Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Fortuna, Smith, Brost, Mews
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 1/19/2022
Fortuna Introduces Herself as Environmental Health Specialist
Brittnay Fortuna has been hired as an environmental health specialist for the Clark County Health Department.
Submitted photo
By Valorie Brecht
Brittany Fortuna recently joined the Clark County Health Department (CCHD) staff as an environmental health specialist.
She was introduced to the county board of health at their meeting at the end of December. She also took some time to share about herself for the Press.
“I’ve always had an interest and passion for public health and having the opportunity to work for the health department in the county where I grew up and now live seemed to be a no-brainer. Working for DDHD is the perfect opportunity for me to share the knowledge and experience I’ve gained in recent years,” Fortuna wrote in an email response.
Fortuna’s position opened up after a shuffling of roles at the health department. Kevin Smith was previously the environmental health specialist/sanitarian. When he left the health department this fall, Dillon Brost moved into his position and Fortuna was hired to fill Brost’s role.
As an environmental health specialist, Fortuna’s main responsibilities will be to conduct environmental health inspections in the areas of food safety, lodging, swimming pools and recreational facilities. In addition to inspections, she will work with the Department of Natural Resources to collect well water samples for the Transient Non-Community program, which ensures water is safe for consumption and free from bacteria. She will also provide education, make recommendations and do follow-ups for a variety of environmental health hazards including radon, lead, rabies and water quality.
“Environmental health specialists play a significant role in protecting the health and safety of the population. They ensure that the public is safe from environmental health issues that may lead to acute or chronic illness such as food poisoning from bacteria-contaminated food [or] water, or lung cancer from exposure in your home,” Fortuna explained.
Fortuna has not worked in a role quite like this one before but has education and experience in public health. In May she graduated from the University of Arizona with a master's degree in public health. As part of that degree program, she completed several courses related to environmental health.
“[Those] courses were definitely some of my favorite and provided me the opportunity to work on real-life environmental health prevention programs,” Fortuna said.
Fortuna earned her undergraduate degree in business administration with an emphasis in health care management from Lakeland University.
As far as on-the-job experience, before working for the CCHD Fortuna worked as a community health planning and promotion specialist for the Chippewa County Department of Public Health. In that role, she developed and provided resources and health education to the public. She also gained experience in collaborating with community partners and had the opportunity to work with several community-serving programs.
“With Brittany being a health educator by trade, I’m excited to see her bring that side to environmental health. We really haven’t had that since we started our environmental health program six to seven years ago,” said health department Brittany Mews as she introduced Fortuna to the board of health.
Fortuna also spent several of her high school and college years working in a kitchen or as a server at local food establishments, so she will be able to utilize that background when completing inspections for food safety.
Fortuna began in November and said that overall, she’s enjoyed her job so far.
“When s tarting any new position, the training piece can be exhaustive, and I can definitely say that my brain is tired at the end of the day, but on the flip side of that, I’ve also really appreciated being able to expand my knowledge about environmental health, especially as it relates to public health. My co-workers have been great to work with and I’ve really enjoyed meeting and working with residents and businesses in our local communities. I’m a very active person, so being mobile and working out in the field has been nice,” Fortuna said.
Fortuna is a lifelong resident of Clark County. She grew up in Greenwood and several years ago moved to Willard, where she resides with her significant other, Eddie, and their one-year-old son, Reid. In her spare time, she enjoys being outdoors, shopping and spending time with family and friends.
“I am so excited to be serving the residents of Clark County and look forward to continuing to develop relationships both within and outside of the county. Just as it is for many residents, Clark County is home for me and my family, so making sure it is an environmentally safe and healthy place for everyone is my number-one priority,” she said.
Fortuna can be reached at brittany.fortuna@clark.co.wi.us.
