Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana

Articles written by Erin Ritchie Rn


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  • JeffCo Health Dept. Update: Finding Resilience Within Our Communities

    ERIN RITCHIE RN, Jefferson County Health Department|May 21, 2025

    Resilience, according to Positive Psychology, is defined as “the quality of recovering quickly from failure and adversity, and not only returning to the status quo but actually using the opportunity to grow and further your personal development.” In Montana we have another name for it… toughness. Resilience is not something that comes easily, it is something we work for. It is something we build into ourselves and into our communities. While Montana is often plagued by disappointing mental health data, I believe you will find far more posit...

  • Don't You Wish You Would Have Known?

    ERIN RITCHIE RN, Jefferson County School Nurse|Apr 24, 2024

    What if I told you there is a way to help prevent certain cancers? Would you be interested? I recall a young woman in her early twenties who once told me she wished she had known. I still remember her name. For me, as a new nurse, her experience and mine intertwined and would leave a profound effect on me. She was one of three out of four adults who would contract human papillomavirus (HPV), and that would lead to countless procedures and treatments for cervical cancer and, ultimately, an early...

  • Dear Editor: The Health Department Is With You

    Erin Ritchie RN, Jefferson County Health Department|Mar 10, 2021

    Dear Editor, To those of you who have been struggling with the uncertainty of this virus, we have struggled with you. We have struggled with how best to protect our community. We have debated policy and procedures. We have followed the best practices laid out by our country’s and the world’s top health professionals. We have listened to the concerns of our community members. We have tirelessly put together constantly evolving plans that best fit our communities needs and kept us all as safe as possible. And we will continue to fight this virus...