Dr. David Colby will continue as MOH into 2023

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Dr. David Colby will continue his role as the acting medical officer of health for Chatham-Kent into 2023.

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Dr. David Colby will continue as MOH into 2023 Back to video

Colby had planned to retire as of Dec. 31. The Chatham-Kent board of health passed a motion Wednesday following a closed-door meeting to appoint Colby, the previous medical officer of health, to the acting role beginning Jan. 1.

Colby had announced his retirement at the end of March of this year. Dr. Mario Kangeswaren was announced as the new medical officer of health in July, but he stepped down from the role in October.

While he was using up his owed vacation time, Colby stepped back into the medical officer of health role after Kangeswaren resigned.

Coun. Brock McGregor, chair of the local board of health, said recruitment remains underway to permanently fill the position.

“We won’t have a permanent medical officer of health before Dr. Colby’s original retirement date,” McGregor said in an interview. “He has agreed to stay on and fulfil that role until we can find someone new in the near future.”

There isn’t a “finalized timeline” to complete the recruitment process, McGregor said. He noted there are other health units in Ontario also looking for a medical officer of health as well.

“We were fortunate Dr. Colby was still available to take on this role so we could continue business as usual in a number of our capacities that we require medical directives and a medical officer of health to continue,” McGregor said.

Colby originally became Chatham-Kent’s medical officer health in 2003.