PR -- El Dorado County names health officer

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
August 6, 2009


The El Dorado County Health Services Department is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Olivia Kasirye to the position of Health Officer for El Dorado County. Dr. Kasirye will provide medical expertise and oversight on a variety of community-wide public health issues impacting El Dorado County residents, including communicable disease control. She will also actively work with local doctors and other healthcare providers on public health clinical, preventive and policy issues. Dr. Kasirye is both a physician and an epidemiologist, and is board certified in public health and preventive medicine. She holds a masters degree in epidemiology from UC Davis.

“I’m delighted to be here and look forward to working with all of our community and agency partners,” said Dr. Kasirye. Before coming to El Dorado County, Dr. Kasirye served as the Medical Director for Sacramento County’s Maternal Child and Adolescent Health, and Child Health and Disability Prevention programs. She also served as the Communicable Disease Controller for the Sacramento County Department of Health and Human Services. She is currently an active member of the Sacramento Sierra Valley Medical Society.

California law requires that all health departments maintain a health officer to enforce health and safety codes and to provide medical direction and oversight. According to Dr. Kasirye, the field of public health offers unique opportunities for physicians such as herself. “I enjoy working in public health because I like to engage with the community and to have a variety of projects that can positively influence the health of our residents,” said Dr. Kasirye. “I have seen first hand how public health prevention and intervention activities can make a real and lasting difference in people’s lives.”

Dr. Kasirye, who is originally from Uganda, has lived in the United States for over twenty years. She is a current resident of El Dorado County and is married with two teenage children. She can be reached at (530) 621-6156 or via email at Olivia.kasirye@edcgov.us.