The relationship between former top health officer Dr. Kim Thorburn and the board of the Spokane Regional Health District ended the way of most failed relationships – on a sour note. It featured “she said-they said” accusations and e-mails filled with anger.

Thorburn has moved on. She stayed in Spokane and now is medical director for Planned Parenthood of the Inland Northwest; she plans to run for county commissioner. The health district, meanwhile, has struggled for more than a year to fill the top spot. The recruitment firm the district hired – for a total anticipated bill of $32,000 – has failed, so far, to get the job done. Few candidates applied. Some weren’t qualified. Others dropped out.

Administrator Torney Smith, a health district mainstay known for his upbeat disposition, expressed some uncharacteristic emotions in an e-mail to Dallas-based Waters-Oldani Executive Recruitment.

“I am very frustrated and quite disappointed in the service you have not provided,” he wrote.

The recruiting firm’s chief executive officer, Charles Anderson, has personally taken over the search and promised a round of new interviews will begin in May. It must. Public trust and confidence depend on it.

Granted, it’s a tough spot to fill. The job pays between $130,000 and $145,000, but doctors with the many required qualifications can earn more elsewhere. The headaches of public health include serving the severe needs of a largely low-income population and submitting to scrutiny by high-profile bosses and the media.

But out there somewhere is a doctor who desires a job that carries with it a sense of mission and greater community good. Doctors in Eastern Washington have connections throughout the country. Perhaps they can pass some names on to the recruitment firm.

And though potential candidates may not admit it, the failed relationship between Thorburn and the board must be having a chilling effect.

Public health is too important to our region to remain leaderless for so long. This continued vacancy is embarrassing. Get it filled.