Title
AN ORDINANCE relating to Seattle-King County department of public health; and amending Ordinance 12529, Section 2, as amended, and K.C.C. 2.16.080.
Body
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY:
SECTION 1. Ordinance 1229, Section 2, as amended, and K.C.C. 2.16.080 are each hereby amended to read as follows:
A. Since 1951, the city of Seattle and the county have jointly financed and operated a city-county health department. As of January 1, 1981, the city of Seattle and the county established a combined city-county health department known as the Seattle-King County department of public health under chapters 70.05 and 70.08 RCW and certain city ordinances and county resolutions and ordinances. The director of the department shall be jointly appointed by the mayor of the city and the county executive, subject to confirmation by the city and county councils, and may be removed by the county executive, after consultation with the mayor, upon filing a statement of the reasons therefor with the city and county councils as authorized by RCW 70.08.040. The director shall be responsible for the management of the department.
B. As provided in the agreement between King County and the city of Seattle entitled "1996 Agreement Regarding the Seattle-King County Department of Public Health" approved by the county council by Motion 9999, the department shall be responsible for providing a functionally integrated set of services and programs that are fully responsive to urban, suburban city and unincorporated communities. The department shall achieve and sustain healthy people and healthy communities throughout King County by providing public health services that promote health and prevent disease, including, but not limited to: providing needed or mandated prevention or intervention services to address individual and community health concerns; assessing and monitoring the health status of communities; preventing disease, injury, disability and premature death; promoting healthy living conditions and healthy behaviors; and controlling and reducing the exposure of individuals and communities to environmental or personal hazards. The department shall assess the health of King County residents and communities, facilitate planning to develop responses to issues which affect the public's health and evaluate the effectiveness of programs and initiatives which address these issues. The department shall include an emergency medical services division, an environmental health division, a prevention division, a community oriented primary care division, an alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse prevention division, an administrative services division and regional services areas. The department shall manage children and family programs and shall provide administrative support to the children and family commission.
C. To fulfill the purpose of reducing death and disability from accidents, acute illness, injuries and other medical emergencies, the duties of the emergency medical services division shall include the following:
1. Track and analyze service and program needs of the emergency medical services system in the county, and plan and implement emergency medical programs, services and delivery systems based on uniform data and standard emergency medical incident reporting;
2. Set standards for emergency medical services training and implement emergency medical service personnel training programs, including, but not limited to, public education, communication and response capabilities and transportation of the sick and injured;
3. Coordinate all aspects of emergency medical services in the county with local, state and federal governments and other counties, municipalities and special districts for the purpose of improving the quality and quantity of emergency medical services and disaster response in King County; and
4. Analyze and coordinate the disaster response capabilities of the department.
D. The duties of the environmental health division shall include the following:
1. Inspect and monitor regulated facilities to ensure compliance with public health codes, rules and regulations;
2. Investigate complaints or special programs, such as disease outbreaks, sewage spills or toxic spills, identified by the public, the media or public officials;
3. Advise or educate the public on health risks associated with environmental hazards; ((and))
4. Enforce public health codes, rules and regulations within the jurisdictions of the division;
5. Provide veterinary medical care for animals in the custody of King County's animal care and control authority; and
6. Fulfill zoonotic disease control responsibilities in accordance with WAC 246-100-191 and 246-101-405.
E. The duties of the prevention division shall include the following:
1. Reduce the public's exposure to communicable diseases through surveillance and outbreak investigation;
2. Lower the occurrence of chronic diseases, injury and violence in the community through strategies which reduce the frequency of risk factors for these conditions;
3. Promote and provide public education and research in the development of prevention models;
4. Perform specific public health services including vital statistics and laboratory functions; and
5. Perform medical examiner and statutory coroner duties, except for the holding of inquests, which function is vested in the county executive.
F. The community oriented primary care division shall focus the department's clinical leadership, health services and expertise and strengthens quality systems and effective care partnerships with government, business and community-based organizations. To maintain the community health care system, the duties of the division shall include the following:
1. Develop benchmarks of service quality, clinical guidelines and standards of excellence for the health department;
2. Provide leadership and coordination with health care providers, government agencies, businesses and community groups in the provision of primary health services to at-risk populations in King County;
3. Develop, implement and monitor a systematic, comprehensive system of health service delivery in King County that improves health outcomes by connecting community-based intervention and strategies with the health care of individuals;
4. Develop responsive service delivery and access mechanisms to meet the changing health care needs of at-risk populations in King County; and
5. Provide basic primary care services to detainees of the King County adult detention facilities.
G. The duties of the alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse prevention division shall include the following:
1. Administer, staff and provide technical expertise to department programs related to the prevention of alcoholism and substance abuse;
2. Provide prevention services on alcoholism and other drug addictions under federal and state laws and King County ordinances;
3. Link and integrate alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse interventions with public health functions and activities; and
4. Provide for the delivery of alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse services in correctional facilities.
H. The duties of the administrative services division shall include the following:
1. Provide administrative and technical support to the department;
2. Oversee the administrative systems and activities of the department; and
3. Provide general support within the department as authorized elsewhere in this chapter.
I. In addition to divisions, the department shall be organized into regional service areas that will directly provide department activities, services and programs within identified geographic boundaries in the county.