Stanislaus County hires a new public health officer

Stanislaus County has hired a new public health officer to fill the void created by Dr. John Walker’s recent retirement.

Dr. Julie Vaishampayan will take over the position May 3. She has been the assistant health officer for neighboring San Joaquin County.

The salary for the new health officer was set at $205,000 a year.

Vaishampayan attended medical school at Wayne State University in Michigan and completed residencies and a fellowship at Detroit Medical Center and University of Michigan Hospitals.

She began her career as an associate professor of medicine at Wayne State University in Detroit and then was chief of medical services for the Oakland County health division in Pontiac, Mich.

In 2011, Vaishampayan accepted a job as chief of the communicable disease emergency response branch with the California Department of Public Health in Richmond. She also worked as a consultant for Sutter Tracy Community Hospital before she was hired as assistant health officer in San Joaquin County.

Vaishampayan said she was raised in the farm belt of eastern Washington and looks forward to working with communities in Stanislaus County. San Joaquin and Stanislaus are similar counties with their agricultural heritage, ethnic diversity and rapid growth in the last 35 years.

“I love farm country and working with the people,” Vaishampayan said. “Stanislaus County has some of the same challenges as San Joaquin County, and I’m ready step up and start working on improving the health of the community.”

The county health officer oversees disease control and prevention, works with state and federal health agencies, and is responsible for community health assessments, lab testing, outreach and education. The health officer has authority to declare a public health emergency.

Walker retired in March after serving as county health officer since the year 2000.

More than 20 applicants expressed interest in the highly specialized position. County chief operations officer Patty Hill Thomas said five candidates were chosen for a two-phase interview process. “We were so impressed with the passion she has for prevention and public health,” Hill Thomas said.

Top county officials also were impressed with her knowledge of communicable diseases and public health issues at the state and national level.

The county has searched for a new health officer to continue Walker’s collaborative style. “Improving public health can’t be done alone.” Vaishampayan said. “It takes the entire community working on it.”

This story was originally published April 24, 2017 at 5:16 PM with the headline "Stanislaus County hires a new public health officer."