New Health Director To Stay The Course

If it was up to Stefan Russakow, Belmont's first new health director in more than a quarter century, he would meet every challenge in is new position by referring back to these four letters: WWDD.

"What Would Donna Do?"

The "Donna" Russakow refers to is Donna Moultrup, the long-serving director of Belmont's Health Department, who retired from her long time position at the beginning of the month.

But Russakow said that while there is a new person in the health director's office, residents would not see any radical departures to the department's duties and mission.

"We share 99.99 percent of the same values in providing public health to the community," said Russakow, who said he and Moultrup wanted to have a smooth transition "so there will be no great changes."

Russakow's interest in public health does back to his military service, holding positions in Japan, Korea and the Philippines.

"I remember how that work truly affected people," he said.

Russakow previously held positions in Connecticut, New Hampshire and the Bay State including heading Connecticut's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention and leading the environmental health operations in a 12 town district.

Russakow came to Belmont in July 2005 as assistant health director from Nashua, New Hampshire where he was the director of public health and community services.

As Moultrup's assistant, Russakow worked less on disease control and public health and more on emergency preparedness, a legacy of 9/11 that has fallen onto their laps.

Russakow said the future of the department will include the regionalization of services – such as the current sharing of a town nurse between Belmont, Arlington and Lexington – and a continuation of its public health efforts to stay on top of such as food preparation and general issues such as keeping trash in containers and lawns cut.

"Donna did such outstanding work that my priority is to continue what we have been doing over the past five years," said Russakow