HERMANN — With its work pushed to the forefront during the coronavirus pandemic, the public health sector of local government has gained more attention from the public — including those who might be interested in disrupting its operations or spreading misinformation through the agency’s website.

To that end, public health agencies such as the Gasconade County Health Department are looking to harden their computer systems against hackers or someone trying to disseminate false or misleading information. Administrator Kenna Fricke Monday morning told the agency’s Board of Trustees that the department is working with the Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services (DHSS) to bolster cybersecurity at the local level.

The move to further protect the agency’s website comes as Gasconade County government officials are taking steps to further protect county government’s computer network against cyberattacks. The County Commission had hoped to take advantage of an offer by the Missouri Department of Public Safety to perform an assessment of the county’s network and offer recommendations to further harden the system, but the state agency never responded to the county’s request for assistance. So, the County Commission decided to seek an assessment and possible correction action from the private sector. AQM of Washington, county government’s information technology provider, will perform a needs assessment of county government’s network. After that study is done, the county will go out for bids to have the concerns addressed.

Fricke told the three trustees attending the regular monthly session of the five-member board that the department’s website needs to be updated, both for security purposes and for its ability to provide information to the public. The website has “some functionability issues,” she said.

When the department will begin taking steps to improve and make more secure the website and computer operations is unclear.

“We’re kind of waiting for the ball to come back to us” from the state health agency, Fricke said.

In other matters, the administrator said the agency is working with Gasconade County R-2 School District to increase the school’s ability to detect vaping activity among students, as well as help obtain informational posters about the dangers of vaping. The department is also planning some in-school immunization clinics at Owensville Middle School and Owensville High School.

It is working with Gasconade County R-1 School District to conduct screenings of staff members during R-1’s Professional Development Day next month. The new screening procedures will be extended to other schools after any changes that might be needed after the initial screenings offered to R-1 staff, Fricke said.

“Once we get it fine-tuned, we’ll offer it to Owesnville,” Fricke said.

The county’s Women, Infants & Children (WIC) Program continues to be widely used on both ends of the county. Fricke said WIC Coordinator Rhonda Scheible has drafted and submitted a “corrective action plan” in response to a recent review of the program by the federal government. “I have no doubt they’ll come back with a few suggestions” despite the agency addressing any concerns raised by the review of the program, Fricke said.

With National Public Health Week on the horizon, the trustees would like to see the activity of the agency publicized more. Board President Stan Hall suggested the department promote its activities on a regular basis through local newspapers, as well as on its website. He said the department could inform the public about “what’s going on, activities, staffing” and other aspects of the agency. Public Health Week is scheduled in April.

The board’s next regular session is scheduled for Monday, March 25, at 9 a.m. at the Hermann offices on Schiller Street.