Health District Hires New Leader David Reese Ready For Return To Idaho’s Public Health System
The Panhandle Health District’s new director could start as early as next week.
The district’s Board of Health voted unanimously Tuesday to hire David Reese, 54. Reese is quitting his job as executive director of the Cabot Westside Clinic in Kansas City, Mo., to come to North Idaho.
Reese was at the board meeting when the vote was taken. He was in North Idaho this week for a second interview and to tour the health district’s offices in the five counties.
“The hot seat just got a little cooler,” Reese joked after the board congratulated him.
Reese will succeed Larry Belmont, who was the district’s first and only director for 27 years.
While Belmont knew the Panhandle Health District intimately, Reese is no stranger to Idaho or Idaho’s public health system.
Reese was director of the Southwest District health department in Caldwell, Idaho, for two years. He left that position in 1990 to run Columbia Valley Health Services in Wenatchee.
His wife’s desire to finish a master’s degree in divinity drew Reese and his family to Kansas City. Now that his wife’s degree is finished, he’s ready to return.
“I was just ecstatic about the opportunity to work in Idaho’s public health districts,” said Reese, who considers Idaho’s public health system the best in the country.
The organization of locally run districts, working in cooperation with the state, is cost-effective and helps rural counties that would otherwise have a difficult time providing professional health services, he said.
Reese said he became interested in the public health field years ago when he was a teacher of behavioral sciences at a small college. After meeting some people with master’s degrees in public health, he decided to pursue his own degree in the field.
“It’s all about preventing problems,” he said. “What motivates most people in public health is to have a world that’s a healthy place to live.”
Board members said they chose Reese from the five finalists because of his experience and outstanding recommendations from colleagues.
“I saw him as a person who is gentle but firm,” said board chairman Marlow Thompson. “He’s enthusiastic about the job, and you wouldn’t want someone less than 100 percent enthusiastic.”
A subcommittee of the board was appointed to work out the details of Reese’s contract, including pay. The advertised salary range was $56,500 to $70,720.
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