Skagit County Public Health has been able to provide STI testing, treatment, and outreach to communities living in remote areas, experiencing homeless, or facing other barriers to accessing care.
Funding from FPHS has played a transformative role in expanding our local public health efforts, especially in the areas of Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) testing, treatment, and outreach. With this support, we’ve been able to reach individuals who might otherwise fall through the cracks, including those living in remote areas, experiencing homelessness, or facing other barriers to accessing care.
Beyond the immediate health impacts, our work continues to build trust within the community. By meeting people where they are, both physically and emotionally, we’re helping to reduce stigma around STIs and sexual health. As we increase outreach, testing, and treatment, we aim to normalize conversations about sexual health and empower individuals to take charge of their well-being. This funding has not just supported our work, it has helped build a healthier, more equitable future for our entire community.
This has helped build a healthier, more equitable future for our entire community.
FPHS exists everywhere in Washington in order to serve everyone in Washington. Check out some of these other FPHS stories to learn about some of the other places or paths for FPHS delivery.
Thanks to FPHS Immunization Outreach and FPHS Reinforcing Capacity funds, Spokane’s Immunization Assessment & Promotion (IAP) team was able to implement two successful vaccine campaigns, create community-specific resources, provide educational opportunities for vaccine advocates, develop and maintain partnerships, and provide access to vaccines for uninsured adults.
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When the Lineage Logistics cold storage facility in Finley, Washington, caught fire on April 21, 2024, it ignited more than just flames. Over the next eight weeks, the 525,000 squarefoot warehouse smoldered, blanketing the surrounding rural community in heavy smoke and uncertainty. For residents, questions piled up quickly: Was the air safe to breathe? What was in the water? Who was going to help? At the center of those answers was the Communications team at Benton-Franklin Health District (BFHD). As firefighters battled the blaze, the BFHD Communications team stepped in to battle misinformation, build trust, and ensure the community had access to accurate, timely, and life-protecting information.
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In 2024, the Washington State Public Health Lab provided significant testing support for a Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza event. Many of the staff supporting this outbreak response were funded by FPHS funds. Without the FPHS funding our response would have been less robust. We would have needed to limit throughput and likely reduce operating hours.
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Having a Community Health Assessment (CHA) allowed the department to evaluate health equity, identify critical service gaps, and understand the nuanced barriers that impact rural well-being—from healthcare access and behavioral health to food security, transportation, and childcare. These insights have served as the foundation for every subsequent decision, program, and partnership GCPH has launched.
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People who move to eastern Washington are often unaware of the unique set of environmental hazards, extreme weather events, and potential disasters that may occur in the region. Some newcomers to the area primarily speak and read languages other than English. To serve the whole community’s emergency preparedness needs, public health agencies provide accessible information that helps residents prepare for local threats and hazards. Importantly, FPHS funds supported (or in coordination with local nonprofit organizations, SRHD leveraged FPHS funds to support) the translation and targeted dissemination of plain-language public health emergency preparedness materials covering extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and general household preparedness topics to disproportionately impacted communities in Spokane County.
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Through the Language Access Collaborative led by Public Health-Seattle King County, our agency now has access to translation and interpretation services in over 50 languages. With nearly 40% of Grant County residents speaking a language other than English at home, this service has become essential.
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