County Executive Innamorato Announces Eight New Appointments and One Reappointment to County Board of Health
PITTSBURGH – Today County Executive Innamorato announced the appointment of eight new members to the Board of Health and reappointment of one existing member to remain on the Board of Health.
“First I want to thank our prior Board of Health Members, all of whom served for many years with distinction for the County. They spearheaded the nationwide search for a new Director of the Health Department earlier this year, and generously continued to offer expertise to Dr. Vann as she stepped into her new position over the last several months,” said County Executive Innamorato. “We now have the exciting opportunity to welcome eight new members who bring a depth and breadth of public health expertise. As we tackle urgent challenges in air quality, maternal and infant mortality, racial disparities in public health, food insecurity, and more, I know these nine members will lead with distinction and I thank them for agreeing to serve.”
Dr. Iulia Vann, Director of the Allegheny County Health Department, said: “I am deeply grateful to our outgoing Board of Health Members for their dedication, expertise, and commitment to advancing public health in Allegheny County. Their guidance and support, especially during my hiring process, were invaluable, and I am thankful for their service to our community. I am also excited to welcome our new board members, whose diverse perspectives and shared passion for health equity and innovation will be instrumental as we continue building a healthier, stronger county together. I look forward to working closely with them to address our community’s health needs and drive meaningful change.”
County Executive Innamorato submitted the following appointments to County Council:
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Reappointment - Dr. Joylette Portlock, PhD - Currently Dr. Portlock serves as the Executive Director of Sustainable Pittsburgh, a nonprofit working to advance sustainability policies and practices in southwestern Pennsylvania. Sustainable Pittsburgh regularly works with hundreds of partners in the region — including local governments, nonprofits, and the business community — to ensure our economy is built to last and that our people and our planet thrive. Prior to her role at Sustainable Pittsburgh, Dr. Portlock served as Associate Director of Science and Research at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History and as Executive Director of Communitopia, a nonprofit based in Pittsburgh that focuses on climate change communication. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology with a minor in anthropology from MIT and a PhD in genetics from Stanford University.
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Dr. Elizabeth Cuevas, MD - Dr. Cuevas serves as Division Chief of Allegheny Health Network's (AHN) Center for Inclusion Health. A board-certified internal medicine physician, Dr. Cuevas previously served as Division Chief of Academic Internal Medicine at AHN, as well as Director of Primary Care Transformation for the Internal Medicine Residency Clinics. As part of Dr. Cuevas’ tenure with AHN, she was instrumental in launching the Center for Inclusion Health (CIH) in 2014. CIH was established as one of the nation’s first programs focused on meeting the comprehensive health needs of patients from underserved of marginalized populations. Since its inception, the Center has significantly grown in the number of caregivers that are dedicated to delivering a coordinated and compassionate care delivery model using evidence-based interventions, as well as expanded programs to address health issues and health care barriers such as addiction, food insecurity, HIV/AIDS, homelessness, immigrant/ refugee health and transgender health. A University of Notre Dame graduate, Dr. Cuevas received her medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh in 2001. She completed her internship and residency training in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. While in Boston, she also served as a medical director in the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program.
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Laura M. Dagley, BSN, RN - Laura Dagley currently serves as Medical and Environmental Health Writer for Physicians for Social Responsibility Pennsylvania (PSR PA), where she creates content that involves science, health and research that reflects PSR PA’s position as a leading health voice on environmental health and climate issues. Through her work, she distills highly scientific/technical information such as studies, research and health impacts for general readership, provides testimony as a public health expert in public hearings, for local news stories, and town halls, and works directly with impacted community members to facilitate communication between them and government agencies. Ms. Dagley has extensive experience as a Registered Nurse, Case Manager, Nursing Assistant, and Caregiver. She currently serves as a Board Member for the Center for Coalfield Justice and as a Medical Reserve Corps Volunteer through the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Ms. Dagley holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Messiah College.
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Dr. Margaret Larkins-Pettigrew, MD, MEd, MPPM, FACOG - Dr. Larkins Pettigrew is an international diversity, inclusion and equity expert, maternal and infant health care equity advocate, global healthcare strategist, OB-Gyn, professor, public speaker and author. She is the Senior Vice President and Chief Clinical Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer of Allegheny Health Network and serves as Academic Chair of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at Drexel University. Dr. Larkins-Pettigrew is also the founder, CEO, and President of JUSTWONDOOR, a nonprofit that aims to educate global medical providers and reduce maternal and infant mortality through local and international health care collaborations. As AHN's chief clinical diversity, equity, and inclusion officer, Dr. Larkins-Pettigrew works with leaders across AHN to shape an inclusive workplace culture and equitable health care delivery and outcomes for all patients and communities served. Her experiences as a nurse, distinguished professor, naval officer, global health strategist, and obstetrician-gynecologist specializing in global health issues bring a unique perspective to her role. Dr. Larkins-Pettigrew has a specialized care focus on women whose health care needs are often underserved, including those living with HIV. Dr. Larkins-Pettigrew attended medical school at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and completed an OB-GYN internship at the Naval Hospital in Portsmouth, Virginia. She also completed an OB-GYN residency at Magee Women’s Hospital in Pittsburgh and earned a master’s degree in public policy management at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Policy & International Affairs. She has a Bachelor of Science in nursing from the University of Pittsburgh, and a master’s in education from California State University in Long Beach, California.
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Dr. Dara D. Méndez, PhD, MPH - Dr. Méndez is a nationally recognized scholar dedicated to advancing racial and socioeconomic equity, justice, and well-being across the life course, particularly in pregnancy, birth, and women’s health. Her work supports national and global leaders and organizations in developing strategies, initiatives, and research aimed at achieving health equity. She leads several initiatives focused on understanding the intersection of structural and social contexts—such as structural racism and oppression—on health, particularly for Black populations. Her projects also explore the use of media and arts in health, community-based research, and policy interventions designed to promote health equity. At the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Méndez serves as an Associate Professor of Epidemiology in the School of Public Health and as Associate Director for the Center for Health Equity. She is a founding member of the Black Equity Coalition, a former member of the Pennsylvania Maternal Mortality Review Committee, Health Editor for Block Chronicles, and co-founder of the Pittsburgh Latinx Artist Residency Program. Dr. Méndez earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology and anthropology from Spelman College, her MPH in maternal and child health, and her PhD in maternal and child health and epidemiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She completed her postdoctoral training as a Kellogg Health Scholar and through the Alcohol Epidemiology Training Program at the University of Pittsburgh.
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Dr. Khlood F. Salman, DrPH, RN, FAAN - Dr. Salman is an Associate Professor at the Duquesne University School of Nursing, where her expertise in nursing, public and community health, and Middle Eastern culture has led her to a research focus on disease prevention and health promotion with a particular interest in women's health and vulnerable populations. Dr. Salman's funded research has included minority, immigrant and refugee populations, international and global health, environmental health, interreligious (interfaith) dialogue, and technology in education. Dr. Salman earned her Master's Degree in Medical-Surgical Nursing (School of Nursing) and her Doctoral Degree in Epidemiology of Chronic Disease (Graduate School of Public Health) from the University of Pittsburgh. She has extensive clinical experience in acute and chronic care, including organ transplantation, and prior to joining the faculty of Duquesne University, she held positions as a staff nurse, home care nurse and most recently at a Medicaid managed health organization (MHO) as a community health nurse. Dr. Salman serves as a member in various interdisciplinary community organizations in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area such as the Allegheny County Immunization Coalition and the Braddock Primary Health Clinic, in addition to being one of the original members of the Refugee Mentoring Task Force established by the Allegheny County Department of Human Services. . In 2016, Dr. Salman was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for six months in Saudi Arabia to share her research and teaching expertise.
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Lisa Scales, JD - Lisa Scales has been President and CEO of Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank since 2012, leading the organization in distributing food for nearly 45million meals annually through a network of 850 community partners in 11 counties of southwestern Pennsylvania. Ms. Scales previously served as an elected member of the National Council for Feeding America, chair of the Eastern Region Association of Food Banks for Feeding America, co-chair of Feeding America’s Produce Enterprise Strategy Committee, and Chair of Feeding Pennsylvania. With the University of Pittsburgh, Ms. Scales serves as an advisory board member of the Center for Supply Chain Management and on the Institute of Politics Board of Fellows. Ms. Scales has been honored as the recipient of the Greater Pittsburgh ATHENA Award (2018), Duquesne University’s Eileen Zungolo Spirit of Service Award (2020), and Pittsburgh Magazine’s Pittsburgher of the Year (2021). Ms. Scales holds a Juris Doctor (JD) degree from Boston University School of Law and Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Sciences from Seton Hill University, from which she received the 2019 Distinguished Alumna Leadership Award.
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Dr. Graham Snyder, MD, MS - Dr. Snyder serves as the Senior Medical Director for Infectious Disease Quality and Outcomes and the Medical Director for Infection Prevention and Hospital Epidemiology at UPMC and as an Associate Professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Snyder oversees efforts to prevent infection and provide high-value, high-quality infectious diseases-related care at UPMC hospitals systemwide. He leads, champions and advises hospital-based campaigns to raise awareness of the importance of adhering to policies proven to prevent and treat infections, such as vaccination, transmission prevention, antimicrobial stewardship and diagnostic stewardship. Through academic partnerships, he’s also leading innovative pilot programs to track new drug-resistant pathogens and halt their spread. In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Snyder is involved in ongoing research, with a focus on device-associated infections. Following his Internal Medicine residency training at the University of Maryland, Dr. Snyder completed Infectious Diseases and Infection Control fellowships at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and earned a Master of Science in Epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health.
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Dr. Michael Yonas, DrPH, MPH - Dr. Yonas serves as Vice President for Community Partnerships and Learning at The Pittsburgh Foundation. In this role, Dr. Yonas is responsible for developing and managing the Foundation's public health research, prevention and intervention initiatives. Dr. Yonas uses participatory approaches to address social determinants of health and factors influencing community violence, housing and eviction, chronic diseases and persistent racial disparities impacting the health and well-being of families and communities. Currently, Dr. Yonas manages internal and external evaluation activities, the public health and medical research grantmaking portfolios and is responsible for implementing multiple mixed-methods participatory research initiatives to inform the Foundation's grantmaking, policy, convening and research agenda. Dr. Yonas earned his master’s and doctorate degrees of public health from The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, his bachelor’s of arts degree in fine arts from Dickinson College, and post-doctoral training in participatory research and engagement as a W. K. Kellogg Foundation Post-Doctorate Community Health Fellow at the University of North Carolina. Dr. Yonas is also an adjunct faculty member of the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and serves as a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical technician in Allegheny County.
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