To: Arapahoe County Board of County Commissioners
Through: Jennifer Ludwig, Director, Arapahoe County Public Health
Prepared By:
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Talitha Appel, Associate Director of Nursing Operations, Arapahoe County Public Health; Melissa Spencer, Director of Community Health Nursing, Arapahoe County Public Health; Jennifer Cooley, Compensation Analyst, Human Resources
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presenter
Presenter: Jennifer Ludwig, Director, Arapahoe County Public Health
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Subject:
title
10:15 AM *Public Health Clinical After-Hours Pay for Exempt Clinical Employees
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Purpose and Request:
recommended action
The Board of County Commissioners is requested to review the proposed Public Health Clinical After-hours Pay Policy for exempt clinical employees. If approved, it will be added to the consent agenda for formal approval at a future business meeting.
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Background and Discussion: The COVID-19 pandemic taught us that we must increase access to core public health services to increase equity in the BIPOC population. Additionally, over the past four years since the start of the pandemic, Colorado vaccination rates have decreased with the most pronounced decreases observed among kindergartners. The Aurora Public Schools district, which includes 72 schools, many of which are in the heart of Arapahoe County, is one of the least vaccinated districts in the Denver metro area. It is more important than ever to facilitate fact-based strategies to improve vaccination rates.
To increase access among our most disparate communities, our funders are requiring us to change our clinic model to have more flexibility outside our normal clinic hours and be mobile, which means we need clinical staff to pick up additional shifts to meet the needs of our residents. This request is to ensure appropriate staff are available for mobile clinics by providing compensation for exempt clinical employees, such as nurses and nurse practitioners. Examples of clinical events that take place on the weekends or during evening hours include, but are not limited to vaccination clinics, limited outbreak events, or providing vaccination clinics and education at schools and childcare center events.
Fiscal Impact: No public health funds will be utilized in FY25. This expense will be absorbed into current contracts. ACPH will use this first year to determine how much needs to be budgeted in subsequent years to sustain efforts.
Alternatives: Alternative A: Requiring clinical staff to work events outside of normal business hours without clinical after hours pay. This decision may lead to low employee morale and potential turn-over of highly experienced and knowledgeable clinical staff.
Staff Recommendation: We recommend implementing clinical after-hours pay for exempt clinical employees. A policy will be executed to ensure adherence to the qualifications and requirements for clinical after hours pay for exempt clinical employees.
Concurrence: This has been reviewed and approved by the Arapahoe County Board of Health.