Giving Back to the District of Columbia
D.C. public health director calls GW education the foundation of his career
When D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty named Pierre Vigilance as director of the District of Columbia’s Department of Health, he tapped a public health policy leader whose connection to Washington—and GW—runs deep.
After graduating from GW in 1991 with a Bachelor of Science, Vigilance earned a medical degree and master’s degree in public health from Johns Hopkins University. He returned to Washington to complete his residency in the Emergency Department at Howard University Hospital.
Vigilance’s professional life is immersed in the public health challenges of the Baltimore-Washington area. As the director of health in Baltimore County, he encouraged the formation of public-private partnerships. Now, as a health-system reformer in Washington, he views his alma mater as a tremendous resource for the Department of Health. GW does too.
“GW has already been strong in the public health pipeline,” Vigilance says. Before he even served his first 100 days at the head of the district health department, GW students from the School of Public Health and Health Services had approached him to brainstorm on how information technology could be incorporated into the health department. They also developed a report-card system to monitor service changes across the city.
Vigilance embraces a three-pronged approach to the district’s most pressing health care issues, focusing on wellness promotion, HIV/AIDS treatment and education and public health system enhancement. He also advocates an “open door policy” that allows community members to directly bring their concerns and ideas to his department—and Vigilance himself.
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D.C. Government Alumni Reception
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D.C. public health director calls GW education the foundation of his career.
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