By Steuart Pittman
I had a great day last week.
It started with a ribbon cutting at Samaritan House. They’re opening a second 16-bed building for men recovering from a substance use disorder. The final speaker talked about what it was like to live for the next fix, to total five cars, to nearly kill your own child, and then, with the love for that child as a lifeline, to battle your way to a place where self-hate is replaced with a glimmer of self-respect. That man’s story grounded me for the rest of the day. I wish everyone in this county had been there to hear it.
Then I visited Gaudenzia, the addiction treatment facility at Crownsville Hospital Center where the criminal justice system sends people for treatment. Their job is to rebuild the lives of people who need support and community more than any others. The staff there is nothing short of heroic.
The rest of the day was spent catching up on reading, in meetings with my staff, in meetings about legislative priorities with Delegate Mike Rogers and Senator Sarah Elfreth, and preparing to speak at two evening events.
But the highlight was at 6 p.m. That’s when we started a Town Hall at Annapolis High School to introduce our new health officer and our new deputy chief administrative officer of health and human services.
I care a lot about land use, about the environment, about public safety, and about responsive, efficient, and transparent government. But what I care about most is probably what you care about most...people. Or more specifically, the health and wellness of people.
That’s why introducing Kai Bogess-de Bruin, PhD as deputy CAO and Dr. Nilesh Kalyanaraman as health officer was the highlight of my day. Their job is to coordinate our strategy to improve the health and wellness of the people of Anne Arundel County.
You’re probably like me. We know good work when we see it, and we want more of it, but figuring out how to sharpen the tools of government, direct the work where it has impact, and use it to actually produce measurable outcomes in the areas of health and wellness for people with the greatest need is a daunting challenge. Just throwing money at the problems doesn’t get you there. Nor does hope and prayers.
Our two Dr. K’s, Dr. Kai and Dr. Kalyanaraman, showed me that night that we are positioned for progress. We can, and will, deliver.
Kai is an outcome-measuring student of what makes government work combined with an observant, compassionate listener who quickly takes stock of group dynamics. Her job will be to evaluate the work of our agencies and figure out how to fully align them with our lofty goal of positively impacting people’s lives.
Listening to Kai speak to the public that night gave me confidence. Her words and her presence showed that she is passionate about the mission and steadfast in her approach. Kai is a leader.
Nilesh is a curious phenomenon. He’s a Yale-educated, articulate-but-quiet man who believes so strongly in the value of his work that he once ran for office on a public health platform. He comes to Anne Arundel County from Baltimore City where he led a network of community health clinics called Healthcare for the Homeless. Before that he was a doctor serving prison inmates.
Our Healthy Communities Transition Report told us that we needed a visionary leader for the Health Department. I didn’t want just a government bureaucrat, or just a doctor. I wanted someone with experience delivering health care to the most underserved people, and I wanted someone who could inspire the public.
I knew from our interview and from his resume that Nilesh checked those boxes, but our Town Hall was my first opportunity to see him in action. He spoke simply, slowly, clearly, and with confidence. He looked people in the eye, and he conveyed the strength and compassion that it will take to move us forward. Like Kai, Nilesh is a leader.
But there is more. We have department heads in our county who have worked for many years, quietly collaborating with each other, innovating, and delivering for the people they serve whether the political leadership cared about their work or not. I am talking about Pam Brown of Partnership for Children, Youth, and Families, Carnitra White of Social Services, Adrienne Mickler of Mental Health, Kathleen Koch of Community Development Services, Pam Jordan of Aging and Disabilities, Cliff Martin of the Housing Authority, and Kirkland Murray of Workforce Development. There are others as well, and the people who work in their departments, who are a part of this team.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it. Government should be judged not on the size of its tax base, or how many businesses and people it can attract from competing jurisdictions. It should be judged on the health and wellness of the people it serves.
I’ve also said, and I’ll keep on saying, that our country’s history shows us clearly that you build a strong economy from the bottom up, not the top down.
So let’s get to work, making Anne Arundel County The Best Place … for everyone!
