2026-09-02 - Health and Wellness Advisory Committee

00:00Welcome to the city of Charleston Health

00:01and Wellness Committee meeting for

00:02September 2nd, 2026. I know it's a busy

00:05time of year. Um, a lot of lot of

00:08activities happening in uh September and

00:11we look forward to fall around, of

00:13course, time when everybody's excited

00:15about college football and of course

00:16Labor Day weekend coming up. So, I just

00:19want to thank each of you for being here

00:20today and um more importantly for the

00:22time and the energy that you continue to

00:24give to this committee and to our

00:26community. Thank you so much. I

00:28appreciate the different perspectives

00:29and all the expertise that's represented

00:31on this uh committee. So, call this

00:34meeting to order. We've got a good

00:35agenda today. So, with that, um thank

00:38you again and uh let's get started. Um

00:42we need to uh get an approval for our

00:44minutes for August 5th, 2026, please.

00:57Can I get a

00:58>> motion to approve?

01:00>> Thank you. Maggie's made a motion to

01:02approve. Can I get a second?

01:03>> Second.

01:04>> Thank you. Oops.

01:05>> All right. We have a motion to approve

01:06the minutes and a second. Any additions,

01:08deletions, any questions on those

01:10minutes? If not, all in favor of

01:13approving those minutes, please say I.

01:15>> I.

01:16>> I.

01:17>> Any opposed? The eyes have it. All

01:19right. So, next on our agenda, we have

01:22our FastTrack City Shape Update and

01:24World AIDS Day. I'm going to call on

01:26Louisa Ramirez. She's the community uh

01:30engagement specialist for uh the health

01:33and health strategy and external affairs

01:35for South Carolina Department of Public

01:36Health. So, Louisa, if you would, I'll

01:39turn it over to you, please.

01:41>> Yeah. Good morning, everyone. Thank you.

01:44Um like Kevin was introducing me, my

01:47name is Louisa Ramirez. I'm a community

01:49engagement specialist with the

01:50department of public health and I work

01:52very closely with our tri county shape

01:54initiative that is a coalition of

01:57different um sexual health service

01:59organizations in the tri county area um

02:02and beyond some of them. Um so we work

02:06closely together collaborating for

02:08different testing events, sharing

02:10updates um data with each other just to

02:12try to achieve the ultimate fasttrack

02:15city goal which is 959595.

02:20um that was signed a few years ago for

02:23anyone who may not be familiar

02:25essentially as an effort from behalf of

02:28the city of Charleston to work towards

02:30HIV

02:31um testing acknowledgement and then also

02:34viral suppression. Um so those that are

02:38HIV positive not being able to transmit

02:41HIV um to other individuals.

02:45So, I just have a few updates in regards

02:48to some data for the FastTrack City

02:51initiatives. Um, I don't have any data

02:54specifically down to Charleston as the

02:57county. That'd be something I do have to

02:59request a little further. Um, but I did

03:02want to share something on behalf of our

03:05latest data, which I will mention.

03:08Latest is from 2024. So this is data

03:12from 2024 that's um accumulated and

03:17analyzed through from 2020 in 2025 and

03:21then reported out to people at the

03:24department of public health and the

03:25public as well in 2026. So sorry if that

03:29is a little confusing but I did want to

03:31share. Um don't have any slides or any

03:35specific pictures or charts that I have

03:37to provide today unfortunately but I was

03:40able to write this down and um overall I

03:43will say the number of HIV new cases or

03:45incident rates and deaths so AIDS is

03:49trending downwards. The HIV impact by

03:52age group is largely happening in 35 or

03:5630 to 39 um years old. So those are

04:00where we are seeing the most new cases

04:02and then following that is 20 to 24 age

04:06group and then the 25 to 29 again

04:09follows that. Um with STI overall with

04:13chlamydia, gorrhea and syphilis we are

04:16seeing a downward trend. Some of those a

04:18little more than others. Um and then

04:21that varies as well by um sex. So we're

04:25seeing a large downward trend. Chlamydia

04:28we're seeing largely um being impacted

04:32in the 20 to 24 age range. Gorrhea also

04:37largely the 20 to 24 age range followed

04:40by 30 to 39.

04:43Um, so those are kind of those like

04:44college age, young adults, young

04:46professionals. And then syphilis, we

04:49have seen a decrease as well. And that

04:51one is largely impacting the 30 to 39

04:54age range. So just some data that I

04:57thought I'd provide with you guys.

05:01As far as World AIDS Day, every year we

05:04do host a World AIDS Day remembrance

05:07celebration. Um, and that is on December

05:101st. So last year we were able to host a

05:14celebration in North Charleston with

05:16Mount Mariah Missionary Baptist Church.

05:19Um and we really love that venue. We

05:22really love the crew over there.

05:24Everything turned out really

05:26spectacularly. And so we hope to

05:28continue that partnership this year and

05:30we are planning to have a celebration

05:32again on December 5th um in North

05:35Charleston. Um, we did however still

05:40want to have some kind of inol

05:42involvement in [clears throat] the city

05:44of Charleston proper. So, we are

05:47planning and in the works um I know Paul

05:50was at our recent meeting um to have

05:53some kind of celebration in North uh in

05:57downtown Charleston on actual World AIDS

06:00Day. So that being December 1,

06:04um we do have a theme which I'm happy to

06:07share is returning to care. So hopefully

06:11you can see that tagline coming up soon.

06:14We do hope to have some like local

06:15visibility

06:17um on behalf of our World AIDS Day

06:19celebration. But yes, that is

06:23essentially all the updates that we have

06:25for the World AIDS Day planning part.

06:28We're still in the works for getting a

06:31proclamation done from um the city of

06:34Charleston for for December one and then

06:38in confirming [clears throat] a public

06:41park preferably to have um that group of

06:45people like hosted.

06:48Kevin, if I could just say something on

06:51December the 1st, I think that's the

06:53Tuesday, y'all got probably first

06:54reading of the budget, but didn't know

06:57whether we could get on the if we worked

07:00with you, maybe get on the agenda to

07:02just do a proclamation at city hall.

07:05>> Okay. And then I was going to check to

07:07see whether we could could do even maybe

07:09a special event where we could then

07:12assemble at at Washington Park and and

07:15walk to Customs House or somewhere.

07:18That's what they would like to do. So

07:20I'm going to work on special event side

07:22with that. But but at least maybe a

07:24proclamation for AIDS Day on um December

07:271st before that um at at that meeting on

07:31for city council.

07:33>> Okay, great. I'll um I'll reach out to

07:35Jennifer Cook and um see if we can get

07:37that on the agenda for December 1st. And

07:39um I will uh I guess give her Louisa's

07:44um contact information, I guess, so she

07:48can get more information on on what

07:50needs to be said on that.

07:51>> Yeah. And I can I'll help be the inter

07:54intermediate area on all of that, too.

07:56We've done a world day proclamation. I

08:00think when back when I was in a

08:02recreation department, we started doing

08:04them in Hampton Park and doing a fund

08:06walk on December that first Saturday.

08:08So, um I think it's it's good for us to

08:12just make sure we we do our part to keep

08:14the message out there and and let people

08:16know what's going on. So,

08:18>> Okay. Very [clears throat] good.

08:20>> All right. Thank you.

08:21>> All right. Any any questions or comments

08:24for Louisa Ramirez?

08:29Well, thank you so much for that

08:30presentation and the information on

08:33there, Louisa, and thank you for joining

08:34us this morning, too.

08:35>> Yeah, thank you for having me, guys.

08:38>> All right, very good. So, next up,

08:40September is suicide prevention month,

08:42and I think we're just going to call on

08:44kind of do a do a double team here with

08:47Jennifer Brush and Jonathan Jonathan

08:49Kesler. If you would here, u I'll turn

08:52it over to one of you guys.

08:56Jennifer, feel free to to go ahead and

08:58I'll follow up with you.

09:01>> I was hoping you would start.

09:04>> Yeah. Um, it's honestly there's a lot

09:07going on with our agency right now and

09:09we are trying to do things more

09:12agencywide and we have been very focused

09:15on rebranding the BHD agency. Um, so we

09:20we're involved with a few events that

09:22are with the school district, the

09:24extended branches and and the one that

09:26I'm not going to talk about because

09:27Jonathan will talk about it. Um, the the

09:30mental health summit. Um, other than

09:32that with this this month, we're doing

09:34mostly um several kind of um a couple

09:38things with schools that we're talking

09:39to. We're doing some employee wellness

09:41things at car car dealerships, believe

09:43it or not. And of course, we have 988

09:45day on next Tuesday. Um, I'm honestly

09:49waiting on guidance from Colombia on

09:51what we're going to do statewide on

09:52that. Um, so yeah, I don't have as much

09:54information as Paul was probably hoping,

09:57but yeah, it is I will say it is suicide

10:00prevention awareness month and we always

10:02want people talking about it. We want

10:04people to um, you know, like I've said

10:07before, talk about it at your dinner

10:09table, ask people about it, share

10:11resources. I'll send um Paul um some

10:15really great resources we gathered up

10:17for one of our presentations at the

10:19conference um that has all of our

10:22resources statewide for suicide

10:24prevention and then resources of

10:26everyone else that even around the

10:28country um for support groups and local

10:32things and um you know obviously 988

10:35call lines and things like that to share

10:37for suicide prevention month. But sorry

10:40Paul, I kind of left you down a little

10:41bit. We've been working working a lot on

10:43the combination of our three agencies

10:46this past couple months. So, I will pass

10:49it to Jonathan who hopefully will have

10:51much more information than than I do.

10:54>> Sorry, Jen. Didn't mean to put you on

10:55the spot there, but I know you all

10:57>> I was I was ready.

10:58>> Y'all are doing incredible things and

11:00I'm looking forward to Tracy Mer's um uh

11:03report out on on 988 for the uh for the

11:06state. Um really looking forward to that

11:08because I see some exciting things

11:10happening particularly on 98 but for the

11:12rest of the month. Um all right. Yeah.

11:14So I'm Jonathan Kessler with the VA and

11:16suicide prevention. Um so I echo

11:18everything that uh bro that Jen just

11:21shared. Um our veterans however they die

11:24at twice the rate of that of our

11:27nonveteran um adult population. So it's

11:30it's for the VA for many years running

11:32now uh we have been um it's our first

11:35clinical priority. um is our our our

11:38suicide prevention for our veterans. Um

11:40and for those that are curious, our our

11:42most administrative first priority is

11:44our homeless. And so they do tend to go

11:46hand in hand. Um we're also recognizing

11:50um overdose awareness um and you know

11:53accidental poisoning or intentional uh

11:55for this month as well. So this this all

11:57goes hand in hand and I think when it

11:59comes to suicide my definition has

12:01really broadened uh from doing it uh you

12:04know for the last four years or so

12:05specifically and and that is all the

12:07work that that we hear reported out uh

12:10each each month um on this wonderful

12:12call is suicide prevention. So if we are

12:15assisting folks with with meals and

12:17fresh vegetables and things of that

12:19nature um and we're connecting with

12:21resources and we're providing free

12:23screenings for HIV all of this is

12:25suicide prevention because we know that

12:28uh that pain uh whether it's physical or

12:31psychological or in many cases both um

12:34for some just become so overwhelming

12:35there's no other option that they can

12:37see out of this deep dark hole which

12:39otherwise is to just end the pain which

12:42is by dying. Um unfortunately and what

12:45we know from suicide attempt survivors

12:47is that um they more often than not

12:50report that they it wasn't ever an

12:52attempt to die. It was just to

12:54extinguish the pain that was so

12:55incredibly overwhelming. Um, so on that

12:58note, uh, the VA is doing a, uh, we've

13:02done an annual what we call the buddy

13:03check week and, uh, the buddy check week

13:06is encouraging veterans to reach out to

13:08their buddies essentially and just check

13:10in on them, whether they speak to them

13:12on a regular basis or maybe they haven't

13:15spoken to to one of their buddies in

13:17quite a number of years, we're

13:18encouraging to do so. Um there's nothing

13:20like that peer connection and the

13:22military the camaraderie is such a huge

13:24connection point and so a lot of times

13:26we have individuals that are just

13:28feeling very disconnected

13:30disenfranchised and that may be the case

13:32also with those that live in rural

13:34areas. So the buddy check week is

13:36September 21st through the 25th and it's

13:39part of our don't wait reach out

13:40campaign. Um, and then also we want our

13:43veterans to know and we have a big PSA

13:46coming out this month as well. Um, which

13:48is going to reinforce

13:50that no matter where, when, or how they

13:53served, um, they're a veteran and that

13:55resources are available to them to help

13:57them navigate um, you know, the

13:59challenges of life. Um, these two, um,

14:04programs are can be found more at the

14:06va.govreach gov backreach

14:09um reac if you would like to learn more

14:12about it's very powerful very um

14:14impactful um and then I just wanted I

14:17know it's going to be in October however

14:19but the walk out of darkness um AFSP is

14:23coming up it'll be it's always Sunday or

14:25has been Sunday for many years it's at

14:27uh Gahagen Gahhagen Park I always

14:30mispronounced that up in Somerville but

14:32it's the Charleston walk it's uh Sunday

14:34October 25th so I encourage folks to

14:36come out. It's It's very It's sobering,

14:39but it's also very encouraging to be

14:40walking alongside others. Um, and then I

14:44think Paul, you had asked me to share

14:46the screen. So, I'm going to do my best

14:48to do that. Just to pull up some of

14:50these flyers.

14:57Let's see here.

15:03Okay.

15:06Please let me know if you can see it.

15:11>> We got it.

15:12>> Got it. Okay. Um so I would like to

15:14share so um I didn't realize at the

15:17mental health uh the low country mental

15:19health conference um that Miss Tessa

15:23Spencer uh was going to be one of the

15:25speakers and so she was one of the last

15:28speakers on that Friday and just very

15:31very powerful. Um, and prior to that,

15:35um, I had had the, uh, opportunity to

15:39attend their her initial screening, um,

15:43at College of, excuse me, at Southern,

15:45um, Charleston Southern earlier this

15:48year. Um and so essentially Tessa who's

15:51channel 4 news anchor um shared her

15:55story of her and her son's struggle with

15:58mental illness. Her son um Tess is also

16:02a she's also a veteran as well. Um and

16:06so she was agreeable to for this month

16:10to allow us to have her uh join us.

16:14We've done an annual Charleston Public

16:16Library [snorts] documentary oftentimes

16:20with a a panel discussion. Uh and so

16:22this year, this this uh documentary of

16:25Tessas will be featured at the Keith

16:28Sumi North Charleston Library. It'll be

16:31Saturday, September 26th, starting at

16:3411:00. Tessa herself will be there as

16:37well. Um, and for those that were able

16:40to attend the Low Country Mental Health

16:42Conference, um, it's really keeping the

16:44memory of her son Julian alive, but

16:46she's very, um, transparent about her

16:49own struggles. And it's very much a, as

16:53Jen had shared earlier, it's very much

16:55about we just need to be able to talk

16:57about suicide. That's that's how we're

17:00going to make an impact. And I have

17:02vivid recollection of early, you know,

17:04my early developmental years, HIV being

17:07spoken of in very hushed um manner uh

17:10and even cancer being referred to as the

17:13Cword as opposed to using the word

17:15cancer. I do hope that we can get to a

17:17point where we can talk about suicide

17:19and actually use the word suicide. Uh so

17:22we can have these open dialogues and

17:24conversations. So, we really love to see

17:27a a full house um of our community u

17:31around Tessa and her story of her son.

17:35And there's a lot of um local

17:37individuals and professionals that are

17:39also interviewed um for this

17:41documentary. So, if you haven't seen it,

17:43we really would love to have you and and

17:46please disseminate this widely. Um it's

17:48a very powerful message and it's one of

17:50our our local stories. Um, and I I just

17:54think that you'll you'll come away from

17:56this with with with a positive uh

17:59impact. Uh, the other thing I wanted to

18:02share is that similar to the office of

18:05mental health, uh, we do provide free

18:08gatekeeper suicide prevention training.

18:11simply meaning that you do not have to

18:13be a mental health professional to

18:15interact with an individual that you

18:17suspect may be struggling or has come to

18:19you and said that they're having

18:21thoughts of suicide and and being able

18:23to help them and not be fearful about

18:25saying or doing the wrong thing. Um, so

18:28we do offer this. It's free training.

18:30It's about 50 minutes. It fits really

18:32well with like a lunch and learn. Um and

18:35we get to the brass tax of how to help

18:38someone who's struggling and then doing

18:40a warm handoff. So this again is for

18:42non-mental health professionals. Um

18:45although I've learned a lot um you know

18:47conducting these and and as we update um

18:49the trainings year after year um I learn

18:52a great deal as well. So this is

18:54something that you might be interested

18:55in feel free please to reach out to me.

18:58um either myself or one of our suicide

19:00prevention coordinators here at the

19:01hospital um would be would be happy to

19:04um you know work with you and your your

19:06agency uh and set up a training. Um and

19:09this is how we we get better together.

19:12I'm going to go ahead and stop sharing

19:14if there's any questions for Jen and I.

19:19>> Any questions? Jonathan, I know I've

19:22asked you to do this before, but can you

19:25also maybe elaborate a little bit about

19:27the little coalition you've got that

19:29meets that I've had to miss the last

19:31couple times, but is a powerful group.

19:35>> Um, so Paul uh Paul's referring to the

19:38Veteran Suicide Prevention Coalition.

19:41It's about two and a half years running

19:43now. Um, and it was developed through a

19:46local nonprofit, Tim Taylor, and his,

19:50uh, Tri County Veteran Service Network.

19:52Um, he's been doing incredible work with

19:56our homeless veteran population for over

19:5813 years, uh, here in the Tri County. Um

20:02and over time we have collected

20:04incredible I say collected but we've

20:06we've just amassed incredible

20:08individuals around the tri county um

20:12that have come to the table in person

20:14monthly to talk about how can we make an

20:16impact um not only in our veteran

20:18suicide um numbers but also just the

20:21general population because we know that

20:23those 988 signs that we were able to

20:26acquire uh through Tracy Mer and um the

20:29office of mental health um was tremend

20:31tremendous. And so this was a

20:33partnership that came to our attention

20:35through it was actually Berkeley County

20:37through the coroner's office as well as

20:39the um park and wreck director uh that

20:43oversees the boat landings in Berkeley

20:45County after they had far too many

20:47suicides occur um particularly at their

20:50Cypress Gardens boat landing which is

20:52very very close to the Navy Nuke School.

20:56Um and so we were able to with this

20:58partnership um because it's a co it's

21:01it's a it's a coalition. It's a

21:02coalescing of a number of different

21:05agencies and that's therefore it's more

21:08so than just you know Miss Brush or Mr.

21:12Kesler doing something. It's the

21:13community coming together and we were

21:15able to get those signs put up at all

21:17seven boat landings including the brand

21:19new one. Uh, and then partnering up also

21:22with Mayor Burgess of North Charleston

21:25and Councilwoman Ronda Jerome earlier

21:27this year to be able to get signage, 988

21:30signage put up on the overpasses. So,

21:33um, that was highly successful and we

21:36learned that the Ashley Phosphate um,

21:38overpass in particular, which which um,

21:42their offices were able to get the jump

21:43barriers put up, which was life-saving,

21:46right? Um, but we did learn when they

21:49did their press release for the signage

21:51over the Ashley phosphate. We also had

21:54aviation as well as um I can't remember

21:57the brand new overpass um but there's

21:59another overpass further beyond Ashley

22:02Phosphate. Um but we when they did the

22:04press release, one of the coalition

22:06members who is a police officer in North

22:08Charleston had shared that he had

22:11attended a a house call for somebody in

22:14distress. And so they have to secure the

22:16area before mobile crisis could come

22:18out. Um we don't believe it was a

22:20veteran, but that was okay. It was a

22:21gentleman that had the intent to take

22:23his life off the Ashley phosphate. He

22:25saw the jump barriers obviously um that

22:28was a you know compelling to to not take

22:31a further step, but then he also saw the

22:32signage that had only just been erected

22:36um about two weeks earlier. And we were

22:39able to work with city of North

22:41Charleston to include a a QR code that

22:43would bring somebody directly to 988 for

22:45still a lot of population do not know

22:47what that is. Um so you know I always

22:51spread the word and then the veteran

22:52crisis line is 988 option one. Um and I

22:55know Jen has shared over the over the

22:57course of these meetings some of those

22:59numbers and what that looks like. A lot

23:00of veterans will stay with the instate

23:03988 and not press one and get the help

23:06that they need, which is really

23:07encouraging. But getting back to this

23:09this gentleman, um he called the number

23:12and that was a life saved. And so

23:15sometimes folks will come to me and say,

23:17"Well, the signs, do they really work?"

23:19Yes. Yes, they do. Um they they

23:21literally do. Um, so if anyone is

23:23interested, it it's open invite for the

23:27uh the char or I should say the veteran

23:29suicide prevention coalition. It is the

23:32third Tuesday uh of each month and we

23:35meet at the American Red Cross in North

23:38Charleston, so right across the city

23:40hall. Um, and Paul, what I could do is I

23:43could send you just kind of our flyer

23:45and if you don't mind posting it, but

23:47we'd love to have your voice. uh we're

23:49working on bigger better things uh

23:52throughout the low country and so again

23:54it's a partnership. So thank you so much

23:56Paul for giving me that platform to be

23:58able to speak on it

24:00>> and and Kevin could could Jennifer also

24:02say about her coalition that meets in on

24:05Friday mornings every so often?

24:08>> Absolutely.

24:10>> Sure. We have um mental health task

24:13force which is um anyone related

24:17interested in mental health or doing any

24:19kind of treatment. So it's a lot of

24:20treatment providers from across the

24:22state. It our probate court judges are

24:24there since they're involved with us

24:25when we're doing commitments. We have um

24:28emergency first responders there

24:31especially. We have two um kind of

24:33community ambulance uh things now where

24:36where they're going out to um meet

24:38mobile crisis out or instead of the

24:39police they're sending the community um

24:42support for that in Charleston. But if

24:44anybody's interested it's the second f

24:46every other second Friday. So I think

24:48the next one is

24:51this next week. I have to I have to

24:53look. Um I can send it to you. Um but

24:56yeah, it's really getting together and

24:58talking about the needs and if we're

25:00having any issues with um with things in

25:03the community and it's kind it was kind

25:04of started out as a problem-solving

25:06group on how we can all better work

25:08together to um even work with specific

25:11patients, but um it's it's really a

25:14resource location for folks too. And

25:17then we also like this this like this

25:19meeting just share what's going on and

25:21what we're doing and and kind of learn

25:23about things we can be we can be part of

25:25together. Um and I did want to mention

25:28one thing since Jonathan mentioned um

25:30Tessa at the conference. Um it was it

25:33was a tough session. It was it was our

25:35last one and I got a lot of questions

25:37about why did you choose this for your

25:39last session instead of something more

25:42upbeat. And the answer is we we invited

25:45that we we opened that session up to the

25:47community for free. We wanted people to

25:49come, anybody to come. And so we had

25:51some kind of special advertising for

25:53that because we did want people to talk

25:54about it. We wanted people to come and

25:57new Tessa has a lot of followers and she

25:58really is um taking it to the next level

26:02on trying to help educate folks about

26:04resources and and things like that. And

26:07and while I guess I'll close out with

26:09I'm always trying to educate people. We

26:12want people to talk about suicide. And

26:13one of the things over the past few

26:15years that we've kind of changed our

26:17verbiage is we don't say people commit

26:19suicide anymore because committing

26:22something is like committing a crime. It

26:24sounds like a bad thing and suicide's

26:26not good, but we say die by suicide. So,

26:30um it's not ever good to correct

26:31somebody right in the moment when it

26:33happens. But since we're not talking

26:34about anything specific today, I just

26:36wanted to share that that we do kind of

26:38say die by suicide instead of commit

26:40suicide. um moving forward. So, and if

26:43anyone I did send Paul uh three pages

26:46full of resources that he'll send out

26:48with the group hopefully after the

26:50meeting. So, so thank you.

26:52>> Great. Thank you so much. Any other

26:54questions?

26:55>> Well, thank you again. Paul,

26:59>> I just saying our hats are off to both

27:01of you and and to I know Lamar will say

27:03a little bit under his group, but what

27:06our our what all of y'all do for support

27:09is just amazing. I I know internally the

27:12city of Charleston's business benefits

27:15wellness uh manager just recently got

27:18certified in and doing mental health and

27:21it's going that we're going to be as a

27:23trainer and we're going to be doing our

27:25employees um extra mental health um

27:28counsel or training them to do what you

27:31you mentioned in that save program. So

27:34um we're excited for that and thank you

27:36both and all of y'all. Yeah, thank you

27:40so much. Such critically important um

27:44u work that you do and you do a great

27:46job at it. So, thank you so much and

27:48appreciate you presenting this morning

27:49on that. So, all right. Um I'm going to

27:53next move on to community health and

27:55wellness updates. I would like to start

27:57with Lamar Hodes, please.

28:01>> Good morning everyone. uh Lamar Hodes

28:03with the community engagement manager at

28:06the serving in Charleston, Dorchester,

28:08and Berkeley County with the Department

28:10of Public Health. Uh just want to go in

28:13a space first off just um stating all of

28:16the awareness that we'll be doing um and

28:20covering this month um as it pertains to

28:24uh the suicide prevention month um uh

28:26child passenger safety week um national

28:30uh cle cell uh awareness month as well

28:33as prep awareness week. Um starting with

28:36the suicide prevention month um with my

28:39team um community engagement. One of the

28:42things about it is often times with my

28:44staff they're often um in the community

28:48when they're tableabling community

28:49events. Um we are partnering work

28:52alongside with the substance abuse and

28:55mental health services administration

28:57where they provide us all of the

28:59materials. um whether it's a magnet,

29:02whether it is a a business card, any of

29:04those things that really go in the space

29:06of sharing uh 988 as a resource for

29:10those because we always go in the space

29:12of wanting to be available and providing

29:16um being that connection um to the

29:18source um for those community members um

29:22for those who are in need. So we always

29:24go in that space of u making sure those

29:26materials are available um at those

29:29community events.

29:31Um, of course, a lot of the events and

29:33things that I'm going to share is

29:35related to those areas uh for this

29:37particular month, but I wanted to start

29:39off with the uh west now virus as of

29:43course uh uh Paul had asked me to speak

29:45on this um as it has uh kind of uh

29:48started back in the areas um of course

29:52we provided an update on our local DPH

29:55page which is uh dph.sc.gov

29:59gov. Um, and you'll see that it also is

30:02available on the, uh, CDC website. Um,

30:06you know, we had two outbreaks that were

30:08confirmed. Um, one in the Midlands and

30:10one in the low country. Um, as it

30:14pertains to this virus, we just want to

30:16just share a little bit of information

30:17and just a reminder regarding it. Um, as

30:20the West Nile virus is a virus that's

30:23usually transmitted to humans and

30:25animals through a bite, usually a

30:27mosquito bite. Um usually you can't pass

30:30it along from person to person. Um

30:33usually the symptoms are uh through uh

30:36like a fever, headache, usually some

30:39kind type of joint muscle pain. Um

30:42usually nausea and vomiting as well. Um

30:45when it comes to this, we just kind of

30:47go in that space of just sharing with

30:49you what uh things that you want to be

30:52in a space for prevention cuz the goal

30:54is in in aspects of hey, how do I

30:57prevent um and and always in a space

31:00where we want to kind of share with our

31:02neighbors about ways to prevent this

31:04from happening. Um so that therefore we

31:07won't go in a space of an outbreak um so

31:10to say uh tremendously. Um and of course

31:14uh Paul if you would um go in that space

31:17of just sharing the screen for the seven

31:20T's of the mosquito prevention and I'm

31:22going to also go in the space of just

31:24talking about some of the takeaways um

31:27those uh those things that we want to go

31:29in the space of uh looking out or be on

31:32the lookout for. Um, of course in the

31:35space when it comes to um the takeaways,

31:38just make sure when you're outside, um,

31:41you know, mosquitoes are very active

31:43during this time, especially doing when

31:45it comes to certain clothing that we're

31:47wearing. Um, certain times um, of the of

31:50the day. Um, usually early mornings and

31:53late afternoons are the times where they

31:55tend to bite more um, more in the space

31:59of during the day activities. Um,

32:02usually you want to wear light clothing.

32:04Um, long sleeve, long pants. Um, usually

32:08tuck your pants into your socks or shoes

32:11to keep those mosquitoes off of you. Um,

32:14and this is kind of for those, you know,

32:15th those who, uh, doing yard work, uh,

32:19gardening, things of that nature. So

32:20that therefore, because if you're

32:22outside for a long period of time, these

32:24are the things that you want to be

32:26mindful of. Um also in the same space

32:29just um as you can see based on the

32:32information that is provided um you'll

32:35see that uh it talks about the resource

32:38that Paul has up here. It talks about

32:41that standing water that's on properties

32:43and in areas of u in the uh in the

32:47community that we want to be mindful of.

32:49Um, usually where is uh old tires and

32:53and and your gutters in your in your

32:55household, those places, rain gutters,

32:58um, flower pots, um, pet bowls, those

33:01places are where they usually tend to,

33:04um, accumulate those mosquitoes. So, you

33:06want to be mindful of those areas and

33:08be, you know, if it's not needed, then,

33:10you know, discard it and turn those

33:12items away. So, you have the seven T's

33:15there. tip, toss, turn, tighten, take

33:18care, and treat and team up. Um, just

33:21kind of to be able to provide us with

33:22more tips and ways to prevent those

33:25mosquitoes for being in those various

33:27areas. Um, when it comes to that when it

33:30comes to the U West Nile virus and those

33:33mosquitoes coming in those areas. Um, of

33:36course, as always, you know, any

33:39additional information, um, as we're

33:41just monitoring right now, we're not,

33:43you know, nothing major particularly

33:46right now is going on. Um, but we always

33:49want to go in a space of when something

33:51happens um when it comes to our um, when

33:54it comes to our community, we want to

33:56kind of let make sure everyone is aware.

33:58Um so just in that space um just be on

34:01the lookout and stay uh tuned with our

34:03DPH um homepage that will provide you

34:06any updates regarding the West N virus.

34:09Um, any questions regarding that?

34:15>> Just just curious right now. I think

34:17what we we looked on the DHECK site on

34:21August 26, I think it said that we had a

34:24just a few cases here in the low

34:26country. And I know I saw in the news

34:28where Charleston County was doing some

34:30extra spraying, but again, the tips you

34:33just displayed, I think, are so

34:35important for us all to remind

34:36ourselves, hey, start at your house

34:38first and then tell a neighbor and just

34:40keep on telling somebody at work. But

34:42the more we can do that, um, that's

34:45something we don't want to have an

34:46outbreak of. So,

34:48>> awesome. That is correct. That's

34:50correct. And of course, if are there any

34:53other comments or questions?

34:56All right, so I want to go into the

34:58community events for the month. Um, as

35:01always, I always provide those uh

35:04different community events that we have

35:06going on. I want to first start off with

35:08I think um Jen had asked me last month

35:11about uh we were talking about some um

35:15uh different things that our friends

35:16with Roper St. Francis are doing. Um,

35:18and on 911,

35:21um, they're going to be doing a

35:23prostate, uh, cancer screening for free,

35:26right? Uh, September the 11th from 1 to

35:295, um, at their, uh, Rivers on Rivers

35:32Avenue, um, in North Charleston. Um,

35:35being able to provide for those who are,

35:37uh, age 40 years and up. Um, just being

35:40able to, uh, have that opportunity to

35:43get tested um, with the PSA testing out

35:46there in the community. Um they do have

35:48the number down at the bottom um for

35:51those to register. Um those who are

35:53uninsured uh underinsured as well as

35:56insured has the opportunity to take

35:58advantage of this opportunity that they

36:00are providing on September the 11th. So

36:03definitely go in a space for that and I

36:05they have a lot of different initiatives

36:07that are going to be coming up. Um and

36:10you'll see that throughout the time

36:11frame that I am presenting um in in

36:14regards to that. Um the next one is on

36:18um the uh September the 12th. We got

36:21about three community events going on

36:23that day. First off, want to start off

36:25with the extended branches. Um this is

36:27al a great opportunity where a lot of

36:29our community partners um gather um and

36:32and provide our services is usually uh

36:35the sponsored by our Charleston County

36:37um sheriff's office. Um they work very

36:40closely with a lot of our community

36:42partners to provide um this service. Um

36:45and usually what normally what happens

36:47is the Tri County Sheriff Office has

36:49come together with various organizations

36:51um and agencies and and churches to um

36:54provide uh resources out there in the

36:57community. Um usually in the space where

36:59you have those who are kind of listed

37:01there um to provide um just some sources

37:05and resources in the community. Um this

37:08event again is on September the 12th um

37:10at 10 starting at 10:00 a.m. in in

37:13Latson. So of course definitely if you

37:15have an opportunity um please feel free

37:18to join our friends at that community

37:21event which the department of public

37:23health will be there as well.

37:26So moving to the next event on the same

37:29day September the 12th um like I said

37:31our friends with Roper St. Francis do

37:33have a lot of different initiatives

37:35going on. They're um uh partnered with

37:38the Prince Hall Lodge of uh number 47 um

37:42and they're going to do uh working with

37:44the they have a initiative that they're

37:46having called the health and career day.

37:49Um it's definitely geared towards

37:51prostate cancer awareness as well. We as

37:54always we know early detection can save

37:56lives. So often times in situations on

37:59this event it is going to also be

38:00located on Rivers Avenue. So, they're

38:03staying in that same uh area. So, if

38:06you're not able to make it to the one on

38:08uh at the site of Roper St. Francis on

38:11911, you can uh visit uh the uh the

38:15location for uh this event um the health

38:18and career day on 912 at 10:00 a.m. Um

38:23and of course the uh is at 4132 Rivers

38:28Avenue um where this event is held is

38:30going to be held. And of course, a lot

38:32of various different community partners

38:35will be there. They're also not only

38:37doing prostate cancer screenings, also

38:39doing blood pressure screenings as well

38:41as diabetes awareness as well as

38:44wellness re wellness resources. So, this

38:47pro definitely providing more um uh

38:50information in regards to ways that you

38:52can make sure that you continue to stay

38:54on top as our health is our priority.

38:58Um and of course the last event for the

39:0112th will be um centered around the

39:05community over the crisis. Community

39:08over crisis and of course this is more

39:10so um going in the space of the uh cle

39:14cell awareness. um as it is prominent

39:16for cle cell awareness event um uh

39:19department of public health did partner

39:21with this uh group last year um as a

39:26local church in the community and I'm

39:28going share the screen as it pertains to

39:31that event um of course we partnered

39:34with them last year uh providing a great

39:37initiative and of course um what they're

39:40doing is of course um the young man

39:42named Nicholas Washington is a cickle

39:45cell warrior and um he he and his mom

39:48reached out to us as community

39:50engagement to help organize for them to

39:53be able to um provide a awareness to the

39:57community about sickle cell. Um, of

39:59course they are hosting their event on

40:02um September the 12th at 10:00 a.m. Um,

40:05and normally it's a great initiative.

40:08Um, they do have where if at any time

40:10you can donate um um um make any

40:13donations until the information is

40:16they're found on the flyer. Um, one of

40:18the things about the donations that um

40:21was uh very intrigued by what they did

40:23is that all of the donations are

40:26provided uh to the Cobra Foundation

40:30which is located there on Rivers Avenue

40:32um to assist families to those for um

40:36when that they get that first diagnosis

40:39about their child or that family member

40:41who is diagnosed with cle cell. Um it

40:44helps cover with transportation. It um

40:47covers with um just uh just those

40:50resources regarding um um regarding uh

40:54bills and things of that nature that

40:55could potentially help them during that

40:58time of that early diagnosis of sickle

41:01cell. Um the event is always a a great

41:04event that we attend. Uh one of the

41:06things about it is they do a silent

41:08auction which I always take a part in

41:10with really good gifts. So, it's it's

41:13always to the point where um I try to

41:15put in my highest bid so I can make sure

41:18I get what I what it is that I need. So,

41:20um it's always a great initiative in

41:23which that they do provide um in the

41:26community. So, feel free to attend that

41:28event. It's usually is located there in

41:30Hollywood, South Carolina. So for those

41:33who would like to attend,

41:36moving forward, just want to go in the

41:38space of the next community event that

41:40is hosted um on September the 19th. Um

41:44as it is uh prep awareness week. Um I

41:47want to just share in regards to that

41:49initiative that is going on. Um, of

41:52course, our department of public health,

41:54we usually uh partner with a lot of our

41:57colleges and universities um during this

42:00time of prep awareness week. Um and

42:03normally uh College of Charleston um as

42:07one of our uh key um partners that

42:11usually um are doing great uh

42:13initiatives on the campus during this

42:15time but also giving the time for the

42:18community to actually play a part here.

42:21Um, our friends with Pel Community Care

42:24will be hosting their prep in in the

42:26park initiative on September the 19th at

42:2912 PM. It's located there in Somerville.

42:33Um, very family oriented. Then it kind

42:35of shows you there how they're going to

42:37have some line dancing, food trucks as

42:39well as live performances and raffles.

42:42And of course, as always, they're

42:44definitely going to be doing some free

42:45testing there for all of those who

42:47attend and are are interested.

42:51Alrighty, I'm moving on to the last

42:54initiative uh for the month that I do

42:57have. Um and the last one that we do

43:00have is of course um our friends with

43:04the uh North Charleston uh police

43:07department. They are hosting their

43:09national night out. Um this is of course

43:11a community block party that they're

43:13hosting at the riverfront park. Um it is

43:16hosted on September the 29th at 5:00 pm.

43:20Of course uh this is initiative we will

43:22also be there as the department of

43:24public health will um u support in all

43:27efforts. They'll have a free free food.

43:30Um, of course they'll have as it

43:32pertains just a way um other community

43:35partners will be there as well to just

43:37be um build that connection when it

43:40comes to the community and the uh police

43:43department so that therefore we can

43:44continue to better and improve our

43:47community as a whole. So that is all the

43:51community events that I have for the

43:53month of September. as uh Paul did

43:56mention there are um the various ones

43:59but I did forget as as soon as I just

44:02said that I did forget um the

44:04opportunity also that is out there for

44:07our community members as well. So Paul

44:10give me just a moment to share that as

44:13well. And of course here if you u can

44:17see and I'm going to kind of pull it up

44:18a little closely. Um uh one of the

44:21things that our team does is of course

44:23we work um and a part of the MUSC um um

44:28our partnership with MUSC children's

44:30health. We provide um some opportunities

44:33for car seat checks. We are part of the

44:36uh uh Safe Kids Charleston area

44:39coalition. And at this time we're this

44:42month is uh child passenger safety

44:44month. So, we're giving an opportunity

44:46for those families to come out and be

44:49able to get their car seat checks. Um,

44:52of course, it's very important as those

44:54uh to um we are in this space to try to

44:57prevent a lot of those accident injuries

45:00and deaths during the time when it comes

45:03to um when it comes to our little ones

45:05um just being able to be safely uh

45:08secured in any type of vehicle. So

45:10therefore, we're asking and of course

45:12showing those opportunities for

45:15throughout the tri county that of course

45:18from um of course starting tomorrow um

45:21we'll be at the River Dog Stadium um

45:24being able to provide working with the

45:26Charleston Fire Department to provide

45:28some car seat checks from 8:30 to 10:30.

45:32And of course, at the same time, this

45:34list shows that we are going out through

45:36the entire part of the uh month up until

45:39September the 26th to provide this um

45:42ending it in Goose Creek. So, a great

45:45opportunity for, you know, just, you

45:47know, we always have families that come

45:49and say, "Hey, I just, you know, just

45:51want to make sure my car my little one

45:53car seat is checked." Um, you know, and

45:56and and there's always a great

45:57opportunity to do that. Um, of course,

45:59we do provide educations to the families

46:02and of course uh my staff usually are a

46:05part of that as uh at least three of

46:07them are child passenger seat safety

46:10technicians. So um as they're certified

46:12to provide uh education as well as uh

46:16properly um assist with in installation

46:18of those car seats. Um and that is all I

46:21have. Any questions regarding those

46:23community events?

46:26And I know that was a lot. [laughter]

46:29>> Wow. An incredible amount of uh great

46:31events going on. Lamar Hajes, thank you

46:34so much. Paul,

46:39>> no. I I just wanted to just emphasize

46:41that um that what Lamar said is that the

46:45public health um department is willing

46:47to be at all your events and to bring as

46:51as Jennifer or Jonathan or others have

46:54stuff with them. And I I do the same

46:57with my events. And I just hope that we

46:59all aren't don't feel like we can't ask

47:02because we can ask each other for help

47:04because we're all engaged together. So,

47:07thank you for that.

47:09>> Very good.

47:11Any other any questions or comments for

47:13Lamar Hodgeges? Well, thank you so much

47:17for all of that information. That's

47:18that's great. Um

47:21um I'll just kind of open it up. I know

47:24Dr. Durst uh had something she wanted to

47:26share if you're available. in here. Dr.

47:29>> Hi, good morning. Thank you very much.

47:32Yes, I put in there um well, first I

47:34want to tell Lamar and uh Jennifer and

47:37um other gentlemen that was very

47:39important and for those that don't know

47:42most of the time in primary care for the

47:44suicide prevention, we're very big on

47:46that. I know Roper and MUSC and I love

47:49that y'all brought up the 988 um

47:51information because that's very

47:53important to get out for people. And

47:55there's also a big push to help with

47:58physicians um for suicide prevention

48:01within the physician and health care

48:03community since we take care of a lot of

48:05people. Um the main thing that's coming

48:08up as our school and health wellness

48:09committee just had a big meeting last

48:11week. We're gearing up. I'll have some

48:13more information next time to talk about

48:16it. Um but that's exciting. A lot of the

48:19teachers and the nurses, they're working

48:20with the different vaccines that are out

48:23there and the flu definitely coming

48:26around. We are seeing flu and some COVID

48:29in the area. Um so that's important. And

48:32our biggest thing is this weekend, which

48:34I mentioned before, is the Low Country

48:37Jazz Festival, the Gillyard, which was

48:40um founded by Dr. Thaddius Bell, family

48:42medicine doctor, who's done a lot in the

48:45community. We're giving out a $20,000

48:48scholarship to someone that's um I can't

48:51tell you who now, but I'll tell you next

48:53the next time who um is at MUSC that

48:58does a lot for the community. And this

49:01is Dr. Fattius Bell's closing the gap in

49:04healthc care and helping helping healthc

49:07care make sense. He is doing some

49:10lectures at the Marriott downtown before

49:13the event on jazzing with sugar and

49:15jazzing with uh diabetes. He is also

49:19going to be talking about PSA and

49:21prostate cancer is very big and about

49:23diabetes. So that's um open to the

49:26public those free things. I'll see Paul

49:28if I can get some information. But the

49:31Low Country Jazz Festival is on Friday,

49:33Saturday, and Sunday. So I hope y'all

49:35can come.

49:36Thank you. Great. Thank you, Dr.

49:40>> All right. Anyone else have something

49:42they want to share? Kevin,

49:47before um I jump in because I know Nick

49:49wants to say something about his walk

49:51coming up. But um I did want to

49:53introduce uh Gori and I'm going to try

49:56it

49:58soon

50:00Kamar

50:02my close. She is a public health major

50:05at the College of Charleston, a senior

50:07interning with me this semester. She's

50:09from the uh Columbia area and um and I

50:13know she's going to be excited to get to

50:15know know y'all and figure out how we

50:17can help crosspromote y'all's events as

50:20well too. So, just welcome Gor Re.

50:22>> Yeah, welcome. Thank you for being here.

50:24>> Thank you. Nice to meet y'all. Um thank

50:26you for letting me join. Um it was good

50:29to hear about the different events. I've

50:30been trying to look through um the

50:32different events in the Charleston area

50:34for the month of September. So, it's

50:36definitely really fun to learn a lot

50:37more about them.

50:40>> Very good. Thank you so much for being

50:42with us.

50:45>> Um I did want to mention that the um

50:49we've we've got the Moa Arts Festival

50:52coming up for um the city of Charleston.

50:54Uh it's going to start off September

50:5624th at 11:00 a.m. in Marian Square. Um

50:59there'll be picnics, food trucks. Um

51:02there's going to be a drum line battle

51:03that day with Burke High School,

51:05Timberland High School, and uh Woodlands

51:08High School. Um but it'll go it'll go

51:10eight days and um great events on on

51:13every day throughout those those eight

51:15days. Um and tickets are still

51:18available. Um citypapertick.com

51:21if anyone's interested. Uh you can pick

51:23up those. And just want to remind you

51:25that we do have our farmers markets um

51:27that are open uh West Ashley farmers

51:30markets open um Wednesday afternoons and

51:34um then Saturday mornings well Saturday

51:36from 8 to 2 we have Marian Square has

51:39the big farmers market as well. So lots

51:42of fresh produce there. So um anyone

51:45else have something to share?

51:49>> Yeah, thanks Paul. Maybe I can just jump

51:51in. I think you're Are you going to

51:52share the screen? Looks like September

51:54is an incredibly busy month. So Lamar,

51:56thank you so much for all of the events

51:58that that you've highlighted along with

52:00everyone else as well. But just to

52:02remind everyone, I mentioned this last

52:03time, but we have our sixth annual Walk

52:05to Fight Hunger. Uh that's taking place

52:08on Saturday, September the 26th at Want

52:10to Make a Park. Um it's a great event

52:13just to come out and be with community

52:15to um recognize um September as hunger

52:19action month. This is the month that we

52:22spend a lot of time and effort not just

52:24as the low country food bank but as part

52:27of the feeding America network across

52:29the whole of the US um raising awareness

52:33to issues of hunger and food insecurity

52:36and as we all know hunger and food

52:37insecurity doesn't sit in isolation

52:40uh it has impacts and consequences

52:42across the board uh and makes life very

52:46difficult for many of our neighbors. So,

52:48we will be drawing attention to that

52:49during this month um and coming together

52:52as community on September the 26th uh to

52:56do a a two-mile interactive walk. You

52:58don't have to walk, you can just come

52:59out. There'll be lots of community

53:01partners with tables, lots of things to

53:03do on the day as well. Um so, just come

53:06out and enjoy the day. Um if nothing

53:08else. So, would be very much looking

53:11forward to see as many people as

53:12possible out there on Saturday the 26th

53:15of September.

53:17Great. Thank you, Nick. Um,

53:22anyone else?

53:27All right. Um,

53:31okay. Well, um, that kind of brings us

53:34to the end of our agenda. If, uh, if

53:36there's nothing else, I just want to

53:38tell you thank you very much for

53:40spending some time with us and it was a

53:42great meeting today. a lot of great

53:43information and uh appreciate uh all the

53:46work Jennifer Brush and Jonathan Kesler

53:48are doing as well as Lamar Hodgeges and

53:51um just thank y'all for everything you

53:53do in uh making our uh community

53:56healthier and safer and um you know just

54:00just appreciate your time this morning.

54:02If um was there something in let's see

54:05something in the chat there we need to

54:08mention

54:11before we go.

54:13Joyce Antetti, did you want to say

54:16something?

54:19>> I just wanted to let Nick know um Low

54:22Country Food Bank supports the Trident

54:24Technical College uh grocery vault and I

54:26just wanted to make sure uh I appreci I

54:29wanted to let you know how much we

54:30appreciate what you do and we you will

54:32have a team out there to help support

54:34you guys. So that's all I want to say

54:36about that.

54:37>> Great.

54:38>> Thank you very much, Joyce. Greatly

54:39appreciated for all the work you do as

54:41well. the partnership.

54:44>> All right. Very good. Was there anything

54:46else to come before this committee? If

54:49not, thank you so much for your

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