Submission for 2024 Hometown Media Awards
Dick Needleman, M.D., M.P.H.
103.3 AshevilleFM
January 20, 2024
I would like to submit an edited version of my December 13, 2023 health report to the Community Radio Division (under the standard categories producer division). I feel that this health report exemplifies the spirit of the Hometown Media Awards for the Public Health Programming Category, “programs that educate the public about community health initiatives and aim to prevent disease or injury.” The original report ran about 10 minutes, so I preserved the community public health focus by deleting my weekly COVID update and a report on a new sickle cell disease treatment to bring the running time to 4 minutes 33 seconds, well under the 8-minute maximum time limit. However, in this case, big things do come in small packages! I have attached my mp3 to this email for your consideration.
This report describes the expansion of very important public health intervention for Buncombe County: the transformation of the 2022 Buncombe County Mobile Vaccination Team, one of the highlights of Public Health Director Stacey Saunders’s brief but noteworthy term during the COVID-19 pandemic, to the 2023 Buncombe County Mobile Outreach Team under new Public Health Director Dr. Ellis Matheson. Stoney Blevins, the Director of Buncombe County’s Department of Health and Human Services, has referred to the Team as one of the most noteworthy public health accomplishments under his leadership.