By Marla Fuller
Cincinnati Health Department
The Cincinnati Health Department Board of Health voted unanimously to appoint Melba R. Moore, MS, CPHA, as the new permanent health commissioner at its board meeting on April 24.
The Board has had many discussions on restructuring the leadership at the health department with the ever-changing public health landscape, and concluded it was most appropriate to appoint a permanent health commissioner after two years of interim leadership.
Moore has extensive experience in public health, serving as the commissioner of health for the city of St. Louis Department of Health for the past 17 years. During these years, she was successful in developing and implementing health programs for improving outcomes with asthma, obesity, childhood lead poisoning, sexually transmitted infections, environmental health, and violent crime. She additionally secured funding to address cardiovascular disease, youth violence and parent mentoring programs to improve early childhood well being.
`A doctoral candidate for business administration with a healthcare administration specialization at Northcentral University, Moore also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from Webster University, and a Masters of Science in health management from lindenwood university.
“Ms. Moore has an established reputation for energetic, creative, dedicated leadership. The board looks forward to her joining the health department and building on its long and distinguished history of providing high quality services to the citizens of Cincinnati,” expressed board chair Phil Lichtentstein, MD.
Dr. Marilyn Crumpton, MD, MPH, has served as the interim health commissioner since October 2016 after the departure of O’dell Owens, MD, who resigned as the interim health commissioner and medical director to lead Interact for Health as the organization’s president/CEO.
During Crumpton’s term as interim, she oversaw the critically important completion of the application submission for accreditation by the Public Health Accreditation Board. The completion of this process will ensure a competitive advantage for retaining state and federal grants in the future. She also oversaw the re-accreditation of the city of Cincinnati primary care health center network among other accomplishments.
Crumpton will resume her former responsibilities as the medical director for the division of school and adolescent health, a nationally recognized model of school-based health services, which she is responsible for developing.