Vonnice Joels, Medical Investigator, Jefferson County Public Health Service

  • 5 years of service

Vonnice Joels

Vonnice Joels joined the Jefferson County Public Health Service in January 2003 as the county's first Medical Investigator (MI) in a newly created full-time position with the Medical Examiner's Office. Ms. Joels functions as an information source and communicates with authorized agencies, individuals, families and the public accordingly. She is heavily involved in all aspects of public health preparedness and response activities in the department and community, and is the lead resource person addressing mass fatality planning. She is instrumental in addressing elevated causes of death to improve the public's health. In 2003, she worked through the department to assemble a workgroup of hospital, law enforcement, maternal/child health specialists, and public health nurses to address elevated numbers of co-sleeping (infant rollover) deaths. A "No Way, No How" social marketing campaign and hospital discharge education program were implemented for all parents of newborns. In 2007, Ms. Joels worked with the department's Health Promotion unit to apply for a Teen Suicide prevention grant. She is an active EMT volunteer, excels in system and process development, and continually pursues educational opportunities to expand her already in depth knowledge base.