Dr. Ahmed moving on

By Mark Ribble

ESSEX COUNTY — The Windsor Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) has announced that the region’s Medical Officer of Health is moving on from his position as of October 1.

Dr. Wajid Ahmed has accepted the position of Associate Medical Officer of Health for the province of Ontario. He will work closely with the new Ontario Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Keiran Moore.

The Health Unit’s chair, Gary McNamara, made the announcement on Friday, August 20 and thanked Dr. Ahmed for his efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

He says Dr. Ahmed’s leadership has left the local organization in good shape.

“The leadership team at the Health Unit is strongly positioned to continue the great work under a new Medical Officer of Health,” said McNamara. Who that will be, remains to be seen.

For now, the WECHU has hired Dr. Shanker Nesathurai to come aboard and help with the transition. He will be the interim Medical Officer of Health for Windsor-Essex until a permanent replacement is found, likely late this year.

That search for a permanent replacement is underway through a recruitment agency, according to the Health Unit’s Chief Executive Officer, Nicole Dupuis.

Dupuis is fairly new to her position as well, having replaced previous CEO Theresa Marentette in June of this year.

“I would like to sincerely thank Dr. Ahmed on behalf of the Health Unit for his contributions to our community and the sacrifices he made during this pandemic,” said McNamara. It’s expected that a permanent replacement for Dr. Ahmed will be in place by year’s end.