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Date: 12/21/2021
HATFIELD – Northampton won a state grant for shared health services and approached the town of Hatfield about supplying those services for free. The new program went live on Dec. 4.
“I think this is great,” said Hatfield Select Board Chair Diane Szynal. “There’ll be a couple bumps in the road, as we figure out how this works, but in the long run this will be a very good thing.”
The city won a Public Health Excellence grant from the state Office of Local and Regional Health. Dr. Robert Osley, chair of Hatfield’s Board of Health, came before the Select Board to explain the partnership is not COVID-19 specific, it will include other services.
“The programming,” said Osley, will also address “various diseases, diabetes, smoking, substance abuse, fall prevention for seniors, injury prevention. On Saturday the nurse said, flat out, until we’re done with vaccination clinics none of these value added services will happen.”
Vaccine clinics and contact tracing are COVID-19 services that will be shared by city and town, if health professionals are available. Currently there is no staff for contact tracing at the school; but at this point, Osley said, he vetted the program and knows the Northampton personnel will serve the town well.
“Saturday, when we had the 5-to-11-year-olds vaccinated at the school,” Osley said, referring to a recent clinic. “It was a very smoothly run operation ... They’re all good people, with good backgrounds, who want to deliver a good quality service, so I felt very comfortable pursuing this.”
The bumps Szynal anticipated center on communication between town and city. While the program began four days before, the specifics of how services are provided to Hatfield residents is still not entirely unclear.
“Will townspeople be able to reach out?” Szynal asked. “Who would they turn to? I’ve had those questions.”
Elizabeth Kugler sits on the town’s Board of Health, now serves as the school liaison. The coordinator and contact person in Northampton has not been decided. Claudia Sarti continues as the town’s COVID-19 coordinator, but will step back from monitoring for infections, which will be carried out by Northampton staff.
“We would expect there’ll be some community back and forth to figure out who’s who,” said Select Board Vice Chair Brian Moriarty. “The more information, and the sooner we get it, as regards COVID, is the important piece of that right now.”
And the funding. Osley informed the board that the grant is for three years, “not just a one-year,” and Northampton assumes responsibility for administration of the program. Osley said, “But we are going to have to develop that rapport with Northampton.”
Szynal said, “The interesting thing is the School Department interfacing with Northampton, Bob. How will that happen? I think they need a lot of support. I can tell you personally, there have been some inconsistencies in the response things the school has done. And how do we get on top of that? Is there a role for Northampton in doing that, in assisting them with that?”
During a Board of Health Dec. 16, 12 days after the program went live, Osley asked for patience.
“Just to let everyone know,” Osley said, “things are still being evolved as far as protocols, making sure communications are open and information is shared appropriately. I do appreciate both people from different town departments, as well as the general public, being patient and flexible as a lot of this is getting worked out.”
Sharing health services among municipalities is not new. According to the Office of Local and Regional Health, 23 percent of Bay State residents are served by multi-town health services. A total of 117 towns, mostly rural, participate in shared health service arrangements.