By Greg Forester, Staff Writer
Dealing with the Congo dog saga, collaborating with the University Medical Center at Princeton, and continuing to rein in costs for both the borough and the township were some of accomplishments of the Princeton Regional Health Department in 2007, according to a report released this week.
Congo, a German shepherd, had mauled a landscape worker on a Princeton Township family’s property in the summer of 2007. The same dog, after being spared execution through a court settlement, later attacked the family grandmother on the same property in 2008.
The initial court battle saw many animal-rights groups come out in support of Congo and its owners, the James family. Animal Control Officer Mark Johnson, who works for the health department, ended up dealing with hundreds of very negative phone calls, said department Health Officer Dave Henry.
Call statistics provided in the report stated that out of 1,233 animal control calls received by Princeton Regional Health Department in 2007, 491 were in reference to Congo.
”That consumed a lot of Mark’s time,” Mr. Henry said.
As it continued, the whole affair consumed much of the time of the health department, said Mr. Henry, who noted that department personnel testified before state Assembly and Senate subcommittees.
Legislators at that time were deliberating on legislation fashioned to spare the lives of dogs such as Congo, known as “Congo’s Law”.
”We were in there from the beginning and basically to the end,” Mr. Henry said.
Significant accomplishments included better collaboration between the health department and the University Medical Center at Princeton.
Mr. Henry, speaking to Borough Council on Tuesday, cited a free prostate screening program effort, which saw 55 men show up for free screenings in 2007. Already 60 have received similar screenings in 2008 through the effort, Mr. Henry said.
For the future, communication between the two entities resulted in a pledge to provide a minimum of 10 education programs this year, and to continue to work together after the hospital relocates to Plainsboro.
Other goings-on that Mr. Henry noted included the effective containment of an outbreak of what’s known as a norovirus at a local eating establishment in September 2007 that saw the department deal with up to 50 potential cases.
Also noteworthy was the department’s acquisition of two hybrid cars, which have netted significant savings in annual fuel costs since becoming half of the department’s vehicle fleet.
Regarding the department’s overall cost-saving efforts, Mr. Henry noted that sharing the department between Princeton Borough and Princeton Township allowed the two municipalities to share approximately $200,000 in savings annually.
”There is no redundancy in vital statistics, inspectors, or health officers,” said Mr. Henry. “All that is combined there is an inherent cost savings.”
Local public health in New Jersey is one of the most efficient and effective governmental services, according to Mr. Henry, who also said that utilizing Princeton University interns resulted in significant cost savings without a degradation of service.
”We believe in continuous quality improvement,” Mr. Henry said.

