Board of Health The Board of Health is the administrative authority for the Health District. The governmental entities that form the
Health District appoint representatives to serve as directors of the Williamson County Board of Health,
that oversees the operations of the Health District. Each city with a population of 15,000 or greater appoints one
director and the Commissioners’ Court appoints two directors. Cities with a population of less than 15,000 appoint one representative to represent them collectively. Board directors serve without compensation for staggered three-year terms. The WCCHD Executive Director is an
ex-officio non-voting participant of the Board. The Board meets every two months and meetings are open to the public.
See also:
Executive Director
James K. Morgan, MD, MPH, is a physician with additional education, training and over 20 years of experience in Public Health. He received his medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine and a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Texas, School of Public Health. Dr. Morgan served as the Regional Director for the Texas Department of State Health Services, Region Seven (30 counties in Central Texas), between 1997 and October of 2007, prior to joining the Williamson County and Cities Health District October 12, 2007. Prior to his service in DSHS Region Seven, he served as Regional Director in DSHS Region One (41 counties in Northwest Texas) between 1992 and 1997, and as a “circuit-riding” clinician in DSHS Region 4/5N (35 counties in East Texas) between 1988 and 1992. He has held various leadership positions within the state health department and in the communities he has served in his previous employment. Dr. Morgan also holds a faculty appointment as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Texas A&M School of Rural Public Health. He is a native Texan with a passion for health and an environment that allows for healthy living.
Public Health Services are provided through four Divisions:
Community Health Education and Social Services (Cynthia
Guerrero, Director) answers the Healthcare Helpline which provides medical resource information for uninsured, underinsured, and low-income county residents. The Healthcare Helpline also provides eligibility screening for medical assistance programs. Other key programs are: the County Indigent Health Care Program (Wilco Care Card), education/case management services for pregnant women and diabetics, case management services for children on Medicaid with certain health conditions, and coordination of the volunteer program.
Environmental Health Services (Paulo Pinto, Director) enforces the on-site sewage facilities (OSSF) regulations in Williamson County. Environmental staff also administer the county’s floodplain regulations and conduct subdivision reviews. Food-related activities by
Environmental Health Services staff include food service establishment inspections and food handler classes.
Public Health Nursing (Jennifer Jackson, Director) provides prenatal care and referral, immunizations for children and adults, sexually transmitted disease (STD) testing and treatment,
HIV testing and counseling, tuberculosis (TB) prevention and treatment, communicable disease investigation and reporting.
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and Community Nutrition (Tina Horkey,
Director) provides nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and food vouchers to pregnant, post partum, and breastfeeding women, infants, and children less than five years of age. The WCCHD community gardening program and healthy cooking classes are also administered by this division.
In addition, activities of Special Programs are
district–wide:
Administration (Mona Bartosh, Deputy Director & Michelle Broddrick, CFO) is responsible for leading strategic planning and support functions for all of WCCHD. Services include: accounting, budgeting, financial management and reporting, information technology support, personnel/payroll, purchasing, and records management.
Emergency Preparedness and Response (Jeff Hoogheem, Coordinator)
duties are spread throughout WCCHD divisions. Staff collaborate with local,
regional, and state partners to prepare for and respond to public health
emergencies.
Epidemiology (David Bastis, Epidemiologist) analyzes disease surveillance and community health data; provides oversight for data quality control; and, assists the Communicable Disease Management Team (CDMT) as needed with outbreak investigation and other disease management activities.
Quality Assurance and Compliance (Anita Martinez, Coordinator) oversees public information functions, and the development, implementation and coordination of WCCHD’s Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement program, personnel and business practices policies and procedures,
oversees Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance,
manages Open Records/Public Information requests, and manages the WCCHD safety program.
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