As we all know, West Virginia is at the heart of an opioid crisis in the United States. But were you aware that in 2015, 6.4 million Americans abused controlled prescription drugs? And that a majority of those drugs were obtained from family and friends, often from a medicine cabinet?

That’s just one reason why National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is so important. Another one? Accidental exposure to medicine in the home is a major source of unintentional pediatric poisonings in the United States. Each year in the U.S, approximately 60,000 emergency department visits and 450,000 calls to poison centers are made after children under 6 years of age find and take medication.

You might be tempted to just throw medications out at home. You can, but it’s a chore. You would have to take your medications (do not crush them) and mix them in a sealable bag or container with an unpalatable substance, i.e., something that’s not edible and tasty, such as dirt, cat litter or coffee grounds. Then you can throw the bag out. Make sure to mark your personal info off the prescription bottle before you toss it too.

Or you can just participate in National Prescription Take-Back Day, the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) designated time to educate people about this process and give them the opportunity to just drop off their unused medications.

This year, the event takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 28. Monongalia County has at least five convenient designated locations that are participating. They include all three Kroger stores: 350 Patteson Drive, 1851 Earl L. Core Road and 500 Suncrest Town Center Drive; Pierpont Landing Pharmacy, 7000 Mid-Atlantic Drive; and the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department, 116 Walnut St.

This gives you a couple of days to add another spring cleaning task to your to-do list: go through cabinets and drawers looking for medications that have expired and/or that you are no longer taking.

You might be enticed to flush prescription drugs down the toilet as an easy way to get rid of them, but that is not environmentally sound. The U.S. Food & Drug Agency (FDA) does offer a small list of medications that can be flushed down the toilet, but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) advises against it, noting that the medications can end up in our drinking water sources.

And while the U.S. Food & Drug Agency suggests the above method for disposing of drugs in the garbage if a take-back site is not available, in Monongalia County, we are lucky to have at least two year-round sites where we can dispose of medications: the Morgantown Police Department at 300 Spruce St. and City Hall in Star City at 370 Broadway Ave.

The Morgantown Police Department disposal container is a big red metal box in the office lobby that is accessible 24/7. It was installed about a year ago with the help of a grant from CVS after officials there got the idea from Star City. The Star City container is accessible from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday when City Hall is open.

While it’s great to have that resource year-round, late April is a great time to do some spring cleaning around the house. And if you have to run to the grocery store, you can multi-task and drop off your unused prescription drugs. So, mark National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on your calendar.

In the 1950s, nearly every child eventually came down with a case of measles. Unfortunately, some died from the disease. Polio also was known to hit children and adults back then as well.

More than half a century later, it’s a very different picture for babies born in the new millennium. Many of today’s practicing physicians have never seen a case of measles. And polio has been eradicated from the United States since 1979.

Thanks to immunizations, we can now protect infants and children from 14 vaccine-preventable diseases before the age of 2. Routine childhood immunizations in one birth cohort prevents an estimated 381 million illnesses, 24.5 million hospitalizations and 855,000 early deaths over the course of this group’s lifetimes.

And although that should be enough reason to make sure your child gets all of his or her immunizations, this comes with a bonus: Preventing illnesses through vaccines gives the country a net savings of $360 billion in direct costs and $1.65 trillion in total societal costs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The National Immunization Survey has consistently shown that childhood immunization rates for vaccines routinely recommended for children remain at or near record levels. And with National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW) beginning on Saturday, we want to keep up that trend.

Established in 1994 and now in its 25th year, NIIW provides the opportunity to highlight how successful vaccines have been and to remind parents that immunizations are an important part of raising a healthy baby. The longer it’s been since some of these diseases have been common in the U.S., the more younger parents might not realize how not very long ago, children of earlier generations were not so lucky when it came to disease prevention.

One way to highlight the success of vaccines is to illustrate what can happen when large enough numbers of parents do not follow through with scheduled inoculations.

An example of the seriousness of vaccine preventable diseases is an increase in measles cases and outbreaks that were reported in 2014. The United States experienced a record number of measles cases—667 from 27 states—reported to CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. This was the greatest number of cases in the U.S. since measles was eliminated in 2000.

It’s very easy these days to learn about childhood immunizations. The CDC publishes an easy-to-read chart showing which vaccines babies should get, how many doses and when. More in-depth information can be found at this link.

The 10 immunizations and the 14 diseases they protect against are: Hepatitis B, rotavirus, DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis, or whooping cough), Hib (Haemophilus influenzae type b), PCV13 (pneumococcal disease), IPV (polio), flu (influenza), MMR (measles, mumps and rubella), varicella (chickenpox) and Hepatitis A.

Set to run from Saturday to April 28, NIIW is celebrated as part of World Immunization Week, an initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO). In addition to promoting immunizations, the goal also is to advance equity in the use of vaccines and universal access to vaccination services.

That’s where Monongalia County Health Department’s Clinical Services program comes into play. Through the Vaccines for Children Program (VFC), children ages 18 and younger can come to MCHD for immunizations if they meet certain criteria: if they are uninsured or underinsured because their insurance does not cover vaccinations or if they are American Indian or Alaskan Native.

Children who are enrolled in West Virginia Medicaid and West Virginia CHIP also qualify for this program. The Vaccines for Children Program is federally funded and provides vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee of Immunization Practices (ACIP) and approved by CDC.

If you have any questions or want to make an appointment, call MCHD Clinical Services at 304-598-5119. And remember: Your child’s vaccination plan is one of the most important schedules for you to keep.

Maybe you’re old enough to remember when your classmates erupted in giggles when a certain heart-filled holiday rolled around and someone said, “Happy VD Day.”

But venereal diseases—or as they are better known now, sexually transmitted diseases, or STDS—are no laughing matter.

That said, an STD isn’t the end of the world either, especially if you deal with it quickly.

April is STD Awareness Month and we’re making an extra push to get the word out about how easy it is to visit Monongalia County Health Department’s Clinical Services program for screening.

Finding out if you have one may seem difficult emotionally, but not finding out is worse. Many STDs are curable, and others can be managed. It’s better for your health to take the plunge and deal with it. And it’s also better not to pass on an STD to your significant other, or anyone else you might be meeting up with.

This year’s theme for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s STD Awareness Month is Treat Me Right. It encourages providers and patients to develop a good relationship with each other. Providers should be prepared to screen for STDs, ask the correct questions in a compassionate manner and to make their patients feel comfortable enough to discuss them. Patients should know what questions to ask and be prepared to respond to queries from their practitioners to protect their own health.

Here is a list of qualities to look for in a provider. Do they:

•    Treat you with respect?
•    Listen to your opinions and concerns?
•    Encourage you to ask questions?
•    Explain things in ways you understand?
•    Recommend preventive services, like screening tests and shots?

This is where MCHD’s Clinical Services, which runs the STD Clinic, comes into play. Here at MCHD, patients can expect friendly and non-judgmental care from our team of professional nurses who understand that STDs can happen to anyone.

What’s even better, STD testing and treatment are free year-round.

Who should get tested? Are you sexually active or have you ever been? Then you should consider testing. Cases of gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis are at an all-time high. And everyone should be tested for HIV at least once in their lifetimes, and more often depending on certain risk factors.

Of course, testing and treatment are key but there are other steps to take to protect your health. The only way to never get an STD is to avoid sex altogether. But there are ways to reduce the risk without moving to a monastery.

Here are some tips to follow to reduce your risk of getting an STD if you don’t wish to practice abstinence:

•    Reduce your number of sexual partners;
•    Use condoms;
•    Limit use of alcohol and drugs, especially before and during sex;
•    Mutually agree with your partner to practice monogamy;
•    Get vaccinated. Hepatitis B is vaccine-preventable. The vaccine to prevent HPV is recommended for boys and girls at ages 11 or 12, although older individuals can get it too. It prevents cancers caused by human papillomavirus. The idea is to protect kids before they are exposed; those who are ages 15-24 account for half of all new STD infections, according to CDC.
•    If you are at high risk for HIV, consider pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). It’s a daily medication that lowers the chance of getting HIV.

STDs are no fun, but it’s time to get beyond the fear and stigma attached to the phrase and take charge of your own health. You’ll be relieved that you did.

To make an appointment to be screened, or for free or low-cost birth control, including condoms, or for vaccines, call MCHD Clinical Services at 304-598-5119.

A rainy April day is the perfect time to begin daydreaming about travel you might be planning in the months ahead.

If any of those trips involve visiting a foreign country, it would be a good idea to check and see what medical and physical issues you should address before you go. Such as vaccines.

That’s just one item to check off your pre-travel health list. Here are some others: Are you planning ahead so you will have plenty of your prescribed medications with you, as well as proper documentation to get them through customs? And did you know that counterfeit meds are ubiquitous in some countries, so taking them with you from home is your best bet?

Also, do you know handy tips for surviving long plane rides comfortably? Hint: Compression stockings and hydrating with water are your best friends; contact lenses are not.

And do you know which to apply first, sunscreen or mosquito repellent—the latter of which you really want to slather on in areas with mosquito-borne diseases such as Zika, Dengue, West Nile viruses or malaria?

Finally, what if you have a medical emergency while on your trip?

This is just some of the vital information you can learn at the International Traveler’s Clinic at Monongalia County Health Department.

At the clinic, Dr. Lee B. Smith, county health officer and MCHD’s executive director, can go over your itinerary with you. He can make sure your current medications will not interact adversely with anything you may need to safely travel as well as discuss any vaccines you might need.

For instance, if you plan to go to Brazil, you should get a yellow fever vaccine.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a large, ongoing outbreak of yellow fever in multiple states of Brazil has been taking place since early 2018. Several unvaccinated travelers to Brazil contracted yellow fever; many of these travelers were infected on the island of Ilha Grande in Rio de Janeiro state. Several have died.

Yellow fever is a serious disease caused by yellow fever virus and is found in certain parts of Africa and South America. It’s spread through the bite of an infected mosquito. It cannot be spread person to person by direct contact.

Unfortunately, getting a yellow fever vaccine is currently difficult. The pharmaceutical company that makes it stopped production to build a new plant. Production is not expected to start up again until the end of the year. In the meantime, a live vaccine is available, but it is not recommended for everyone.

That’s one issue you can sort out at the International Traveler’s Clinic.

Other vaccines available at the clinic frequently recommended for travelers—depending on which places they visit—include hepatitis A, hepatitis B, Twinrix (Hep A & B), typhoid, adult polio, Japanese encephalitis, cholera, rabies pre-exposure vaccine, Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis), influenza, meningitis, MMR (measles, mumps and rubella), varicella (chickenpox) and pneumonia.

Determining which vaccines to get isn’t always as easy as matching a particular country to a particular vaccine, however. If you are staying at, say, an all-inclusive beach resort, your risk might be lower for certain diseases than if you were out in the bush.

That said, mosquitoes don’t always know the difference. As Dr. Smith notes, officials in Costa Rica will tell you that malaria isn’t a problem there. But if you go north to Nicaragua, or south to Panama, that is not the case. “I’m not sure the mosquito knows where the geopolitical line starts and stops, particularly out in the bush,” Dr. Smith added.

And your chances of getting Japanese encephalitis in countries such as Japan, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand are worse in the rainy season than the dry season, and low overall. But if you get it, recovery might be difficult—especially if you are in an area that doesn’t have good medical care.

You also should think about what season the country you’ll be visiting will be undergoing. For instance, winter takes place June through August in Australia, so if you’re traveling when it’s summer here, you should consider getting a flu shot.

Those are just a few of the considerations you want to think about as you make plans to go abroad. Ideally you should visit the International Travel Clinic at least a month before departure—or even sooner. This gives you time to get vaccines that require more than one dose as well as to get everything you need in order.

To make an appointment, call 304-598-5119. And bon voyage!

Mary Wade Triplett is the public information officer at Monongalia County Health Department.