The Summit County Board of Health has appointed Christopher Barker, the county’s director of preparedness and compliance, to replace outgoing Public Health Commissioner Donna Skoda after she retires at the end of the year.
Last year, Skoda announced her plans to retire after more than nine years as health commissioner.
“As I assume my new position at the end of the year, I look forward to working to maintain SCPH’s reputation as a progressive health department, an innovative and freethinking organization, and an agency Summit County residents, our community partners and SCPH employee’s respect,” Barker said in a Tuesday media release.
Skoda oversaw the county’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, managing the supply and distribution of testing and vaccines. She was responsible for the use of gift cards to incentivize residents to vaccinate and directed the county’s transition from mass vaccination sites to drive-thru and pop-up clinics as part of a targeted approach aimed to make vaccines available to communities where vaccination rates were low, primarily minority communities and those without access to reliable public transportation.
The county board of health voted to appoint Barker at its July 11 meeting, the release said. He started at the health department in 2009 as an emergency preparedness planner and holds his Master of Public Health degree from Kent State University.
“As we bid Donna a well-earned and happy retirement, rest assured SCPH will build upon our strong foundation, and uphold our commitments to delivering exceptional public health services to the residents of Summit County,” Barker said in the release.
