While the Department was earlier headed by the Chief Health Officer, a Joint Commissioner of Health, an IAS officer, is overseeing its functioning now. Apart from the Chief Health Officer, the Department has a City Medical Officer, whose role includes the management of the urban primary health centres that evolved from dispensaries. P. Kuganantham, a retired Chief Health Officer, says the Corporation was a pioneer in adopting best practices in public health. Mr. Dhanraj says COVID-19 highlighted the strengths of the Public Health Department, besides some of its weaknesses. As with the city’s achievements in public health, a sentence in the Health Officer’s report submitted in 1919 by the same Dr. Raghavendra Rao still rings true.

Source: The Hindu August 15, 2021 20:26 UTC