Hide Title

Safe Medication Disposal

Keeping unused medications in your home can increase the opportunity for:

• Accidental poisoning or ingestion, especially among children and pets
• Medication misuse or diversion
• Unauthorized use of prescription medications
• Unsafe storage of opioids and other potentially addictive medications
• Improper disposal into household trash or wastewater

Removing medications that are no longer needed is a simple step that can help make your home and community safer.

Don’t Flush or Throw Medications Away
without Checking First

If you are unsure how to dispose of a medication, ask your pharmacist or healthcare provider. Whenever possible, use an authorized take-back site or an at-home medication deactivation product.

Get a Free Disposal Bag

Western Plains Public Health offers Deterra® Drug Deactivation Bags and DisposeRx® products at no cost to community members.

Stop by our office or visit us at a community event to pick one up.

Supplies may be limited.

Community Health Assessments: Building Healthier Communities Together

At Western Plains Public Health, we are committed to improving the health and well-being of everyone in our community. One of the most important tools we use to achieve this goal is the Community Health Assessment (CHA).

What Is a Community Health Assessment?

A Community Health Assessment is a comprehensive process that evaluates the health status, needs, and challenges facing a community. CHAs provide a clear picture of the health challenges and opportunities within our community. Through this process, we collect and analyze data about factors that influence health, including:

• Chronic disease prevalence
• Access to healthcare
• Environmental conditions
• Social and economic factors
• Community assets and resources

Our Collaborative Approach

CHAs are made possible through strong partnerships with area hospitals, community organizations, and other stakeholders. Together, we combine local knowledge and data-driven insights to create a well-rounded understanding of the community's health.

We also prioritize engaging directly with residents through surveys, focus groups, and public forums. Your voice matters and is a vital part of shaping the future of health in our community.

View the latest Community Health Assessment reports from our communities:

Grant County: http://www.jacobsonhospital.org/About-Us.html

Mercer/Oliver Counties: https://www.smcnd.org/collaboration

Morton County: https://www.sanfordhealth.org/about/community-commitment/community-health-needs-assessment

Sioux County:  Coming Soon

Western Plains Public Health (WPPH) is a five county local health district providing health services to the people of Grant, Mercer, Morton, Oliver, and Sioux Counties located in southwest central North Dakota.  Public health services provided are environmental health, nursing services, health promotion and the WIC (women, infants, and children) program. Each of these programs provides a wide variety of services in order to accomplish the mission of public health, which is to assure that North Dakota is a healthy place to live and each person has an equal opportunity to good health. To accomplish this mission, WPPH is committed to ensuring a health community through promotion, protection and prevention for a healthier way of life.

WPPH serves a rural/frontier population (with the exception of Morton County which is classified as urban) of 49,853 (July 2022 Census estimates) residents across 6,445 square miles. WPPH serves a high percentage of Native Americans because the Standing Rock Indian Reservation straddles the North and South Dakota border and spans across all of Sioux County.

Image

2024 Annual Report

2023 Annual Report

2022 Annual Report

2021 Annual Report