Jefferson County, Colo. — The Jefferson County Board of Health has hired an interim Executive Director for Jefferson County Public Health (JCPH). Jeff Zayach, MS, will serve in this role as the department continues its recruitment efforts for a full-time, permanent director.
Zayach has 33 years of public health experience, including 12 years as the Executive Director of Boulder County Public Health (BCPH) from 2008-2021. Since his retirement from BCPH in 2021, Zayach has served as a consultant for health departments in structure, finance, policy and program implementation. He is a past president of the Colorado Association of Local Public Health Officials (2006) and is the current Vice President of Clinica Family Health’s Board of Directors. Zayach will be joining the JCPH team on a part-time basis, and Dr. Mark B. Johnson, former JCPH Executive Director and former President of the Colorado Medical Society, will continue on in the role of the department’s Chief Medical Officer for the time being.
“Jeff Zayach is an established champion of public health in the Denver Metro Area, and will help lay the foundation for the future of JCPH as a new permanent director is hired and onboarded,” said Cheri Jahn, President of the Jefferson County Board of Health. “We are excited to bring him on board, and to continue to move JCPH forward and ensure excellent public health service provision to our community.”
Since the departure of JCPH’s former executive director in February 2022, daily operations at JCPH have been handled by the department’s Senior Leadership Team, comprised of the directors of each division, the clerk to the board and the medical officer. The Senior Leadership Team will still be a part of the leadership structure at JCPH, and we will be immediately integrating the role of the interim director until a permanent director can be hired.
“Public health is visible in our communities in an unprecedented way following the COVID-19 pandemic, but the work done by local health departments remains - and always has been – vital,” Zayach said. “I am thrilled to be working with Jefferson County, the Board of Health and the Senior Leadership Team to continue the great work being done at JCPH, and I look forward to helping bridge the gap to a new Executive Director.”
About Jefferson County Public Health
Public health is what we do collectively to prevent illness and premature death and promote health in our neighborhoods and communities. Jefferson County Public Health (JCPH) is a nationally accredited health department committed to promoting and protecting health across the lifespan for all people through prevention, education and partnerships. To learn more about JCPH visit https://www.jeffco.us/public-health. You can also follow JCPH on Twitter @JeffcoPH [external link], Instagram @JeffcoPH [external link] and Facebook @jeffcopublichealth [external link].