LONGMEADOW — After a “robust application and interview process,” according to Town Manager Lyn Simmons, Ryan Paxton was officially appointed to be the next director of public health in Longmeadow at the Select Board meeting on Nov. 3.
Paxton is currently the public health director and a health agent in Montague, conducting inspections, providing education and code enforcement.
Paxton is also responsible for the Board of Health operating budget, contract management and carrying out the town’s public health duties.
In addition to being public health director, Paxton works with the Valley Health Regional Committee and the Western Mass. Public Health Executive Committee.
In Montague, Paxton was responsible for the delivery of foundational public health, and now he says he’s ready for a “larger scope of work.”
“Longmeadow represents a really good opportunity, especially given the Eastern Health District you have with the other communities,” Paxton said to the Select Board. “I’m really excited about trying to contribute to the work that’s been put forth through the shared service arrangement.”
After graduating from Boston University with a bachelor’s in health science and a master’s of public health from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Paxton began his career with the Holyoke Board of Health as a health inspector, typically involved in housing, food establishment and city ordinance inspections. He also partnered with Harvard-MGH Global Health during his time there, exploring health disparities related to COVID-19 in the city of Holyoke.
“It was a really good opportunity because they’re a city that has a lot of code enforcement work,” Paxton said. “It was also during the pandemic, so I was able to get involved with research projects and other really interesting things that unfortunately occurred during that time but I might not have otherwise had the opportunity to do.”
Paxton also works with the Pioneer Valley Tobacco Coalition as a compliance officer, coordinating with the Massachusetts Tobacco Control program, working with youth officers to enforce compliance checks and conducting educational visits.
Paxton said in his role as a compliance officer, they’ve utilized youth officers twice a year in attempts to see if vendors were selling to underage customers without ID. If vendors are found to be selling to underaged people, Paxton says they are fined by the local Board of Health. Paxton also goes into stores and helps vendors understand the regulations while assisting them to make the compliance process “as easy as possible.”
When Select Board Chair Josh Levine asked if Paxton was planning on staying in the role, Paxton said he “still needs to work out some of the logistics.”
“I think it’s likely that I’ll step away from the role in the near future,” Paxton said. “It’s contract work that takes up time outside of the regular work day, but it’s something I’ve done in addition to my full time work over the past five years.”
Select Board Member Dan Zwirko wondered if Paxton was working in schools with the coalition and if that would be something to bring into Longmeadow due to the School Committee’s concern over the rise of tobacco use. Paxton said that as the only health agent in Montague, his time for initiative work was fairly limited. However, he said he does believe it would be a possibility in Longmeadow.
“I think there are probably a lot of good pathways for doing that type of work here, especially given the robust school system and hopefully some good relationships already with school resource officers,” Paxton said. “I think it’s something that a health department would reasonably have the time and capacity to put work into.”
Paxton has been working 35 hours a week in Montague and was asked by Levine what his plan going forward would be after stepping into the new position.
“I know this is a 40-hour position, and I know that’s probably the baseline for the level of service that’s gonna be needed,” Paxton said. “I’m imagining there’s probably gonna be more work than that at times, but it’s my plan to be as available to the role as possible.”
The Select Board moved to confirm the appointment of Paxton as the director, which passed unanimously.
