOSTON. BUT COULD I ALSO MEET AND TALK TO YOU ABOUT THE REASONS SOUTH
BOSTON WAS INCLUDED IN THAT AS WELL? I'M GLAD IT IS INCLUDED BECAUSE I WANT TO KNOW WHY WHY IT WHAT THE DATA IS BUT I'M GLAD YOU'RE
BRINGING IT TO THE PUBLIC BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S THAT'S PART OF THE SOLUTION IS KNOWING THAT WE HAVE THIS SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM BUT HOW WE MOVE FORWARD TO ADDRESS MEDICAL CHALLENGES
THAT WE'RE FACING IS ABSOLUTELY . OKAY. I'M JUST GOING FOR MY NOTES
HERE. DOCTOR, WE HAD A VERY GOOD HEARING RECENTLY ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SUPPORT FOR
SURVIVORS ACROSS THE CITY. I, I ALSO REPRESENT A LARGE LGBTQ COMMUNITY IN THE CITY INCLUDING IN THE SOUTH AND
DOWNTOWN BOSTON AND AND AND IN SOUTH BOSTON AS WELL. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN THE LGBT COMMUNITY ?
AND WHAT STEPS ARE WE TAKING TO TO REDUCE THAT BUT TO SUPPORT SURVIVORS AND TO HOPEFULLY ELIMINATE CASES BUT CERTAINLY PUBLIC EDUCATION, PUBLIC
AWARENESS SUPPORTING SURVIVORS. BUT WHAT WHAT DO YOU SPECIFICALLY DOING? SO ANOTHER REALLY IMPORTANT ISSUE THAT WE ARE FOCUSED IN ON
BOTH THROUGH OUR DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE INITIATIVE. SO OUR HEAD OF THAT INITIATIVE, MENDOZA, IS LOOKING AT BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS. THIS IS A NEW OFFICE SO SHE'S
WORKING ON BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS AND REALLY UNDERSTANDING THE DATA SO THAT WE HAVE A BETTER SENSE OF WHO IS BEING MOST IMPACTED AND MAKING I THINK PARTNERSHIPS
DEVELOPING PARTNERSHIPS WITH WITH VARIOUS ADVOCACY GROUPS BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S A BIG PART OF ON THE WORK WITH FGC WHICH IS YOU KNOW HOW WE WERE WORKING THROUGH A LOT OF THE DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE
WORK PREVIOUSLY WE HAD A LOT OF CONNECTIVITY AND WE'LL CONTINUE THOSE RELATIONSHIPS TO UNDERSTAND AND BETTER PROVIDE SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS IN THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY.
I THINK THE OTHER PIECE OF THIS THAT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE IS WE DID DO AN ASSESSMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH NEEDS WITHIN THE LGBTQ PLUS COMMUNITIES. IT'S ONLINE. IT'S AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW.
WE CAN ALSO REVIEW THAT WHEN I WHEN I MEET WITH YOU AND IT DID HIGHLIGHT THESE ISSUES AS THINGS THAT WE HAVEN'T ADDRESSED AS WELL AS AS WE SHOULD.
BUT THAT BEING SAID, I THINK THAT WE ARE WORKING TOWARDS THAT BY ESTABLISHING THIS IMPORTANT OFFICE. THANK YOU, DOCTOR. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. NO FURTHER QUESTIONS. THANK YOU.
COUNCILOR FLYNN, THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES COUNCILOR BRADING. COUNCILOR, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. AND COUNCILOR FLYNN HAS ALREADY REFERENCED THE ISSUE AROUND COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS ROB LOWE BIG SUPPORTERS OF OUR
COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AND I THINK YOUR POINT ABOUT ADVOCATING FOR THEM WE NEED TO STEP THAT UP A LITTLE AND JUST AT THE STATE LEVEL BUT ALSO AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL.
I'M JUST THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE DISPARITY BETWEEN LEGS IN THE BACK BAY AND ROXBURY IN TERMS OF HOW LIFE EXPECTANCY AND MORBIDITY, THE
SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH LIKE HOUSING QUALITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURES, STRESS INCOME IN THIS MOMENT WITH WHAT I KEEP REFERENCING WHAT'S
HAPPENING BECAUSE OF THE THREAT TO SNAP THIS A STEP TO MEDICARE ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS ARE SAFETY NET PROGRAMS IN TERMS OF HOW DO WE USE THIS IN TERMS OF THE
CITY APPROACH TO THIS, HOW CAN WE CONTINUE TO DO WHAT WE'VE DOING OR HOW CAN IT IN A WAY TO SHIFT AS PIVOT TO TRY AND FOCUS
ON THE THINGS THAT MIGHT BE THE MOST IMPACTFUL? SO I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO WITH THE LIVE LONG AND WELL INITIATIVE. SO WITH INITIATIVE WE ARE LOOKING AT DOWNSTREAM SO
WORKING WITH CLINICAL CARE CERTAINLY THAT'S A PIECE OF IT BUT MOST OF WHAT'S HAPPENING AS YOU'VE ARTICULATED IS REALLY MORE SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH AND MORE UPSTREAM FACTORS. YES. SO WE ARE HEAVILY FOCUSED
WITHIN THIS INITIATIVE ON THOSE UPSTREAM FACTORS. THIS RFP FROM ATRIUS IS ACTUALLY MEANT TO SUPPORT ECONOMIC MOBILITY WITHIN THOSE COMMUNITIES LIKE PARTICULARLY WITHIN THE NEIGHBORHOODS AND
CENSUS TRACTS WHERE WE KNOW LIFE EXPECTANCY IS LOWER. SO THAT IS WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR. WE'RE LOOKING FOR COMMUNITY COLLABORATIONS, COMMUNITY LED COLLABORATIONS THAT ARE PARTNERING WITH COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS BUT ALSO
PARTNERING WITH AGENCIES THAT UNDERSTAND THAT UPSTREAM FACTORS LIKE SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS LIKE THOSE ORGANIZATIONS THAT CONNECT PEOPLE TO SNAP AND IN ALL OF THE OTHER SERVICES THAT WE KNOW ARE AVAILABLE ARE
PART OF THOSE COALITIONS SO THAT WE CAN WORK TOGETHER TO BUILD MORE SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS AT THE CITY LEVEL. SO WE'RE GOING TO ANNOUNCE THE RECIPIENTS OF THAT GRANT TOWARDS THE END OF JUNE AND
WE'LL BE WORKING WITH OVER THE COURSE OF THE NEXT FEW YEARS. AND WE ALSO HAVE A SECOND RFP THAT'LL BE COMING OUT WITH THE SECOND $5 MILLION THAT ATRIUS HAS AWARDED. SO WE'RE VERY HEAVILY FOCUSED ON DOING THINGS DIFFERENTLY.
I DON'T KNOW THAT WE'VE EVER DONE A GRANT LIKE THIS THAT IS TRULY FOCUSED ON MORE THOSE UPSTREAM THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. YEAH. AND ALSO TO YOUR POINT ABOUT CENSUS TRACTS LIKE WE HAVE
COMMONWEALTH HOUSING IN BRIGHTON AND LIKE HERE NEW HOMES AND THE HOLDEN APARTMENTS DONE IN ALLSTON THERE'S SO MUCH
BEING LIKE UPSCALE MORE LUXURY DEVELOPMENT LIKE IT'S THE PUBLIC HOUSING BECOMES LIKE A DONUT AND SO I JUST WORRY THAT WE'RE NOT ABLE TO CAPTURE THE NUANCES OF THE NEEDS OF THAT
PARTICULAR COMMUNITY A LOW INCOME COMMUNITY THAT'S NOW COMPLETELY SURROUNDED BY MORE LUXURY HOUSING. ARE WE THINKING ABOUT THAT? ABSOLUTELY. I MEAN THIS IDEA OF GENTRIFICATION AND
GENTRIFICATION THAT ACTUALLY WORKS IN OUR CITIES NOW AND HOW IT ACTUALLY OFTENTIMES MAPS WHAT'S REALLY HAPPENING TO SUB POPULATIONS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE
STILL FACING THE SAME CHALLENGES OF RESIDENTIAL SEGREGATION THAT HAVE LED TO THE LOWER LIFE EXPECTANCY ISSUES. SO WE'RE TRYING TO LOOK AT THAT IN A PARTNERSHIP THAT WE HAVE
WITH A COUPLE OF ACADEMIC ORGANIZATIONS BECAUSE WE HAVE TO DIG DEEP TO UNDERSTAND HOW THAT'S IMPACTING THINGS. OUR WORK WITH LIFE EXPECTANCY IS ONGOING SO THIS NEW REPORT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT SOME OF THOSE ISSUES AND HOW WE
MIGHT MEASURE WHAT EXACTLY IS GOING ON AROUND OUR CITY PARTICULARLY LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, ROXBURY IN NORTH DORCHESTER AND MATTAPAN BUT ALSO LOOKING AT ALLSTON, BRIGHTON AND JP IN THESE OTHER
AREAS WHERE WE MIGHT BE MISSING THINGS. YEAH AND THE HORRIBLE THING ABOUT GENTRIFICATION IS THAT THE KIDS AND FAMILIES LOOK ACROSS THE FENCE AND SEE LUXURY APARTMENTS OR SWIMMING POOLS
AND ALL THESE AMENITIES AND THEIR LOCAL PARKS NOT BEING KEPT UP AND THEY'RE HAVEN'T GOT ACCESS TO LOTS OF THINGS THAT OTHER PEOPLE TAKE FOR GRANTED.
SO IT'S AN ONGOING SO IN TERMS OF THE QUESTION I HAD WAS JUST REALLY IN RELATION TO PRIMARY CARE I KNOW ALL OF US HAVE DIFFICULTY FINDING PRIMARY CARE AND I THINK THAT'S WHERE THE
THE CRITICALLY THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS PLAY SUCH AN IMPORTANT ROLE. ARE WE WORKING WITH OUR BIG INSTITUTIONS THE SORT
OF CAPITAL OF HEALTH CARE IN THIS REGION? ARE WE WORKING WITH THOSE BIG INSTITUTIONS TO TRY AND HELP ADDRESS THAT? LIKE I REALLY DO FEEL THAT WE NEED TO BE DOING MORE TO
RECRUIT AND RETAIN GOOD DOCTORS IN PRIMARY CARE AND AND BEEF UP THAT SO THAT IT'S NOT THE SORT OF THE ORPHAN CHILD OF THE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM THAT IT IS
SORRY AT THE MOMENT. ABSOLUTELY. SO AT THE STATE LEVEL THE HEALTH POLICY COMMISSION HAS ISSUED A REPORT ABOUT THE URGENT NEED FOR PRIMARY CARE
CARE PROVIDERS ACROSS THEIR STATE AND I THINK THAT WITHIN THAT REPORT AND WITHIN AMONGST VARIOUS GROUPS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE INTERESTED IN THIS REALLY IT'S ALL THE THINGS THAT YOU
MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, THE FACT THAT WE NEED TO ACTUALLY RETAIN PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS HERE IN BOSTON BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF SPECIALISTS AND WE DON'T HAVE AS MANY PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS WE NEED TO LOOK AT
NON USBORNE PHYSICIANS AND HOW WE CREDENTIAL THEM HERE IN IN OUR WE NEED TO SHORTEN THE LICENSING PERIOD YOU KNOW BECAUSE IT TAKES MONTHS TO GET A LICENSE HERE TO PRACTICE AND
THAT CAN DETER PEOPLE IN SOME CASES WE NEED TO THINK I THINK INTENSELY ABOUT NOT JUST DOCTORS BUT NURSE PRACTITIONERS AND PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS AND OTHER TYPES OF PROVIDERS AND WE
WE REALLY JUST NEED TO FOCUS ON THIS ISSUE. I THINK THERE HAS BEEN A FOCUS I THINK THERE'S BEEN MORE OF A FOCUS RECENTLY AND I THINK THE GOVERNOR HAS PUT A LOT OF EFFORT INTO THAT FROM THE SIDE OF THE CITY. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
WE DID IN THE DORCHESTER REPORT WAS AMPLIFY A LOT OF THAT SAY THAT WE ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE FOR ALL OF THESE PIECES AND THE STATE WAS AT THE TABLE DURING THOSE DISCUSSIONS AND I THINK WE WERE ALL ON THE
SAME PAGE THAT WE NEED A CHANGE HERE. THERE SHOULDN'T BE WAIT TIMES OF, YOU KNOW, FOUR MONTHS, FIVE MONTHS TO GET A PRIMARY CARE DOCTOR AND THAT IS WHAT PEOPLE ARE EXPERIENCING IS YEAH, YEAH. AND THE OTHER QUESTION WAS BACK
ABOUT AVIAN FLU I THINK ARE WE ABLE TO GET TIMELY INFORMATION FROM THE CDC AT THE MOMENT OR IS IT BASICALLY A SORT OF FLY BY THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS?
I THINK MOST OF OUR DATA I HAVE TO SAY IS COMING FROM OUR LOCAL ENTITIES AND I THINK THAT IS THAT IS OKAY PARTICULARLY WITH H5 WITH H5N1.
WE'RE ACTUALLY LOOKING FOR IT IN OUR WASTEWATER AND WE'RE PARTNERING WITH OUR PARTICULARLY MGB ON YOU KNOW, EVERY PATIENT COMES IN WITH INFLUENZA THAT WE'RE MAKING
MAKING SURE WHAT IT IS WHAT TYPE OF INFLUENZA IS IT? IS IT H5N1? SO I THINK THROUGH A NUMBER OF PARTNERSHIPS WE'RE DOING A GOOD JOB OF WORKING LOCALLY AND FOCUSING IN ON US AND I THINK A LOT OF OTHER CITIES ARE DOING
THAT. THE CDC IS STILL COLLECTING THIS DATA AND IF YOU GO TO THE WEBSITE IT TALKS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, HUMAN TO HUMAN CASES AND YOU KNOW IT MAY NOT BE AS ROBUST AND WITH ANY OF THE DATA
AND SOME OF THE WEBSITES HAD GONE DOWN FOR PERIODS OF TIME BUT WE'RE CERTAINLY STILL SEEING THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE IS AN EMPHASIS AND EFFORT IS BEING UNDERTAKEN. VERY GOOD. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU.
COUNT CELEBRATING THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES COUNCILOR FITZGERALD COUNCIL OF THE FLOOR THANK YOU . IT'S HARD TO TELL YOU ALL THESE THINGS OVERLAP SO MUCH AND ALL OF YOUR WORK MUST BE LIKE WHEN
YOU'RE DEALING WITH ONE. HOW DOES THAT AFFECT THE NEXT PIECE I'M THINKING ABOUT EVEN THE AT THE COUNTY HOSPITAL WE LOST A LOT MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH BEDS AND HOW THAT PLAYS INTO BEHAVIORAL
HEALTH AND WELLNESS AND EVEN THE CHILD ADOLESCENT FAMILY HEALTH BECAUSE A LOT OF THAT IS ADOLESCENTS THE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS THAT WE WANT TO FOCUS ON. BUT WITH THOSE TWO THERE ARE
THE THE THE FOLKS THAT PROVIDE THOSE SERVICES FROM THE NURSES AND EVEN BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION NURSES. SO I KNOW SOME OF THEM REACHED OUT TO ME TALKING ABOUT THE CONTRACT WE'VE BEEN WITHOUT A
CONTRACT. I THINK FOR SINCE 2020 AND JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU KNOW, THE WORK THAT THEY DO AND I KNOW THEY FEEL THEY'RE NOT IN THE SAME BRACKET AS THEIR
COUNTERPARTS MAYBE AT OTHER HOSPITALS. COULD YOU SPEAK TO THAT A LITTLE BIT? I KNOW IF THERE'S STILL NO CONTRACT TO THE EXTENT YOU CAN, COULD YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN A LITTLE BIT MORE OF THAT TO ME IT'S A IT'S AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT ISSUE AND WE'RE
WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH LABOR HERE AT CITY HALL AS WELL AS OUR OWN LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT OFFICE DIRECTOR. AND I THINK THAT THEY ARE SPENDING A LOT OF TIME TRYING
TO MOVE THIS FORWARD. IT'S IT'S A PROCESS OBVIOUSLY WE HOPE TO HAVE IT RESOLVED BUT I DON'T HAVE A TIMELINE TO GIVE . I THINK WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO
IS ACTUALLY NURSE APPRECIATION WEEK. SO WE'RE YOU KNOW, WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE THEIR WORK AS APPEALING, YOU KNOW, AS THEY CAN AS IT CAN BE AND BUILD
MORALE. AND WHAT WE HAVE IS A GROUP NURSES WHO ARE VERY MISSION ORIENTED AND DRIVEN TOWARDS PUBLIC HEALTH WORK AND THAT'S WHY THEY STAY IF WE IF IF THEY WERE TO THEN THEY YOU KNOW,
THEY HAVE OTHER OPTIONS. SO WE'RE IN OUR THE POSITIONS THAT WE HAVE OPEN YOU KNOW, WE'RE LOOKING FOR FOLKS WHO ARE WILLING TO, YOU KNOW, BE IN PUBLIC HEALTH TO WORK WORKER TB CLINIC AT OUR SCHOOL BASED
NURSING SCHOOL EXCUSE ME OUR SCHOOL THESE HEALTH CENTERS I THINK THE OTHER ISSUE IS JUST YOU KNOW, THE RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT WHICH IS AN ONGOING CHALLENGE BUT THESE ARE ALL ISSUES THAT WE'RE DEALING WITH
AND WE'RE KEEPING THE WORK GOING AND AGAIN, I APPLAUD OUR NURSES. THEY ARE DOING AN INCREDIBLE JOB OF, YOU KNOW, REALLY TRACKING AND TRACING AND ENGAGING PATIENTS IN THEIR HOMES, CHALLENGING SITUATIONS
THAT THEY'RE FACING. YEAH, I FEEL LIKE THEY THEY GET INTO THE COMMUNITY MORE THAN SAY IF YOU WENT TO ONE OF THE LARGER HOSPITALS AND THE NURSES THERE AND I KNOW THEY DO GREAT WORK MY MOM'S A NURSE AND SO
HAVE NOTHING BUT RESPECT AND WE HONOR YESTERDAY FOR NATIONAL NURSES WEEK BUT KNOWING THERE'S YOU KNOW, THE DEMAND I THINK FOR 2032 WILL BE A 6% INCREASE FOR NURSES AND THAT MEANS THE
BURDEN PUT ON THEM CURRENTLY I KNOW IT'S NOT A BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION ISSUE PER SAY INDIVIDUALLY BUT ON THE LARGER LEVEL. RIGHT KEEPING ALL NURSES
WHETHER IT'S THE BUS PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION NURSES AS WELL AS OUR OTHER NURSES AND WHAT THEY'VE HAVING TO PUT UP WITH ON A DAILY BASIS. RIGHT. SEEING PEOPLE YOU KNOW,
TYPICALLY AT THEIR WORST. DO YOU THINK THAT'S AN ISSUE THAT YOU KNOW WILL AFFECT THE WAY WE DELIVER HEALTH CARE IN THE NEAR FUTURE IF WE HAVE THAT
BURNOUT AND THE WHOLE TRAVELING NURSES THING THAT PEOPLE ARE GOING TO AND THE COST INCREASE THAT THAT IS AND YOU KNOW DO WE CAN WE EVEN KEEP UP AND WE'LL CONTINUE GOING DOWN THAT ROAD THIS IS LIKE SOMEONE TALKING IN
THE BACK SAYING RIGHT NOW I CAN'T EVEN CONCENTRATE. I APOLOGIZE FOR THIS. I THINK IT'S THE RETIREMENT BOARD THAT'S REDOING THEIR OFFICE. IS THAT RIGHT? YEAH. AND IT'S IT'S BRUTAL. THEY SHOULDN'T BE DOING A TERM
BUDGET HEARING BUT PLEASE IF YOU COULD EXPLAIN TO THIS THE AFFECTED NURSES SO I THINK THAT THE COMMENT THAT I WOULD MAKE IS THAT NURSES ARE ESSENTIAL
WORKERS AND I THINK THAT IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO SUPPORT THEIR WORK. IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THEM TO BE PAID BUT THEY DESERVE TO BE PAID FOR THE HARD WORK THAT THEY DO.
I'VE SPENT MOST OF MY CAREER AS A HEALTH CARE PROVIDER AND THE REALITY IS THAT THE PEOPLE WHO'VE TAUGHT ME THE MOST HAVE BEEN NURSES. YOU KNOW? I MEAN THAT'S THE WAY IT IS JUST BECAUSE THEY HAVE SO MUCH
PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE. SO I THINK THAT IT'S UNFORTUNATELY THE WAY THINGS ARE GOING THERE'S PROBABLY GOING TO BE FEWER PEOPLE WHO WANT TO GO INTO NURSING AND IN HEALTH CARE AND IN GENERAL JUST
WITH THE WAY THAT THINGS ARE LOOKING BUT PARTICULARLY THINKING ABOUT NURSES THAT'S A IT'S AN UNFORTUNATE, YOU KNOW, CONSEQUENCE OF HOW WE ARE YOU
KNOW, NOT NECESSARILY PAYING THEM AS WELL AS WE WOULD LIKE TO. BUT I THINK IT'S BEEN A CHALLENGE. IT'S AN ONGOING CHALLENGE AND I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED ON AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK TOWARDS RESOLVING THE ISSUES.
THANKS. THAT'S REALLY ALL I HAVE. I'LL JUST LEAVE IT WITH IT'S I FIND SO MANY SIMILARITIES IT'S NATURAL. IT'S NICE APPRECIATION WEEK BUT IT'S ALSO TEACHER APPRECIATION
WEEK AND TO HIGHLY FEMALE HEAVY CONCENTRATION IN THOSE OCCUPATIONS AND ALL THE WORK THAT THEY DO WHILE TRYING TO A LOT OF THEM BEING MOMS AND
OTHERS AT HOME AND TAKING CARE OF THEIR OWN KIDS BUT IT'S THE SAME OUTLOOK WITH THE TEACHERS TOO, RIGHT WHERE NOT ENOUGH PEOPLE ARE GETTING INTO THAT PROFESSION BECAUSE OF HOW IT'S BEING TREATED. AND SO I SAY OKAY, IF WE'RE NOT
GETTING ENOUGH HEALTH CARE AND ENOUGH EDUCATION, THE WHAT THE ARE WE STANDING ON AT THE END OF THE DAY? RIGHT? AND SO I'D LOVE TO DEVOTE MORE ATTENTION TO THOSE TWO ISSUES BECAUSE IF WE IF WE DON'T TAKE
IF WE DON'T FIX THE PROBLEM OF BEING ABLE TO ATTRACT AND MAINTAIN AND RETAIN THE CURRENT FOLKS THERE AND AND TRY AND FIND OTHERS TO JOIN IT, THEN
YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE NOT HEALTHY AND WE'RE NOT SMART THEN I DON'T KNOW WHAT WE ARE. SO ANYTHING I CAN DO TO BE HELPFUL IN THAT ALWAYS CONTINUE TO ARGUE FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT. I KNOW YOU AND I HAVE LOTS
OF CONVERSATIONS TO HAVE IN THE FUTURE AS WE GO FORWARD AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THOSE AS WELL. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND I'LL OBVIOUSLY HAVE A LOT MORE QUESTIONS FOR THIS AFTERNOON. DO THANK YOU. CHAIR THANK YOU COUNCILOR FITZGERALD AND I DO
WANT TO ECHO COUNCILOR FITZGERALD'S ADVOCACY FOR OUR NURSES. THEY DO A LOT OF WORK. THEY ARE ANGELS IN DISGUISE AND THEY ARE ALSO A PLACE WITH THE
RESIDENCY BURDEN. SO WE WOULD WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE PAY THEM YOU KNOW WHAT WHAT VALUE THEM MEAN THAT SHOWS UP IN A REAL WAY IN THEIR PAYCHECK.
I WANT TO SHOUT OUT MY INTERN SO WHO'S HOW PREPARED SOME OF MY QUESTIONS FOR TODAY'S HEARING. SHE'S AN INTERN FROM CRISTO REY SO JUST WANT TO GIVE HER A BIG
SHOUT OUT ARE THERE ENOUGH RESOURCES IN BOSTON TO PREPARE FOR, PREVENT AND RESPOND TO EMERGING INFECTIOUS DISEASES AND FUTURE PANDEMICS AND ARE THERE ANY INCREASES IN ANY
SPECIFIC DISEASES WHETHER IT'S RSV, LONG COVID 19 AND ARE WE TRACKING LONG COVID MEASLES AND WEST S DO WE HAVE IN ARE WE
HAVE YOU HAVE JUST SAID WELL WE ARE DIAGNOSING LONG COVID SO WE CAN ALWAYS USE MORE RESOURCES. I THINK THAT PARTICULARLY IN LIGHT OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING
FEDERALLY, WE ARE ALWAYS CONCERNED THAT WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH OR WE WOULDN'T HAVE ENOUGH RESOURCES TO MANAGE, YOU KNOW, EVERY ASPECT OF AN UPTICK IN CASES OR AN OUTBREAK.
SO WE COULD ALWAYS USE MORE RESOURCES I THINK ARE USING THE FUNDING THAT WE HAVE. WELL AND I THINK IT'S GOING IN THE RIGHT PLACES. SO WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO AS I WAS DESCRIBING DURING THE PRESENTATION IS MAKE SURE THAT
WE'RE PREPARED PARTICULARLY WITH ISSUES RELATED TO MEASLES WHERE WE DON'T HAVE ANY CURRENT CASES. I THINK THAT'S BEEN REPORTED TO US BUT WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE CASES AROUND THE COUNTRY OR AT LEAST AS OF YESTERDAY A
THOUSAND CASES. SO WE KNOW THAT THIS IS AN ISSUE. WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE UNVACCINATED. SO HOW DO WE PREPARE AND DECREASE THE RISK WORD BEING A MAJOR ISSUE HERE IN BOSTON
WE'RE USING ALL THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE TO TO GET THAT DONE. WE TALKED ABOUT AVIAN INFLUENZA, A BIRD FLU. HOW DO WE PREPARE WHERE WE WE HAVE TO TALK TO PEOPLE, WE HAVE TO GET PEOPLE AWARE OF WHAT
THIS IS AND MAKE SURE THAT IT DOESN'T FALL OFF THE RADAR OF CONCERNS. WE NEED TO TRACK IT IN OUR WASTEWATER WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE DOING. WE DO PARTNER WITH OTHER HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS TO MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT MISSING A CASE.
YOU KNOW YOU KNOW, WITH AVIAN INFLUENZA THE ONLY THE THAT IT WILL BECOME A MAJOR ISSUE IS IT WAS ACTUALLY HUMAN TO HUMAN TRANSMISSION WHICH WE HAVEN'T SEEN AROUND THE COUNTRY AT ALL. THERE HAVE BEEN TRANSMISSION
FROM ANIMALS AND BIRDS TO IT TO HUMANS AND THERE ARE ONLY 70 CASES RIGHT NOW. BUT PREPAREDNESS I MEAN THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING SO LONG COVID WE'RE IN A COLLABORATION WITH IT'S A CITY WE COLLABORATION IS
WORKING ON UNDERSTANDING LONG COVID PARTICULARLY HERE IN BOSTON AND A LITTLE BIT BEYOND BECAUSE IT DOES INCLUDE, YOU KNOW, MGB AND SITES OUTSIDE OF BOSTON AND WE ARE DOING
TRACKING AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT ARE THE SERVICES THAT ARE PROVIDED, WHERE DO THEY NEED TO BE AND HOW DOES PUBLIC HEALTH PLAY A ROLE? AND SO THAT'S AN ONGOING COLLABORATION THAT'S BEEN GOING ON I THINK FOR THE LAST COUPLE
OF YEARS AND IT WAS NIH FUNDED SO WORKING ON EXACTLY SO WE'RE WE'RE WORKING ON THAT MAKE SURE THAT WE ALL STAY AWARE OF THAT AS AN ISSUE BECAUSE IT IS YOU
KNOW COVID DIDN'T JUST IMPACT, YOU KNOW, THE YEARS OF YOU KNOW, THE HEIGHT OF COVID. IT'S STILL ONGOING FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE. THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND LAST YEAR WE PASSED AN AMENDMENT FOR 500,000 FOR
FAMILIES OF VICTIMS OF HOMICIDE AND THE MAYOR RELEASED A MEMO STATING THAT THE AMENDMENT WAS LEVEL FUNDING FOR FY 26. BUT WE'RE NOW SETTING OUT WHAT
ARE THE PLANS FOR THESE FUNDS THE 500 TRANSFER. OKAY. THE DETAILS OF THAT ARE BEING WORKED ON.
I DON'T HAVE THE EXACT PLANS FOR THOSE FUNDS I THINK IS SOME OF IT IS GOING TO BE USED TO ENHANCE THE HEALING RESPONSE NETWORK. BUT I ALSO THINK IT'S GOING TO BE USED IN OTHER AREAS IN OVP.
BUT IF I COULD GET BACK TO YOU WITH MORE DETAILS ASK OURSELVES I APPRECIATE THAT OPPORTUNITY. ABSOLUTELY. AND THEN CAN YOU ELABORATE ON THE GOALS BEHIND THE CONSORTIUM FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
AND HOW IT OPERATES ALONG WITH YOUR PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT OFFICE AND LABOR EMPLOYMENT? THIS WAS IN YOUR ORG CHART ON THE SECOND PAGE OF THE BUDGET BOOK. YEAH.
SO THE CONSORTIUM FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WAS ESTABLISHED AS A WAY TO ENHANCE AND TRAIN OUR STAFF ON ASPECTS
OF CARE AND PUBLIC HEALTH ACROSS THE CITY TO ENHANCE THEIR WORK. SO A LOT OF WHAT IS BEING DONE RIGHT NOW WITHIN THE CONSORTIUM IS FOCUSING ON TRAINING SO
TRAINING OUR STAFF, LOOKING AT EMERGING LEADERS AND MAKING SURE THAT THEY HAVE MANAGERIAL SKILLS THEY WERE ABLE TO SUPERVISE FOLKS TO BASICALLY ENHANCE PUBLIC HEALTH
INFRASTRUCTURE. I THINK ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT'S BEEN VERY LONGSTANDING IN PUBLIC HEALTH IS THAT IT HASN'T BEEN WELL INVESTED IN AND WORKFORCE NEEDS HAVEN'T BEEN EMPHASIZED.
SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE OR HAVE HAD IS THIS CONSORTIUM FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. BUT WE'VE ALSO WE ALSO RECENTLY RELATIVELY RECENTLY HAVE MONEY FROM THE CDC TO BUILD
INFRASTRUCTURE AND I THINK THAT THAT WAS A DIRECT RESULT OF WHAT HAPPENED DURING COVID 19 WAS AMPLIFIED THAT PUBLIC HEALTH COULDN'T PLAY AS MUCH OF THE RESPONSE ON THEIR OWN THAT THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO PLAY.
SO THE CONSORTIUM IS A MAJOR PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE WITHIN THE BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION TO DO THAT WORK AND WE'RE VERY PROUD THE EFFORTS THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE WITHIN THE CONSORTIUM YOU ASKED ABOUT THE
WORKFORCE, THE PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. YES. OKAY. SO ANOTHER PIECE OF BUILDING INFRASTRUCTURE AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT IS ACTUALLY UNDERSTANDING AND EVALUATING
HOW WELL WE'RE DOING. YOU KNOW, AS INDIVIDUAL STAFF MEMBERS, AS TEAMS AND WE REALLY DIDN'T HAVE A COMMISSION WIDE PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM UNTIL VERY RECENTLY.
SO WE DEVELOPED ONE AND WE'RE PILOTING WE PILOTED IT IN A FEW AREAS, SEEMED TO WORK WELL, MAKE SURE THAT WE KNOW THAT NOT ONLY ARE STAFF BEING EVALUATED
BUT THEY ALSO SEE THAT THERE'S A TRAJECTORY WITHIN PUBLIC HEALTH FOR THEM. SO ESSENTIALLY THEY'RE GETTING THE OPPORTUNITY TO SIT DOWN WITH THEIR MANAGERS AND SAY YOU KNOW, HEY, I'M INTERESTED IN
THIS HERE AND CAN YOU HELP ME GET MORE INVOLVED IN THAT AREA? AND SO IT'S A BENEFIT TO THE TO THE STAFF MEMBERS BUT IT IS A CULTURAL SHIFT BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAD IT ACROSS OUR MISSION.
IT WAS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE SORT OF HAD AS PART OF OUR OUR WIN PROGRAM. SO WIN WAS SOMETHING THAT WE STARTED BACK WHEN I STARTED ABOUT YOU KNOW, WORKFORCE IMPROVEMENTS AND MAKING SURE THAT OUR WORKPLACE IS WHAT WE
WANT IT TO BE AND SO THAT WE'RE ABLE TO RETAIN STAFF SO OUR PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF THAT AS IS THE CONSORTIUM. AWESOME AND I'M GOING TO TAKE FULL ADVANTAGE OF BEING IN THE
CHAIR NEXT TO MORE QUESTIONS WE ADVOCATED BEFORE THE BUDGET WAS ELITE WAS RELEASED FOR INCREASED FUNDING FOR SOCIAL WORKERS AND BEHAVIOR HEALTH TECHNICIANS.
APAC IS THERE IS STILL A NEED IN FY 26 SO IN WE BELIEVE THERE'S ALWAYS A NEED FOR MORE SOCIAL WORKERS AND MORE FOLKS
WHO UNDERSTAND OUR NETWORK OF SOCIAL SUPPORTS THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR PEOPLE AND ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS. THERE ARE SOCIAL WORKERS IN MULTIPLE DIFFERENT AGENCIES
AROUND THE CITY INCLUDING THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY AND IN BEPS AND SOME OF THIS WORK ALSO IN A SENSE OVERLAPS WITH SOME OF THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT THAT WE'RE DOING WITH THE
CENTER FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS BECAUSE YOU KNOW, THERE'S SOME WORK THAT'S YOU KNOW, SORT OF SITS IN THAT SORT OF REALM SO THAT SOCIAL WORKERS AND CASE MANAGERS AND FOLKS
THAT NATURE ARE ALSO INVOLVED IN DEALING WITH A LOT OF COMPLEX ISSUES THAT ROOT THAT ARE A RESULT OF HIGH SOCIAL NEEDS. SO WE'RE WORKING WITH BPC ON A LOT OF THESE ISSUES THINKING ABOUT WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND
IMPROVING THE SKILL SET OF THE SOCIAL WORKERS WHO WORK FOR THEIR AND FINDING MORE PEOPLE WHO WOULD BE INTERESTED IN WORKING IN THESE CAPACITIES CAUSE THERE IS AN OVERWHELMING NEED RIGHT?
AND I THINK WHAT I WAS HEARING FROM NEIGHBORHOOD HEALTH CENTERS THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE THE STAFFING AND THEN I BELIEVE
WAS TRYING TO PICK UP SOME OF THAT STAFFING TO, PROVIDE THAT SUPPORT FOR THE NEIGHBORHOODS THAT HEALTH CENTERS PATIENTS. I THINK IN SOME CAPACITY WE HAVE PARTNERED WITH COMMUNITY
HEALTH CENTERS TO HELP SUPPORT AND SOME OF THE MONEY THAT WE DO GIVE. THERE ARE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS TO THE FUNDS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT EARLIER DOES GO TO HELP PAY SALARIES FOR SOME
SOCIAL SERVICES OR CASE MANAGERS AND WE'RE ALSO DOING A LOT OF THAT WORK AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT IT MORE THIS AFTERNOON. WE ARE SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER SO WE ACTUALLY HAVE SEVERAL COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS WHERE THERE ARE CASE MANAGERS,
PATIENT NAVIGATORS, FOLKS WHO ARE IN THE SOCIAL WORK FIELD WHO ARE BEING FUNDED BY US. OKAY. AND THEN MY LAST QUESTION IS AROUND THE BOSTON PEOPLE'S RESPONSE CAMPAIGN FOR AN
ALTERNATIVE RESPONSE TEAM FOR POLICE THAT WAS PILOTED I THINK IT STARTED LAST YEAR. SO THERE WAS SO THIS IS A COMMUNITY LED DESIGN. YES, COMMUNITY LED DESIGN.
SO THERE THERE IS AN ONGOING INITIATIVE WHERE WE'RE WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS TO GET A SORT OF AN ALTERNATIVE RESPONSE, A COMMUNITY LED RESPONSE TO
ISSUES. AND YOU KNOW, THIS HAS BEEN ONGOING RIGHT? IT WAS ISSUED SEVERAL YEARS AGO AT THIS POINT WHAT HAPPENED WAS THAT INITIATIVE IS THAT WE ISSUED AN RFI TO FIND OUT IF
THERE WERE AGENCIES SOMEWHERE HERE IN BOSTON THAT ALREADY DESIGNED OR HAD SOME EXPERIENCE MORE THAN MAYBE WE DID OR ANY OF THE ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH DID TO DEVELOP THIS ALTERNATIVE
RESPONSE, WE ACTUALLY DIDN'T COME UP WITH ANY WHO HAD THAT EXPERIENCE BUT SO NOW WE'RE IN THE PHASE WORKING WITH ORGANIZATION TO FIGURE OUT WHAT
ARE THE NEXT STEPS AND THE NEXT STEP IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, PILOTING SOMETHING WITH AN ORGANIZATION THAT MAYBE HAS LESS EXPERIENCE IN THIS. BUT IT'S AN IMPORTANT ISSUE WE
KNOW THAT WE WANT TO DO IT. IT'S JUST GOING TO TAKE MORE ONGOING EFFORT AND THAT'S WHY YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS YOU KNOW, SORT OF ALMOST EVERY BUDGET YEAR. YEAH. AND THEN MY LAST QUESTION IS
ARE YOU ABLE TO PROVIDE CAN YOU PROVIDE THIS IN WRITING UNDER THE OFFICE OF VIOLENCE PREVENTION THERE ARE FIVE DEPARTMENTS JUST THEIR BUDGET
AND THEN HOW MUCH OF THAT BUDGET IS FEDERAL FUNDED AND JUST STAFFING LEVELS WE CAN PROVIDE? ABSOLUTELY AWESOME. THANK YOU AGAIN. SEE YOU SOON.
THANK YOU TO CENTRAL STAFF. THANK YOU TO MY COLLEAGUES, THANK YOU TO MY TEAM AND ALL MY COUNSELOR COLLEAGUES TEAM AGAIN THANK YOU TO YOU AND YOUR TEAM
THIS HEARING ON DOCKETS NUMBER 082220830 IS ADJOURNED