Welcome to the Health Promotion & Prevention Newsletter, released by Marion County's Health Promotion & Prevention Team! In this newsletter, our team shares information, tips, news, and community work being done to promote health and prevent disease in Marion County.
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What's in this Article: Table of Contents
Upcoming Trainings:
- March 2: I Didn't Know That! The Scoop on Youth Gaming & Gambling
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Limited Space! March 2 (7-part series): Getting Ready for Sustainability Planning: An Enhanced Prevention Learning Series
- March 6: Responding to Disasters: Principles and Considerations for Behavioral Health
- March 8: Prevention Spotlight: Investigative Reporting on Excessive Alcohol Use
- March 8: Engaging Youth in Your Work: Where Are the Opportunities with Providers & Teens Connecting for Health
- March 9: Trauma-Informed Practices
- March 21 (3-part series): Social Media Best Practices & Media Literacy
- April 6: Emotional Eating - An Introduction
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Local! In-Person! April 7 & 8: ASIST Suicide Prevention Training
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Local! In-Person! April 13: Empowered Relief for Pain Management
- April 18: But You Never Asked Me: Addressing the Stigmatization of Families within Child & Youth Serving Systems
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Local! In-Person! April 24 (6-part series): Freedom from Smoking
Additional trainings and education opportunities not listed can be found at:
Know of another organization that provides great trainings and want to share with our network? Let us know at MCHDPrevention@co.marion.or.us.
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Training Spotlight: ASIST Suicide Intervention
April 7 & 8th, limited space!
More information & sign up at Mid-Valley Suicide Prevention Coalition
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High School Learning Opportunity: Mental Health Video Contest!
Deadline April 24th
High School teens in Marion & Polk County are invited to participate in a video competition to increase awareness about mental health from the perspective of youth. Awards for teens and sponsoring classes or organizations will be provided to the first 20 submissions and Top-3 Finishers.
Click here for more information, to see previous winners, and register
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Middle School Learning Opportunity: Problem Gambling Awareness Art Contest!
Deadline April 14, 2023
Every year, the Oregon Health Authority and Marion County Problem Gambling Prevention put on a youth art contest during Problem Gambling Awareness Month! Middle School youth apply concepts of problem gambling into artwork, and submissions from across Oregon come in. Last year, 5 middle school artists made it into the OHA Problem Gambling Prevention Calendar! We hope to keep our trend of local representation strong! If you have a classroom or individual middle school youth interested in participating, go to Art.MCHealthy.Net for a registration form.
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March is Problem Gambling Awareness Month
 Gambling is an activity that carries risk. During Problem Gambling Awareness Month this year, we encourage all our community partners and residents to increase their awareness to problem gambling and available prevention, treatment, and recovery services. Marion County's Problem Gambling Prevention Program focuses our prevention efforts on increasing community awareness, especially among vulnerable populations such as youth, Spanish speakers, and older adults. See our 2023 Latino/a/x and Spanish Speaking Problem Gambling Prevention Community Readiness Report and writeup below, contact us if you would like classroom presentations on Problem Gambling and problem gaming, and visit our website for more information!
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April is Alcohol Awareness Month
Alcohol Awareness Month is a health awareness campaign that was formerly sponsored by the National Council for Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD). It took place every April and was established in 1987 with the aim of raising awareness for communities and to help understand the causes and treatment available for one of the nation's biggest health issues. The campaign also aimed to reduce the social stigma associated with alcoholism and to educate people on how the disease can be addressed; offering help and advice for families as well as direct engagement with those afflicted with alcohol addiction.
If you would like to request a guest speaker or learn more, visit our website for more information!
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month
Grace Merrick, Public Health Intern
University: Oregon State University
Major: Public Health - Health Promotion & Health Behavior
What projects are you working on?
Grace is excited to join the team as an intern. She will be spending her time working with the Alcohol and Drug Prevention and Education team. She looks forward to gaining experience in the field of Public Health. Grace is currently enrolled at Oregon State University where she will graduate with a Bachelors of Science in Public Health with a concentration in Health Promotion and Health Behavior. In her free time, Grace works as a caregiver, enjoys spending time with friends and family, reading, and spending time outdoors.
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Bridget Bodor, Public Health Intern
University: Willamette University
Major: Public Health and Environmental Science
What projects are you working on?
Bridget is excited to intern with the prevention team this winter and spring. She is currently a senior Public Health, Environmental Science, and Spanish student at Willamette University. She is passionate about environmental resiliency and public health prevention and education. Bridget is also a member of the Willamette Women's soccer team, and enjoys hiking, skiing, traveling, writing and reading. She's looking forward to learning more about public health!
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Nathan Garcia-Diaz, Public Health Intern
University: Willamette University
Major: Public Health and Biology
What projects are you working on?
Nathan Garcia-Diaz is interning with our team to work on the GIS mapping project and is double majoring in Biology and Public Health, with a minor in Data Science at Willamette University. With an interest in the impacts of societal structures on disease susceptibility and transmission, Nathan wants to devote their professional career in public health epidemiology to making scientific research more accessible to the public. Nathan is currently waiting acceptances to Master of Public Health programs in epidemiology.
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We are also excited to announce that Sonia Zand (previously working as a Public Health Intern) has accepted an official position on our Health Promotion & Prevention Team and WIC Program. Congratulations Sonia and welcome aboard!
Click the image to read the full report in English or Spanish!
Project Overview & Partnership
The Marion County Problem Gambling Prevention program partnered with Mano a Mano to conduct a Community Readiness Assessment (CRA) between May - December 2022. The purpose, to improve our understanding of problem gambling in Latino/a/x and Spanish Speaking communities in Marion County. Interviews of key Latino/a/x community stakeholders and community Cafecitos (focus groups) in Spanish were conducted, and a report was completed in English and Spanish to highlight the results. This partnership was crucial to gain trusted community feedback and build capacity to improve services and outreach to Latino/a/x and Spanish speaking individuals, families, and communities.
Who is Mano a Mano Family Center?
Mano a Mano Family center, established in 1988, is the oldest Latino and immigrant-led community-based organization in Salem-Keizer, Oregon. Their mission “is to strengthen families by promoting hope and resiliency, and reducing stress among the people we serve.” They reach over 3,000 families who live in Marion, Polk, and six other counties in Oregon. They “work to improve the social determinants of health, and to address the adverse community experiences that impact the health and wellbeing of the community." They help people access basic needs and support, particularly in a crisis; they support neighborhood groups to connect people to each other; they help parents access parenting classes and support for children to be ready for kindergarten; they help youth receive mentoring support and opportunities for leadership. Mano a Mano is also the home for a community radio station that broadcasts in Spanish and in some Mesoamerican Indigenous languages (KTUP 98.3 FM), and the oldest youth-led organization in Salem-Keizer.
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Thank you Mano a Mano!
The CRA was possible because of the partnership with Mano a Mano and their connection and trust with the Latino/a/x and Spanish Speaking community. Mano a Mano’s partnership was instrumental in having the community’s voices and values present throughout the project. Marion County Problem Gambling Prevention program is excited to continue this partnership with Mano a Mano.
Marion County is a great place to live and work. For many people, that also involves driving and we want to remind you to buckle up. Every trip. Every time.
We know that most people in Marion County want to be safe and protect kids when behind the wheel. That is why people in our community, like Child Passenger Safety Tech Instructor Michelle Nichols at OHSU was drawn to this work in injury prevention.
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When we know better, we can do better protecting kids from injury in auto crashes. Like many families, using a car seat may be scary. Every caregiver, grandparent, and parent should feel comfortable installing car seats correctly in the car they use every time, because kids count on us to keep them safe. Children must be in the right seat for that child and that seat must be installed correctly in that car for it to offer the best protection in a crash.
Looking for the right seat? Different sized kids may need booster seats to help seat belts with the best fit. One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to your child, pick a booster seat that will help make sure your child is protected in crash as long as they need it to be securely belted in their seat. Community partners like Nicole Charlson with ODOT traffic safety remind us that there is a tool out there to help you decide what seat would be best for your child at www.nhtsa.gov/campaign/right-seat
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Especially in cold weather in Oregon, remember that blankets are a good alternative to heavy, puffy coats, which can cause the car seat harness to not fit snugly.
And lastly, there are so many partners ready to help you if you have concerns or questions about your car seat. Santiam Hospital, Keizer Fire, Community Action Agency, Marion County and other area non-profits have Certified Technicians who are ready to keep kids safe in Marion County.
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Drew Paul, one of our Prevention Team Health Educators, joined Tamara Burkovskaya on Slavic Family Radio 1040 AM to talk about tobacco cessation resources in Marion County.
This broadcast was the latest installment in a tobacco prevention media campaign developed for the Slavic/Eastern European Community by Language Link LLC in partnership with Marion County Health & Human Services. Follow the link to listen to Drew and Tamara’s conversation and keep an eye on Slavic Family Radio and Afisha Magazine for more tobacco prevention highlights in the coming months!
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A recent study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics shows an alarming national trend of accidental consumption of cannabis edibles, such as brownies and gummies, among children under the age of 6. The rates of accidental exposure to cannabis edibles has skyrocketed in recent years. The study analyzed data from the National Poison Data System from 2017 to 2021 that showed a 1375% increase in accidental pediatric cannabis exposure during that time period. The graph shows the increase in pediatric edible cannabis ingestions per 1000 pediatric calls to the National Poison Data System.
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Cannabis users should always ensure products are stored in out of reach locations, ideally secured in a locked location such as a lockbox or locked cupboard or cabinet. To encourage and remind cannabis users to safely store their product away from children, Marion County Substance Abuse Prevention is promoting a campaign called Secure Your Cannabis. We have been distributing Secure Your Cannabis cards in English and Spanish, and a limited number of small lockboxes to programs that serve families and children and cannabis retailers. Community organizations and businesses can contact ddickey@co.marion.or.us to request cards or lockboxes (subject to availability). To learn more visit: www.co.marion.or.us/HLT/PH/PS/prevention/Pages/syc.aspx
Marion County Health Promotion & Prevention will be highlighting various programs and health topics to keep you connected to the most important Health Promotion Topics in next newsletter. This newsletter will be released in the first week of June 2023. If there is a subject you would like covered, please let us know through the email below.
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