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Writer's picturePapilio
Sep 1, 20237 min read

OEHA E-Blast: AEC Draft Agenda, webinars, trainings and more!




There's a lot going on with Environmental Health in Oregon! Get the latest OEHA AEC Draft Agenda, read about National Food Safety Education Month, register for Private Well webinars and more in this edition of the OEHA E-Blast. Please pass these helpful resources along to others in your agency and community who may benefit from this important public health information!

Oregon Environmental Health News and Resources:

  • OEHA's annual education conference is coming up Tuesday-Thursday, October 24-26, 2023 at the Agate Beach Inn in Newport, Oregon. The OEHA AEC draft agenda is now available on the OEHA website and has two tracks packed with presentations covering both general Environmental Health and Onsite Wastewater. An exciting lineup of presenters includes Keynote Speaker Dr. David Dyjack, President of NEHA, June Bancroft, senior epidemiologist from OHA’s Acute and Communicable Disease Prevention Program, Katey Kennedy from the FDA, Scott Hammerschmidt from Orenco, Dan Bush, EN Tech, Verbal Judo training from Detective Jason Spano from Lincoln County, and many more. Spots are limited and are filling up fast, so register today! We still have openings for additional Conference Sponsors and are seeking donations for our Silent Auction. Learn more here: 2023 AEC | OEHA (oregoneha.org)


  • OEHA's Trainee Study Group is going strong! We started our second Trainee Study Group session on July 7th and are meeting virtually every Friday from 9-10am on Zoom until mid-December. This session, we are utilizing the Environmental Public Health Online Courses- EPHOC from Tulane. If you know of any REHS Trainees in your area, please point them our way to connect! REHS Trainee Resources | OEHA (oregoneha.org) The OEHA Trainee Study Group is available at no cost to all Oregon REHS Trainees who are current OEHA Members.


  • September is National Food Safety Education Month! Each September for 25 years, in recognition of National Food Safety Education Month, health educators and consumers have focused on the most effective ways to avoid foodborne illness, often called food poisoning. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 48 million persons — or 1 of every 6 people get foodborne infections each year. Of those, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die from their foodborne illness. This year FDA wants to bring special attention to people who are at higher risk and help them, their family members, and caregivers by highlighting food safety information to avoid foodborne illness. High-risk people include children under 5 (as their immune systems are not fully developed) and those with immune systems weakened by pregnancy, aging, certain chronic diseases or autoimmune disorders, and immunosuppressive treatments. Use the social media messages from FDA to show your support for National Food Safety Education Month (NFSEM) and to encourage your community to keep food safe: Food Safety Education Month | FDA Here are some FDA Food Safety Resources for People at Higher Risk:


  • Clean Hands Are Within Reach! October 15 is Global Handwashing Day, a global advocacy day dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding about the importance of handwashing with soap as an effective and affordable way to prevent diseases and save lives.


Upcoming Webinars:

  • Join the NEHA Preparedness Committee for upcoming webinar: Successes and Challenges of Coordinating Across Sectors to Enhance Preparedness and Response to Environmental Health Disasters on September 25. Learn from federal, state, and local emergency response professionals about their strategies for smooth coordination across sectors during environmental health disasters. Register: https://www.neha.org/sept-preparedness-webinar


  • Recognizing and Preparing for Alpha-gal Syndrome AKA "Red Meat Allergy" This CDC report highlights areas within states with suspected cases of alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), commonly known as red meat allergy. AGS is an emerging condition that develops after a tick bite. The agency reports that between 2010 and 2022, there were more than 110,000 suspected cases of AGS identified. Even as suspected AGS cases increase yearly, a survey found that nearly half (42%) of U.S. healthcare professionals (HCPs) had never heard of AGS. Among those HCPs who had, less than one third (29%) knew how to diagnose the condition. The CDC has developed a free CME/CE training so learners are better able to self-assess gaps in their knowledge regarding the diagnosis and management of patients with AGS. Access the training here.


  • Join The Global Handwashing Partnership on Tuesday, September 12, for our annual Global Handwashing Day Briefing Call! During this call, they will go over this year’s theme and calls to action and share details around this year’s resources. This call is a great way for you to share your Global Handwashing Day celebrations, get inspired by others, and network with other celebrants in your region. Register here.




  • Get to Know the Retail Food Safety Regulatory Association Collaborative Do you know when and where the Retail Program Standards Self-Assessment and Verification Audit Workshops are happening this year? Find retail food safety news and events on the Collaborative's website, and subscribe to their mailing list to get notifications of upcoming events straight to your inbox. Visit retailfoodsafetycollaborative.org today.







  • Spark! Webinar Series Spark! is an ongoing series of members-only skill-building webinars, provided in short half hour segments to fit into your busy schedule. Each webinar provides .5 CEs toward maintaining your NEHA credential.


  • Environmental Health Grand Rounds These virtual seminars were specifically chosen for undergraduate and graduate students studying environmental sciences and environmental public health. The series highlights the workforce behind environmental health.


  • 2024 InFORM The Integrated Foodborne Outbreak Response and Management (InFORM) Conference brings together the network of public health officials involved with foodborne and enteric disease outbreak response.

Scholarships and Opportunities:



  • NEHA has opened a Call for Abstracts for the 2024 NEHA Annual Educational Conference (AEC) & Exhibition! They invite you to take advantage of this opportunity to provide unique insights and share your experience, expertise, knowledge, and research by submitting an abstract for the 2024 NEHA AEC in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on July 15-18, 2024.


  • Call for Abstracts: 2024 NACCHO Preparedness Summit The Preparedness Summit, the country’s first and longest running national conference on public health preparedness, is now accepting abstracts. The theme for our next Preparedness Summit, Public Health, Healthcare, and Emergency Management: Aligning to Address Cascading Challenges, provides an opportunity for sectors to come together, align missions, and discover better ways to work as true partners to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. Submit an abstract by September 15.


  • The Global Handwashing Partnership is hosting a creative contest that aims to encourage youth (18 years and under) to express their ideas and creativity through a short music video promoting clean hands. The submission deadline has been extended to Wednesday, September 20. Contest guidelines are available here.




Employment Opportunities



Who said it?


"We never know the worth of water until the well is dry."











Who said it from the previous E-Blast?


“Sometimes the manufacturers of food don’t think of it as food. It becomes a commodity.”

- Bill Marler, an American personal injury lawyer and food safety advocate, as quoted in the documentary "Poisoned"


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