2019 Excellence in Public Health Awards Announced

Posted on 04/12/2019

In recognition of National Public Health Week, Lane County Public Health (LCPH) and the Lane County Board of County Commissioners acting as the Board of Health will honor Maegan Quillan, RN, BSN and the Lane County School Nurses as the recipients of the annual Excellence in Public Health Awards during the Board of Health Meeting, Tuesday, April 16th. Every year, Lane County Public Health nominates one (1) individual and one (1) organization who have demonstrated excellence in helping to make Lane County a healthier place to live, work and play for consideration from the Board. 

“These awards are more than a formality for us,” said Dr. Jocelyn Warren, Lane County Public Health Manager. “This is a way for us to recognize our community partners who have gone above and beyond in their work to improve the overall quality of life for the people of Lane County.” 

Below are this year’s recipients:

Individual
Maegan Quillan: Maegan was an RN to BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) student intern at Public Health a few years ago while working in her current position at the Lane County jail. After completing her BSN and armed with increased knowledge of public health, Maegan became a critical link to care for her patients in the jail. She notified Public Health when there was a suspicious tuberculosis case in her facility, she then did the treatment and monthly visits for the Communicable Disease (CD) team for 10 months. She has increased STI testing at the jail, she works with CD nurses to be certain that inmates who have been tested elsewhere are treated for STIs, she works closely with the Disease Investigation Specialist to help locate patients who need testing and treatment. Thanks to Maegan, the Lane County jail has become an important community partner for the Public Health team.

Organization
Lane County School Nurses (from multiple districts): During what turned into the Lane County pertussis outbreak, the Communicable Disease (CD) team worked closely with multiple school nurses to identify and track pertussis cases in individual schools. These nurses worked in partnership with the CD team with the shared goal of limiting the spread of infection to students and vulnerable community members. The school nurses were often in the unfortunate role of having to implement the public health actions, some of which were unpopular. Through it all they were responsive, collaborative and even cheerful! Because the Public Health team is small, we rely on community partners who understand the importance of disease surveillance and prevention. The school nurses definitely “got it” and thus richly deserve this award.