PROVIDENCE - Her mother’s family, faith and lessons - who became a leader in health care despite obstacles including racism - were among the factors that supported Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott for nearly two years when she led Rhode Island’s Department of Health through COVID-19 pandemic, she said Saturday.
Appearing on the Rhode Island stage for the first time since resigning in late January, Alexander-Scott, speaking at a forum during the opening of Brown University, said:
“You can’t survive if you’re not on solid ground, whether it’s vaccination decisions or some other form of leadership that requires only integrity and the ability to deal comfortably with a decision that’s not always easy. So I definitely build it from a core that focuses on family and faith as a starting point. ”
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Alexander Scott credited former Governor Gina Raimondo and her staff for successfully managing the crisis, which punished other states than Rhode Island more severely, no matter how devastating the coronavirus was for the state, especially in the early days before vaccines were developed. .
“I will always respect and appreciate Governor Gina Raimondo,” said Alexander-Scott, “her brilliance, her perseverance, her infinite energy and her ability to really put all those qualities into play.” In a moment she was almost born.
“The opportunity to be on the same team with her and the colleagues she attracted definitely encouraged us to know that even if we don’t know what’s going on or why we have the tools, ingredients and heart to help make sure we did the best we could with what we had in making decisions. That has always been an encouragement to me. “
The former director did not discuss her relationship with Governor Dan McKee, who succeeded Raymond when she went to Washington to become US Secretary of Commerce, nor did she say her reasons for resigning and refused to discuss them when asked.
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Since his resignation, Alexander-Scott has served as a state consultant, and that position ends on Tuesday. Asked about her future, she told The Journal that she will be the senior executive director of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, which represents the public health agencies of each state, the District of Columbia and five American territories.
Alexander-Scott spoke on Saturday during a one-hour forum, “Crisis Leadership: Behind and Through the Pandemic,” moderated by Dr. Megan Reni, emergency physician and academic dean of Brown University’s School of Public Health.
Renee described the close cooperation with Alexander-Scott before and during the pandemic, and started a discussion on health justice, a feature of her mandate, which began in April 2015.
“I took to heart the opportunity to be a voice for those who may not have a voice for themselves, the most vulnerable populations, those who are neglected or neglected,” said Alexander-Scott.
Renee also asked the former director of the health department to present the non-pandemic challenges facing Rhode Island, to which Alexander-Scott replied: “Because we had to put so much emphasis on COVID, especially in that first year before that we have had vaccines, we see a lot of people fighting in other ways, whether it’s reducing pediatric regular vaccinations of children, reducing other types of preventive care, a sharp rise in opioid overdose rates. ”
Speaking about public health in general, Alexander-Scott said, “I really saw how necessary it is to have strong leadership at the state level to achieve what is needed. At the individual, national and local levels, leadership [must] understand the importance of what is being done with public health, with public service, with data, with science, with the common good. “