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Board of Lucas County Commissioners, Toledo Mayor Paula
Hicks-Hudson Announce Special Citizens Task Force to
Review Operations of the Toledo/Lucas County Health
Department
Special to The Truth
Last week, the Board of
Lucas County Commissioners, Toledo Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson
and District Advisory Council Chair Andy Glenn held a press
conference to announce the formation of a special citizen’s
task force to address numerous issues at the Toledo/Lucas
County Health Department.
This special citizens’
task force is charged with examining the Health Department’s
operational effectiveness and financial viability,
efficiencies of its public health clinics, human resource
issues, as well as the implementation of the City of
Toledo’s lead ordinance.
“The Toledo-Lucas County
Health Department is an important resource for a thriving
community. The health department’s operations and processes
have come under scrutiny of late,” said Commissioner Tina
Skeldon Wozniak. “Policy leaders have joined together today
to announce the creation of a special task force to review
the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department. Their operational
policies and programs need oversight, review and
recommendations to move forward to enhance the health and
well-being of our community,” concluded Commissioner
Wozniak.
“The City of Toledo
provides the majority of funding for the Toledo-Lucas County
Health Department and so it is our responsibility to ensure
that these taxpayer dollars are put to effective use to
improve the health and wellbeing of our citizens,” said
Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson. “And while the Toledo-Lucas County
Health Department is managed under a board structure,
providing a financial and operational evaluation will help
the organization to move forward on a stronger foundation.”
“As the chair of the
District Advisory Council, I believe this task force is
necessary to ensure that all Lucas County residents are
being served by the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department
and that the financial viability of the health department is
strong,” said Springfield Township Trustee Andy Glenn. “I
want to thank the members of the citizens’ task force for
serving on this important committee. My greatest hope is
that this process leads to better service and a more
inclusive health department,” concluded Trustee Glenn.
“Under the laws of the
State of Ohio, the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department
must protect the health and well-being of all residents of
Lucas County, including food safety, enforcing environmental
standards, disease prevention and healthy living,” said
Commissioner Carol Contrada. “This task force must ensure
that the essential mission of the health department is being
fulfilled,” concluded Commissioner Contrada.
“The stated mission of the
Toledo-Lucas County Health Department is clear. The
Toledo-Lucas County Health Department is committed to being
the leader in public health by promoting and protecting the
health of all people where they live, learn, work, and play.
And it is also clear that they are not reaching this goal,”
said Commissioner Pete Gerken. “I welcome the work of the
special task force and look forward to working with them to
ensure healthy outcomes for our entire community,” concluded
Commissioner Gerken.
The seven members of the
special citizens task force include:
- Rob Salem – Clinical
Professor of Law at the University of Toledo - Dr. Riaz
Chaudhary – Internal Medicine Specialist and President of
Oregon Clinic, Inc. - Jan Ruma – Executive Director of
Toledo/Lucas County CareNet and Vice President of the
Hospital Council of Northwest Ohio - Catherine Hernandez –
Toledo Federation of Teachers Officer and TPS teacher -
Kevin West- Senior Director of Faculty Relations and
Academic Inclusion Officer at the University of Toledo -
Sarah Skow – Partner at Spangler Nathanson Law Office
The special citizens task
force will report back with recommendations to move forward
following a full review. The first meeting of the task force
will be held on June 7, 2017.
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