This is the first of a planned series of excerpts and articles on The Cincinnati/Hamilton County Joint Bed Bug Task Force Strategic Plan.

The Joint Bed Bug Task Force is comprised of the Cincinnati Health Department, Hamilton County Public Health, and Ohio State University Extension Entomology (Dr. Susan C. Jones).

The Joint Bed Bug Task Force members who collaborated on the Strategic Plan are: Camille Jones, MD, MPH; Timothy Ingram, RS, MS; Susan Jones, PhD.; Antonio Young, RS; Chris Eddy RS, MPH; Thomas Hooper, RS; Robert Smith, RS; Bernadette Watson; and Mohammad Alam, PhD.

We’ve chosen to open our examination of the Strategic Plan (a document that we have anticipated all year) by simply citing the statements of the elected representatives and public health officials of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.

The statements of government and public health officials are always important. They are predictive. They frame the issues and define the challenges and the terms of success and accountability.

And policies will absolutely flow from those statements, as we have seen with regret in New York City.

In Cincinnati and Hamilton County, the following statements are quoted in the Joint Bed Bug Task Force Strategic Plan:

Ohio State Representative Dale Mallory stated “This infestation is a major social and economic issue that must be addressed. We are working hard at the state level to help address this issue. I have met with the Ohio Department of Health and the Ohio Department of Agriculture, and state elected officials. We are looking forward to helping resolve this problem.”

Cincinnati Councilman Chris Monzel said “The necessity of including the health department and other city and county departments as well as private and community organizations in this effort is clear.”

Dr. Noble Maseru, Cincinnati Health Commissioner stated “This bed bug problem is like a canary in the coal mine, alerting us to vulnerabilities of our social environment. The Task Force led by Dr. Camille Jones provides guidance to address bed bug infestation and the importance of establishing an essential multi agency network to solve this major nuisance in our social environment. I also commend our state, county and city legislative leadership in their quest to acquire resources which in the long term must be resolved through a citizen, public and private sector collaborative effort.”

Mr. Antonio Young, Supervising Sanitarian for the Technical Environmental Service of the City of Cincinnati Health Department said “We are committed to finding a way to minimize the impact of bed bugs on our community. The southwestern area of Ohio appears to be experiencing what the rest of the state may expect in the near future. The important work that the Task Force and political representatives do in this region, if carefully done, may serve as a model in addressing this formidable quality of life issue elsewhere”.

You know what else is interesting about Cincinnati/Hamilton County? When Ohio State Representative Dale Mallory convened an emergency meeting (yes, an emergency meeting) on January 18, 2008, following two previous town hall meetings, well, let’s quote in full:

Participants in the meeting included Representative Dale Mallory, Representative Michelle Schneider, Senator Bob Shuler, Cincinnati Councilman Chris Monzel, County Commissioner Todd Portune, Cincinnati Health Commissioner Dr. Noble Maseru, Hamilton County Health Commissioner Mr. Timothy Ingram, Dr. O’Dell Owens, Ms. Shirley Dunham representing Cincinnati Vice-Mayor David Crowley, Ms. Carolyn Edwards representing Cincinnati Councilman Cecil Thomas, Ohio State University Entomologist Dr. Susan Jones, Cincinnati Assistant Health Commissioner Dr. Camille Jones, Hamilton County Director of Environmental Health Chris Eddy, and Ms. Polly Doran from the Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio. As a result of that meeting, the Joint Health Department Bed Bug Task Force was formed.

We hope that this will finally make clear why we have such a great interest in the genesis and in the work of the Cincinnati/Hamilton County Joint Bed Bug Task Force and why we are devoting special attention to the Strategic Plan. From the very beginning the issue of bed bugs had the attention of the Cincinnati and Hamilton County elected and civic leadership. I have to say that we are clearly in awe of their efforts. We congratulate them for an impressive undertaking. The specific challenges of combating bed bugs are certainly great but when there is a consensus from elected officials and public health officials that action must be taken, then there is actually hope of meeting the challenges and helping the people who are struggling.

Our next installment will explore the Task Force’s conception of these challenges.