Board appoints interim public health officer and approves six‑month contract

Lake County supervisors on Aug. 4 appointed Noemi C. Doohan as interim public health officer and approved a six‑month professional services agreement not to exceed $90,000, citing an immediate gap in health‑officer coverage that left two hospitalized patients unable to be released.

Health Services Director Lisa Farrako told the board the county’s prior contractor declined to continue past the end of her contract and there is no health officer available to sign time‑sensitive medical releases. “We are in an urgent and emergency situation with our lack of coverage,” Farrako said, asking the board to consider the short‑term contract while staff completes a request‑for‑proposals for interim services. The contract was described to the board as bridge coverage while the county seeks a longer interim or permanent hire; Farrako said Doohan’s dual coverage has been approved by the City of Berkeley and the California Department of Public Health.

Supervisors discussed availability and on‑call expectations and asked whether after‑hours communications would impose extra departmental costs. Farrako said Doohan’s agency prefers routine conversations after 5 p.m. but that she “is available if we have an emergency during standard work hours.” The board voted to add the extra item to the agenda and then approved both the closed‑session appointment and the professional services agreement by unanimous vote, 5–0. The motion authorizes the health services director to sign the contract and confirmed the appointment of Doohan as interim public health officer.

The action was taken as an extra agenda item under Government Code provisions permitting added items when immediate action is required; county counsel and staff explained the legal justification for the late addition. The contract terms, staff said, are short‑term and intended to ensure continuity of public health operations while recruitment and other interim arrangements continue.