Catherine Dodd
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed UCSF School of Nursing doctoral candidate Catherine Dodd, RN, MS, FAAN, to serve on the San Francisco Health Commission.
Dodd was sworn in for a four-year term last Friday and attended her first meeting on Feb. 13.
Comprising seven mayoral appointees who meet twice each month, the San Francisco Health Commission is the governing and policy-making body of the Department of Public Health. It is mandated by the City and County of San Francisco Charter to manage and control the city and county hospitals, and to monitor and regulate emergency medical services, and all matters pertaining to the preservation, promotion and protection of the lives, physical health and mental health of San Francisco residents.
Dodd will recuse herself from votes that may involve the UCSF School of Nursing because her partner, Mary Foley, RN, MS, also a doctoral student in the School of Nursing, is the associate director of the Center for Research & Innovation in Patient Care in the School of Nursing.
Dodd became a staff member of San Francisco Supervisor Nancy Walker after doing an internship for her community health nursing specialty while completing a masters' degree at UCSF. She helped write the legislation that amended the charter to establish the health commission and was the treasurer of the campaign.
Dodd also was an appointee of President Clinton as the Region IX Director for the US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) representing DHHS Secretary Donna Shalala in Arizona, Nevada, California, Hawaii and the Pacific jurisdictions. She recently left a position as district director for US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to finish her PhD in sociology in the UCSF School of Nursing.
Dodd becomes the fourth registered nurse and third nurse associated with UCSF to sit on the 25-year-old health commission, which has three seats designated for health care providers. Pat Underwood, RN, DNSc, UCSF faculty, was the first registered to serve in one of the commission's three "provider" slots, during the Art Agnos administration. Helen Ripple, RN, MS, former director of nursing at UCSF Medical Center and faculty member, was the second nurse, and Todd Hill, RN, served an incomplete term.
As a doctoral candidate, Dodd acknowledges that it is a challenging time for her because of her data analysis and writing obligations, but fellow commissioners and San Francisco Department of Public Health staff understand that finishing her PhD degree is her first priority.
"I feel uniquely prepared to serve at this time," Dodd says. "My academic preparation and my different career experiences make this a perfect place to shape health policy at the local level. San Francisco will be implementing the first-in-the-nation Health Access Program beginning in July of this year, which will provide health coverage for all San Franciscans."
Dodd will serve as the commission's liaison to the San Francisco Health Plan. She also will serve on the Joint Conference Committee of the Community Health Network, which ties all of San Francisco's health care services together.
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San Francisco Health Commission
