• Contact Us
  • Events calendar
Entering Swellesley
Pinnacle, Wellesley

The Swellesley Report

More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

  • Advertise
  • Contribute
  • Eat
  • Wellesley Square
  • School
  • Top 10 things to do
  • Embracing diversity
  • Charities/Community
  • Arts
  • Camp
  • Kids
  • Events
  • About us
  • Subscribe
  • Natick Report
  • COVID-19
  • Letters to the Editor
Needham Bank, Wellesley
Boston Sports Institute, Wellesley

Meet Wellesley candidate for Board of Health, Dr. Jim Rodrigue

February 18, 2019 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

The Town of Wellesley depends on the active participation of its citizens in governance of the Town. Wellesley has 11 Boards and Committees on the ballot at the Annual Town election each year in March. The 2019 election will be held on Tuesday, March 5, 2019.

Contested race: Board of Health

The mission of the Wellesley Health Department is to assess and address the needs of the Wellesley community, in order to protect and improve the health and quality of life of its residents and work force.

This charge is carried out in part by the Board of Health. There are three members of the Board. Secretary Lloyd Tarlin, MD will vacate his seat when it expires in 2019. There are two candidates vying for that spot: Linda Oliver Grape and Dr. Jim Rodrigue. Grape’s responses were part of an earlier post. We invited them to answer a few questions about their qualifications and their priorities for the Town of Wellesley.

Dr. Jim Rodrigue, candidate for Board of Health

The Swellesley Report: What is your background and what qualifies you for this position?

Dr. Jim Rodrigue: I’ve been in healthcare for 30 years – as a clinician, a researcher, a teacher, and an administrator. I’m a Professor of Surgery and Psychiatry in the Harvard Medical School, and I’m the Vice Chair of the Department of Surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. I have been funded for over 20 years by the National Institutes of Health to conduct research on how best to reduce social, economic, and racial disparities in healthcare. I have chaired many committees at the university level as well as nationally and internationally in my area of specialty. As a clinical psychologist, academic leader, and health outcomes researcher, I have considerable experience in program development and evaluation, strategic planning, policy development, fiscal management, and building collaborative relationships. Also, I am an elected Town Meeting Member and a member of the Recreation Commission. I believe that my healthcare background, leadership experience, and town engagement/governance will be invaluable assets to the Board of Health.

Dr. Jim Rodrigue, candidate for Board of Health.

Sw: If elected, what do you hope to accomplish during your 3-year tenure on the Board?

Rodrigue: Despite its affluence, Wellesley is not immune to mental health problems, addiction, food insecurity, domestic violence, limited access to affordable healthcare, and the adverse impact of climate change on public health. I will work with other Board members to ensure that the Director of the Health Department (Leonard Izzo) has the sufficient resources to carry out the many activities that are consistent with the Department’s mission:

 Implement disease prevention and health promotion programs
 Provide community health, nursing, and mental health services
 Conduct public outreach and education
 Conduct compliance inspections for 160+ food permit holders to minimize community
health risk
 Respond to emerging health threats within the community (e.g., tobacco and nicotine
delivery products, opioid crisis)
 Minimize the risks of climate change on public health
 Conduct housing and environmental inspections

In addition, I have five core initiatives that I will prioritize in the first six months of my term:
i. Increase funding for Health Department
ii. Expand mental health resources available to residents, particularly for middle and high
school-age youths
iii. Tighten regulations for tobacco and nicotine delivery products to limit availability
iv. Pursue later school start times for middle and high school students in Wellesley Public
Schools (data show substantial health benefits)
v. Implement “Environmental Sustainability for Public Health” initiative

Sw: What is your hot-button issue?

Rodrigue:  I would characterize all five items above as “hot-button” items. However, the Health Department needs more funding to pursue these initiatives and to administer their usual day-to-day activities. Wellesley claims that health and well-being is one of its core values. Talk is cheap. Show me the budget and I’ll see what the town values. It certainly isn’t health, as funding for the Wellesley Health Department – as measured by dollars per resident – is substantially lower than that of most other
Massachusetts towns of our size. This inadequate funding level has real consequences, including an inability to respond to emerging health threats (e.g., opioid crisis, nicotine delivery products, etc.), delays in implementing new policies and regulations that place public health and safety at risk, grossly insufficient attention to mental health problems in our children and adolescents (see the Metro West Adolescent Health Survey findings), and the risk of losing outstanding Health Department employees. What Mr. Izzo and his staff have been able to accomplish for town residents, despite insufficient funding, is nothing short of heroic – but this must change.

Sw: What is the greatest health-related need in Wellesley?

Rodrigue: There are several important health-related needs in Wellesley. If I must choose only one it would be the mental health needs of the youth in town. I encourage everyone to read the MetroWest Adolescent Health Survey findings (available from WPS) and the Public Health and Wellness Chapter of the Wellesley Unified Plan. Critical unmet mental health needs identified in these reports. Add to this the emerging addiction to nicotine delivery products among adolescents and we are rapidly
moving toward a crisis in our town.

Sw: Is there anything you would like to say that the above questions did not cover?

Rodrigue: Along with my wife and three daughters, I’ve lived in Wellesley for nearly 13 years and I am grateful for the many benefits we have accrued from being part of this wonderful community. As a member of the Board of Health, I will commit my time and expertise to ensure the well-being of our neighbors, young and old, and to raise the overall health of the community. I would be honored to have your support and vote on March 5th.

Sw: How should voters reach you if they want more information?

Rodrigue: I’m very accessible and appreciate hearing about any issues or concerns that may impact the health of our neighbors and community. Please email me at: [email protected].

MORE: Wellesley election 2019

print

Share

Filed Under: Government, Politics, Wellesley Election 2019

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Linden Square, Wellesley
Write Ahead

Tip us off…

Please send tips, photos, ideas to [email protected]
Wellesley Square ad
Wellesley, Jesamondo
Sexton test prep
Feldman Law
Fay School, Southborough
Wellesley Theatre Project
Admit Fit, Wellesley
image of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
Never miss a post with our free daily Swellesley Report email
Name: 
Your email address:*
Please wait...
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

You can subscribe for free, though we appreciate any contribution that supports our independent journalism.

Click here to read our Natick Report

Natick Report

Events Calendar

« January 2021 » loading...
S M T W T F S
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
Thu 21

Zero Carbon Home webinar

January 21 @ 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Tue 26

Rum tasting and history talk

January 26 @ 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Wed 27

Online history lecture: Petticoat Whalers

January 27 @ 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Thu 28

January 28 @ 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Most Read Posts

  • Bench at baseball field honors Wellesley's Harry Clark
  • "I Care a Lot" movie that filmed in Wellesley making Netflix debut
  • Pinnacle Residential Properties: the concept of home & roots
  • Wellesley Police log: Rocky relationship between neighbors; laptop goes missing from home; money gone from locker
  • Natick’s boil water order lifted, affected Wellesley residents can drink up

Pages

  • Wellesley coronavirus (COVID-19) updates
  • Wellesley’s 7 official scenic roads
  • Wellesley, Mass., fishing spots
  • Please support our advertisers—they support us
  • Embracing diversity in Wellesley
  • Wellesley, MA Police logs
  • Wellesley Choral Society
  • Wellesley College Notable Alumnae
  • Wellesley College, Wellesley, Mass.
  • Wellesley outdoor art gallery
  • Wellesley restaurants offering take-out and delivery
  • Wellesley, Massachusetts restaurant — Amarin of Thailand

Recent Comments

  • devin on Wellesley Police log: Rocky relationship between neighbors; laptop goes missing from home; money gone from locker
  • Bob Brown on “I Care a Lot” movie that filmed in Wellesley making Netflix debut
  • Juli on “I Care a Lot” movie that filmed in Wellesley making Netflix debut
  • Bob Brown on “I Care a Lot” movie that filmed in Wellesley making Netflix debut
  • Russ Barbour on “I Care a Lot” movie that filmed in Wellesley making Netflix debut

Links we like

  • Great Runs
  • Jack Sanford: Wellesley's Major League Baseball Star
  • Taquitos.net
  • Tech-Tamer
  • The Wellesley Wine Press
  • Universal Hub
  • Wellesley Sports Discussion Facebook Group

Categories

  • 2021 Town Election (4)
  • Animals (377)
  • Antiques (48)
  • Art (534)
  • Beyond Wellesley (28)
  • Books (343)
  • Business (1,357)
  • Camp (1)
  • Careers/jobs (44)
  • Churches (72)
  • Clubs (207)
  • Construction (280)
  • Dump (113)
  • Education (2,880)
    • Babson College (239)
    • Bates Elementary School (14)
    • Dana Hall School (29)
    • Fiske Elementary School (6)
    • Hardy Elementary School (33)
    • Hunnewell Elementary School (34)
    • MassBay (47)
    • Schofield Elementary School (20)
    • Sprague Elementary School (19)
    • St. John School (1)
    • Tenacre Country Day School (9)
    • Upham Elementary School (30)
    • Wellesley College (598)
    • Wellesley High School (884)
    • Wellesley Middle School (195)
  • Embracing diversity (38)
  • Entertainment (722)
  • Environment (666)
  • Fashion (133)
  • Finance (13)
  • Fire (141)
  • Food (327)
  • Fundraising (559)
  • Gardens (136)
  • Government (386)
    • 2020 Town Election (47)
  • Health (737)
    • COVID-19 (134)
  • History (358)
  • Holidays (365)
  • Houses (118)
  • Humor (45)
  • Kids (814)
  • Law (3)
  • Letters to the Editor (5)
  • Media (63)
  • METCO (5)
  • Military (3)
  • Morses Pond (96)
  • Music (543)
  • Natick Report (27)
  • Neighbors (243)
  • Obituaries (58)
  • Outdoors (582)
  • Parenting (60)
  • Police (688)
    • Crime (345)
  • Politics (534)
  • Real estate (286)
  • Religion (127)
  • Restaurants (302)
  • Safety (142)
  • Scouts (1)
  • Senior citizens (107)
  • Shopping (121)
  • Sports (897)
  • STEM (104)
  • Technology (154)
  • Theatre (383)
  • Town Meeting (22)
  • Transportation (209)
  • Travel (11)
  • Uncategorized (1,205)
  • Volunteering (317)
  • Weather (161)
  • Wellesley Election 2019 (21)
  • Wellesley Free Library (258)
  • Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend (5)
RSS Feed Icon Subscribe to RSS Feed

© 2021 The Swellesley Report
Site by Tech-Tamer · Login