A message from our community
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In our third edition of Voice of Public Health, we are pleased to invite Dr. Ignacio Santana, Merced County Department of Public Health’s new Assistant County Health Officer, to introduce himself and share about his expertise in occupational medicine and highlight some of the efforts that the Merced County Department of Public Health is leading.
I grew up in Cutler-Orosi, rural towns just north of Visalia, as the son of two very hard-working parents who immigrated from Mexico in the 1980’s. With the encouragement of some amazing people, I ended up at Brown University for both college and medical school. Later, I earned my Master’s in Public Health at UC Berkeley while finishing my medical residency training at UC San Francisco. Along the way, I realized that my parents have traditionally worked in one of the most dangerous industries—agriculture—and that many Latinos, especially immigrants, frequently risk their health to earn a living. That motivated me to focus on occupational medicine, and serving in Merced County has allowed me to give back to communities like the one I grew up in.
As the Assistant County Health Officer, I’m focused on bringing together public health, preventive medicine, and occupational and environmental health to address the needs of our community. We keep an eye on some of the most vulnerable populations, including children, the elderly, and the uninsured, and we try to connect them with important services that address their health and general wellness. My team is also heavily involved in preventing and managing communicable diseases like COVID, Influenza, and Tuberculosis, and we work with other departments on everything from food safety to child vaccinations. There’s always a lot going on!
One thing that we’re really proud of is being one of very few nationally accredited health departments in the Central Valley. Right now, we’re in the process of renewing that accreditation, which gives us a chance to reflect on what we’ve done and what comes next. Our efforts in communicable disease prevention have been strong, and we’ve also been active during local emergencies, like the Planada floods and a recent fire at a mobile home park in Santa Nella. Although I’ve only been a part of Merced County for a few months, my time collaborating with teams in and outside of Public Health has been extremely rewarding.
My goal is to continue making Merced County a healthy place for everyone. We’re excited to partner more with UC Merced, especially by offering public health training to students and helping train Community Health Workers in partnership with UC Merced Extension. As UC Merced grows its public health and medical programs, we’re looking forward to working together to tackle the region’s health challenges.
- Dr. Ignacio Santana, Assistant County Health Officer, Merced County Department of Public Health
