• Get your annual flu shot and the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available. Vaccines are our best prevention tool against flu. Ask your health care provider or find a flu shot clinic through The Colorado Adult Immunization Coalition's online flu-shot clinic locator.
• The novel H1N1 vaccine is currently in production and may be available to the public in the next few months. It is not intended to replace the seasonal flu vaccine - but to be used in addition to the seasonal flu vaccine.
• Wash Your Hands Frequent hand washing is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of germs. Use soap and water and rub hands together for at least 20 seconds. If water is unavailable, use anti-bacterial hand sanitizers and be sure to rub hands together until they are dry.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth and cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or the crook of your arm.
• Stay home if you are sick and avoid contact with others.Public health officials recommend that people with influenza-like illness remain at home until at least 24 hours after they are free of fever (100° F [37.8°C]), without the use of fever-reducing medications.

For more information on seasonal and novel H1N1 flu symptoms and the contagious period, visit www.flu.gov or the JCPH Web site Influenza page. Read on in this newsletter for more information about H1N1 and pregnancy.

Nearly 100 people took advantage of the opportunity to learn about the many services and referrals available through Jefferson County's Child Support Services at an open house on August 25 at the county's Laramie Building.

• Assist with child support applications
• Locate a non-custodial parent
• Collect past due payments
• Establish paternity
• Establish a court order
• Assist with court-ordered medical support (not medical bills)
• Enforce existing court orders
• Review and adjust an existing order
• Connect people with fatherhood programs, mediation services, parenting education and the Workforce Center

• help families complete applications
• join the Hospitality Team
• mentor parents, teens and/or children
• help teachers and children as a Head Start classroom helper
• assist with special events
• provide clerical assistance for JCDHS employees

We encourage you to suggest creative volunteer opportunities that best use your talents and time. 

Volunteers assist families respectfully. JCDHS employees are grateful to volunteers for their generous contributions of time and talent. At JCDHS, our volunteer program fosters personal connections and breakthrough discoveries that eliminate stereotypes and cultivate a supportive environment.

For more information, please contact Dawn Riley Duval (Volunteer Recruiter) at 303-217-4379 or dduval@jeffco.us. We hope to hear from you soon.

September is National Food Safety Education Month

• purchasing food from unsafe sources
• failing to cook food adequately
• holding food at incorrect temperatures
• using contaminated equipment
• and practicing poor personal hygiene.

Also being highlighted by the Partnership for Food Safety Education are common household food-safety myths such as:

Myth - Once a hamburger turns brown in the middle, it is cooked.

Fact: You cannot use visual cues to determine whether food has been cooked to a safe minimum internal temperature. The ONLY way to know that food has been cooked to a safe minimum internal temperature is to use a food thermometer. 

JCPH will have food safety educational displays in several Jefferson County libraries during the month. You can also learn more by visiting the JCPH food safety Web page and the National Food Safety Education Month Web site.

Produce and Health Fairs Bring Fresh Produce to Many

Animal-borne Disease Update

• Current Plague Activity:
  The plague area located in a vacant lot between Simms and Alkire and south of Ken Caryl Avenue remains posted. JCPH reminds everyone living in the area to take the necessary precautions listed below and protect themselves and their pets from plague.
  
  The Westminster Open Space located at 105th and Simms is still closed because of plague. JCPH will investigate the area in September to check for infected flea activity.  For updates on the Westminster Open Space visit the City of Westminster Web site. 

Rabies: Thus far in 2009, JCPH has tested 56 animals for rabies, (24 bats, four raccoons, and six skunks). Two bats tested positive for rabies. Please be mindful of the steps you can take to prevent possible rabies exposure. 
 
West Nile Virus: It has been a mild summer in Jefferson County and in Colorado for West Nile Virus activity. There have been three confirmed human cases of West Nile Virus in Jefferson County in 2009, and as of August 21 a total of 14 human cases in Colorado. Due to the current low human case counts, seasonal decline in density of Culex mosquito populations statewide, and very low detection of circulating West Nile Virus, the mosquito surveillance for the season will end this week.