The Barton County Commission Monday morning ratified a pair of end-of-fiscal year purchases for the Barton County Health Department.
Several of the grants at the department close out at the end of the federal fiscal year June 30, Health Department Director Shelly Schneider. So, at the end of this year, the BCHD made several purchases.
This was all grant money, Schneider told the commission. “It was a use-it-or-lose-it type of deal.”
First was a $2,749 expenditure to Grainger for powered two air purifying respirators which were paid for out of Preparedness Grant.
Different types of respirators offer different levels of protection. Powered air purifying respirators. The PAPRs have a loose-fitting facepiece powered air-purifying respirator, or PAPR. A PAPR has a blower that pulls air through attached filters.
The blower then pushes the filtered air into the facepiece, which covers all of the user’s face.
These are used to when staff must enter an area where the air may be unsafe to breathe, she said.
Second was a $2,310.78 expenditure to Medela Inc. for two breast pumps that will be made available for rent to mothers who do not qualify for the Women, Infant and Children Program. This is covered through Maternal Child and Health funds.
There are organizations that help mothers wanting to breast-feed their infants, but Schneider said there is not place to purchase or rent these pumps.
In other business Monday morning, the Barton County Commission:
• Named Commissioner Jennifer Schartz as the voting delegate and commissioners Don Davis and Alicia Straub as alternates to the Kansas Association of Counties annual conference in Overland Park on Nov. 15.
