Mayor Brandon Johnson announced the appointment of esteemed public health leader Dr. Olusimbo "Simbo" Ige, MD, MS, MPH to serve as commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH).
The announcement took place days after media outlets reported that now-former CDPH Commission Dr. Alison Arwady accepted a position with the CDC.
Igewho will be the first Black female commissioner to lead the CDPH in a permanent roleis currently the managing director of programs at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and has previously served as the assistant commissioner for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
"Dr. Ige is a tremendous addition to not just our administration, but to the City of Chicago," said Johnson in a press release. "Dr. Ige is someone who understands the balance between hard data and community interaction when assessing public health problems and solutions, and with decades of experience in public health, she brings a clear-eyed understanding of both the challenges and the opportunities that CDPH and our city face, and how we will collectively overcome them."
Ige received her Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery and her Master of Science in epidemiology and biostatistics from Nigeria's University of Ibadan. She received her master's in public health from the University of Manchester, in the United Kingdom.
Andrew Davis