Dear Scouts,
Hi, I’m Mrs. O’Koniewski and I’m very excited about talking to you about
Public Health.
I am Medical Technologist and I also have a Master’s degree in Public
Health. I run the Blood Bank at a community hospital in Illinois. I also
work in the other parts of the lab, including disease testing. Currently my
lab tests for influenza (the flu), streptococcus B (strep throat) and
mononuclosis (mono). In addition, our lab will begin testing for SARS CoV2
(the virus that causes COVID 19). This is a very exciting time in my field
and you will remember these days for the rest of your life. The COVID-19
Pandemic has turned our society on it’s end in an attempt to mitigate the
effects of the pandemic. We will talk about “coronavirus” during the Merit
Badge class!
Attached please find some handouts that you will need to either print out
or be able to view during our meeting. They are:
CDC Curve, 1 page
Public Health Merit Badge, 3 pages
diseases and immunization, 3 pages
Go to usscouts.org/mb/worksheets/Public-Health.pdf and download the
worksheets. You will need to complete the following:
Page 10, Requirement 5***
Pages 13-16, Requirements 7b and 8
***hold off on Requirement 5 for now. We obviously cannot go visit a
facility under the quarantine orders in place. I am searching for a
suitable online replacement that will allow to learn about solid or
wastewater management or food service.
Our Zoom meeting information:
us04web.zoom.us/meeting/284860771
password: troop216
I look forward to seeing each of you next week. In the meantime, please
feel free to contact me with any questions or to turn in your homework
ahead of time.
Yours in Scouting and in Health,
Karen O’Koniewski, MT(ASCP), MPH
diseases-and-immunizations.docx