Welcome to Harris County Public Health!

Full Bio

Gwen Sims has been recently appointed as the Deputy Director for Harris County Public Health (HCPH). Before being appointed to this position, she was the Director of Nutrition and Chronic Disease Prevention (NCDP), a division established in September 2014 at HCPH which serves Harris County, Texas – the third most populous county in the United States.

Internally at HCPH, Ms. Sims serves as Champion for the Collaborative Activities, Recognition & Events (CARE) Workgroup, which focuses on engaging and improving employee morale. In addition, Ms. Sims provided oversight and guidance for other departmental work, including the Drug Abuse Prevention (DAP) Taskforce; the Chronic Disease Tag-Up, which monitors activities across the department; the Injury Prevention Tag-Up; the Social, Emotional and Mental (SEM) Well-Being Tag-Up; the Maternal & Child Wellness Taskforce; Obesity Reduction and Tobacco Cessation community projects; as well as Health Education, specifically school health programs. She serves as the co-project director for Healthy Living Matters (HLM), a collaborative addressing childhood obesity in Harris County through policy and environmental change by convening community partners to share and implement best practices related to nutrition and physical activity. She was also instrumental in the creation of the Serenity Room, which is available to employees for meditation, prayer, or pumping for breastfeeding mothers.

In an effort to build and maintain partnerships, Ms. Sims serves on the boards of Cancer Alliance of Texas (CAT) – Chair Elect, whose mission is “to engage organizations, agencies, institutions and individuals to work collaboratively to reduce the impact of cancer in Texas and promote the Texas Cancer Plan”; L.I.F.E. Houston (Vice-President), which provides emergency food and formula, as well as infant nutrition education to families in need; and Houston Recovery Center Technical Assistance Group (TAG). She was also a member of BridgeUp at Menninger and the Houston SNAP Taskforce, and she currently serves on the Improving Maternal Health Steering Committee. She is a Senior Fellow of the Gulf Coast Chapter of the American Leadership Forum (Class XLVI – Healthcare).

Ms. Sims is a registered and licensed dietitian who joined the health department in 1997. She is a graduate of Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with a Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition and Foods and a Master's Degree in Education.

Welcome to the new Office of Epidemiology, Surveillance Evaluation!

Science, surveillance, and technology are cornerstones of modern public health. Applying the scientific method to the data we collect allows us to confidently make decisions to improve your health and well-being. Surveillance data gives Harris County Public Health direct insight into threats to population health. Technology and innovation provide or accelerate solutions to difficult problems.

The Office of Science, Surveillance and Technology (OSST) enhances HCPH’s ability to detect problems, conduct research, come up with creative solutions, and advance the science of an academic health department. These three branches come together to form the foundation of precision public health, allowing HCPH to make sound decisions to improve the health and well-being of Harris County residents.

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Dr. Dana Beckham received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Tuskegee University, her Master of Public Health and her Master of Business Administration from Benedictine University. She has over 20 years of experience working at the state and local public health departments in various fields, including zoonosis control, public health preparedness, community health services, infectious diseases and epidemiology.

In 2015, Dr. Beckham joined HCPH as manager of the Tuberculosis (TB) Elimination Program. She later served as the manager for the Epidemiology Program. In 2018, she became the director of the Office of Epidemiology, Surveillance, and Evaluation (OESE). She is Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certified and co-chair of HCPH One Health Conference.

Email: [email protected]

Biosketch

Welcome to the Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response (OPHPR)!

Harris County Public Health (HCPH) is the primary agency responsible for protecting the public’s health in the event of a widespread public health emergency within Harris County. A public health emergency is defined as an immediate threat from a naturally occurring or intentional event that poses a high risk of fatalities or serious long-term disability to large numbers of people.

Within HCPH, OPHPR works with numerous jurisdictional partners, emergency responders, private and public sectors, NGO’s, and volunteer organizations to mitigate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from the effects of emerging infectious diseases, pandemics, chemical, biological/radiological emergencies along with other non-specific public health emergencies.

OPHPR maintains plans, standard operating guides (SOG’s) and supporting documents that guide preparedness, mitigation, and response activities. OPHPR actively engages both our employees and volunteer support partners in training through classroom sessions, drills, and exercises to help plan and prepare for public health emergencies.

For more information about the Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, please call (713) 439-6179.

Email: [email protected]

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Welcome to the Environmental Public Health Division!

As the Director of Environmental Public Health, my mission is to effectively utilize the resources I have to do the best I can to protect the public's health in Harris County by: 

• Permitting and inspecting food establishments and public pools
• Ensuring the integrity of drinking water
• Abating neighborhood nuisances
• Having safe pools to swim in
• Minimizing lead-based paint in target area homes

As the regulating authority in these areas, we will seek compliance through education and enforcement efforts. It is the responsibility of owners to make sure their properties follow both local and state laws. These laws were put into effect to protect the public’s health, and I will do everything I can to ensure it is protected.

I encourage everyone in Harris County to report any foodborne illness (a disease caused by consuming contaminated food or drink), nuisance conditions of properties, contaminated water supplies, or swimming pools that are not safe to swim in. My team is here for the residents of Harris County, and they are committed to ensuring their safety.

For more information about the Environmental Public Health Division, please contact (713) 274-6300.

Email: [email protected]

Biosketch

Welcome to the Veterinary Public Health Division (VPH)!

Our primary mission is one of public health - protecting you, the residents of unincorporated Harris County, from zoonotic diseases and injuries caused by animals. We accomplish this through:

• Bite case investigations
• Disease surveillance
• Animal law enforcement
• Stray animal control
• Education
• Rabies vaccinations
• Policy development
• Registration of dogs and cats within unincorporated Harris County

We also work in close partnership with the community to create a safe, healthy and caring environment for people and animals.

VPH is committed to providing humane, compassionate, quality care to animals in our facility. We attempt to return lost pets to their owners and strive to place as many of our unclaimed shelter animals as possible into new “forever homes” through our adoption program, the help of our rescue partners and transfers to other animal sheltering agencies. For those animals that need a little extra “TLC” or veterinary care before they are suitable for adoption, we have a robust animal fostering team made up of dedicated staff and volunteers.

Educational programs are ongoing to bring awareness to the pet overpopulation problem in Harris County and to promote responsible pet ownership. We advocate spaying and neutering, microchipping, and vaccinating as part of the solution to the stray animal problem. However, we alone cannot solve the problem. That is why we invite you to join the effort in educating the community on the importance of responsible pet ownership.

It is my pleasure to work with the dedicated group of individuals employed at VPH. Our staff members continue to perform their jobs with efficiency, integrity and compassion. I am impressed daily by their amazing loyalty to VPH’s mission of protecting the public from zoonotic disease and injury from animals as well as providing humane care to the animals in their charge. Through continued collaboration and coordination with our partners, we are committed to being a shining example of care and best practices for all sheltering facilities.

For more information about VPH, please call (281) 999-3191.

Email: [email protected]

Senior Assistant County Attorney Marva Gay joined Harris County Public Health as its full-time in-house legal counsel in September 2014 through an arrangement with the Harris County Attorney’s Office (HCAO).She handles various legal affairs from contracting and transactions to public health law counsel, statute review, and policy input allowing for more seamless integration of public health law with public health planning and practice.

Ms. Gay has been with the Harris County Attorney’s Office since 1995, first within the General Counsel Division and moving up to be the Managing Attorney for the Public Law Practice Group.Her major clients have included the Harris County Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, the Sheriff’s Medical Unit, the Harris County Hospital District’s Community Health Choice and Harris County Public Health.Prior to joining HCAO, Ms. Gay was in private practice in Louisville, where she focused on healthcare and non-profit related law. She holds undergraduate and master’s degrees in journalism from the University of Kentucky and her JD from the University of Miami.She is licensed to practice in Texas, Kentucky and Florida. Ms. Gary is a member of the Houston Bar Association and has served as a board member of both the Health Law Section and the Animal Law Section.

Email: [email protected]

Welcome to the Mosquito and Vector Control Division! 

Chris Fredregill currently serves as the Director of the Mosquito and Vector Control Division (MVC). Chris comes to the position with over 17 years of medical entomology and public health experience which he uses to ensure that MVC constantly strives for innovation and creative approaches to control mosquitoes, while leveraging collaborations and grants into sustainable capacity.

Prior to this role, Chris held several positions throughout MVC including: Field Operations Manager, Research Entomologist and Larviciding Operations Entomologist. During these appointments, Chris oversaw collaborations with the Army Corps of Engineers and the Port of Houston, incorporated novel larviciding technologies and directed the field activities of the division. He has additionally led MVC in collaborations with various institutions both academic and commercial including Texas A&M, University of Texas Medical Branch, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Department of State Health Services and Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.

Chris received his Bachelor of Science degree from Texas A&M University in Biomedical Sciences and Entomology. He has also earned his Lean Six Sigma Blackbelt certification and is an active member of the Texas Mosquito Control Association and American Mosquito Control Association.

Mission Statement

HCPH Mosquito & Vector Control Division protects the health and well-being of county residents through surveillance, control, education, research, and technology to prevent and control mosquito-borne diseases such as West Nile Virus (WNV) and St. Louis Encephalitis (SLE).

For more information about Mosquito Control, please call (713) 440-4795.

Rohish comes to HCPH most recently from the Sonoma County Department of Health Services (DHS) where he served as the Legislative Policy and External Affairs officer, and previously Public Information Officer.

As Legislative Policy and External Affairs Officer, he was responsible for planning and implementing both externally facing (e.g., government relations, policy development, political advocacy) and internally focused programs that impact health policy.

In his role as Public Information Officer, Rohish led media relations and served as spokesperson for both DHS and Sonoma County. He has extensive experience working in the Incident Command Structure (ICS), and led communication efforts during emergencies, including wildfire and the COVID-19 pandemic response.

Rohish has 10 years of experience in public sector health communications and community engagement. He was previously an Assistant Information Officer for the California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS), which oversees 12 departments and five offices that provide a range of health care services, social services, mental health services, alcohol and drug services, income assistance, and public health services. Prior to his CHHS experience, Rohish worked at Xerox State Healthcare, California’s Medicaid services contractor, as an editor and content analyst.

Rohish received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from San Francisco State University and his Master of Public Health (MPH) degree from California State University, Northridge. 

Welcome to Nutrition and Chronic Disease Prevention!

Chronic diseases are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States and in Harris County. The Nutrition and Chronic Disease Prevention Division (NCDP) was created in 2014 to establish programs and initiatives that promote healthy behaviors and prevent chronic conditions.

LaPorcha Carter currently serves as the Interim Director of NCDP. Prior to accepting this role, LaPorcha served as the Senior Manager of Chronic Disease Prevention under NCDP with oversight of a number programming and staff in many areas of chronic disease prevention ranging from pediatric asthma to Diabetes in older adults. She also leads the School Health Leadership Group, a collaborative of school health leaders from over 20 school districts in Harris County and surrounding areas. LaPorcha specializes in program development and implementation. She has served at multiple levels at the department and started with HCPH as a Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) fellow and contractor in 2014. After working in the non-profit sector, she returned to HCPH in 2016 in NCDP as the first coalition coordinator for the North Harris County Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition. In 2017, LaPorcha took on the role of Chronic Disease Prevention Program Manager. In this role, she has assisted in the development, implementation, and expansion of multiple chronic disease prevention programs.

During her time at HCPH, LaPorcha has participated in numerous interdepartmental activities including LEAD_360, Lean Six Sigma, Health Equity Steering Committee, Data Stewards, and multiple tag-ups. She is also involved in many community and statewide working groups and initiatives.

LaPorcha holds a Master of Public Health Degree with a concentration in Epidemiology from the University of North Texas Health Science Center and a Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Sciences from Texas A&M University.

Radhika Kudchadkar brings strong project & change management, as well as leadership experience to the role of the Director of The office of Planning and Innovation. She is responsible for the agency’s innovation portfolio, as well as strategic planning efforts. With experience in Technology, Innovation, Management and her passion for serving the community in an integrated way; she aligns her interests squarely with that of the mission of the newly formed Office of Planning and Innovation.

Prior to her promotion, her contribution to Harris County Public Health, has been in the strategic planning and portfolio management of the agency’s 1115 Waiver Medicaid Health Transformation Projects. This included a nationally recognized innovative approach to care, known as TB-VDOT (Tuberculosis Video Directly Observed Therapy), along with several technology and community health initiatives; where she served as an enterprise-wide senior project management strategist. Her dynamic leadership was instrumental in the formation of a one-of-a-kind Public Health Innovation lab (PHI Lab). This included accelerator cohorts through multidisciplinary teams as well as strategic public-private partnerships.

Having previously worked in the technology domain, she has brought and applied all of the agile and innovative frameworks to help efficiently achieve the mission of Harris County Public Health. Her execution portfolio includes her leadership in several organization-wide quality and performance improvement initiatives using Lean Six Sigma and OKR (Objectives and Key Results) methodologies. Throughout her career, she has been recognized for leading collaborative efforts to design and construct innovative processes, which have resulted in breaking organizational silos and fostering value-added project acceleration and growth.

She has served on numerous workgroups such as the Organizational Performance and Quality Improvement Council, Leadership Council and the Mentorship Program Development Workgroup within Harris County. Being a triathlete and a certified health coach, she brings grit and perseverance combined with empathetic design and Innovative thought to plan and execute effective community service systems. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science (BS) from India and Masters of Science (MS) from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale in Electrical and Computer Engineering. She is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Black belt.

Email: [email protected]