LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors appointed Dr. Gary Pace, MD, MPH, as Lake County’s Public Health officer.
Pace has been filling the position on an interim basis since August, following the departure of Dr. Erin Gustafson.
“Lake County is welcoming a truly thoughtful individual and excellent medical mind with the hire of Dr. Pace, and this is just the latest in a number of positive steps our Health Services Department has taken to improve Lake County’s outcomes,” said Board of Supervisors Chair Tina Scott. “The community and partner organizations are really engaged and motivated to improve our health outcomes. We are a county on the way up, and Dr. Pace will help us progress toward a healthier Lake County.”
Pace, of Sebastopol, has more than two decades of experience in the medical profession, including family and clinical practice, and working as a medical director in health care facilities.
“When you’re working directly with patients, it is clear not everyone has the same needs,” said Pace. “I make it a priority to use language anyone can understand. It is one thing to dig into the technical aspects of a disease process, and I enjoy that work. But what good is it, if you don’t also do the work to translate that into tools that people can use in their everyday lives?”
He holds doctor of medicine and public health degrees from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and completed his family practice residency at Natividad Medical Center in Salinas.
Pace also has a master’s degree in counseling psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies and a bachelor’s degree in biology and psychology from the College of William and Mary.
County officials said that he also has completed a Yale University Certificate in Climate Change and Public Health, which he undertook in response to his experiences offering support to areas including Lake County during Northern California’s disasters.
Under state law, counties are required to have health officers, who are tasked with duties including enforcing local health orders and ordinances, and state regulations and statutes relating to public health.
In addition to his recent interim service, Pace also served as the Lake County’s interim Public Health officer on two other occasions, from late 2017 to spring of 2018, and from the summer of 2018 until fall of 2018, as Lake County News has reported.
He also has experience as the county of Mendocino’s Public Health officer.
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Board of Supervisors appoints Pace as Public Health officer
- Elizabeth Larson
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