Dr. Thomas Piggot Welcomed as Peterborough Public Health's New Medical Officer of Health

Connecting with Community His Top Priority

Peterborough Public Health
Media Release

Dr. Thomas Piggott arrived on Wednesday, December 1, 2021 to a warm staff welcome and full slate of community health briefings to start his first day on the job as Peterborough Public Health’s new Medical Officer of Health and CEO.

“I’m excited to finally be here and join the tremendous team at Peterborough Public Health,” said Dr. Piggott. “My top priority is to connect with as many of our stakeholders as possible to understand local priorities and how together we can strategically advance the public health of our community.”

In addition to taking over as Incident Commander for the local COVID-19 Emergency Response, Dr. Piggott will be meeting with representatives across every sector in the community in the coming weeks, including local Indigenous leaders, municipalities, healthcare and social service organizations, education institutions, businesses, environmental groups, and many more. He will also serve on numerous provincial committees as well, including the Council of Ontario Medical Officers of Health.

“While there are many pressing issues locally and opportunities for positive change, addressing the opioid crisis and responding to climate change are areas I expect will become a major focus for us in the years ahead,” stated Dr. Piggott. “There is already a great deal of good work happening on these fronts and I want to help our team focus on equity, or fairness, in these areas and all of the work we do. For now, the priority will be the continued pandemic response and I commit to evidence-based and transparent local decision-making to guide collaborative efforts in keeping this community safe and healthy.”

Dr. Piggott’s first public speaking engagement will take place on Thursday, December 2 at the next bi-weekly COVID-19 media briefing. He will also be presenting a virtual education session on Thursday, December 9 at 6:30 p.m. for parents and caregivers with questions about the COVID-19 vaccine for children aged five to 11 years. He is planning to attend several local upcoming municipal council meetings as well, starting with a budget presentation to the County of Peterborough Council on December 15.

Board of Health Chair, Mayor Andy Mitchell, was also on hand to greet Dr. Piggott this morning. “We are very pleased to welcome Dr. Piggott here today as he takes on this important role in our community,” he said. “He brings a clear vision on how public health can build stronger communities for everyone’s benefit. I’m confident this vision, in combination with his exceptional enthusiasm and expertise, will produce meaningful improvements in the health of local residents.”

Mayor Mitchell also thanked Peterborough Public Health staff, Dr. Gemmill, and the leadership of Larry Stinson and Donna Churipuy for their great work over the past ten weeks keeping the organization running smoothly and ensuring a smooth transition for Dr. Piggott.

Dr. Piggott noted how keen he was to start his new role. “There's a lot of work to do, but for today, I'm just excited to start getting to know the fantastic team that I'm joining and the people and organizations in this wonderful community.”

More background on Dr. Piggott can be found here.

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For further information, please contact:

Brittany Cadence
Communications Manager
705-743-1000, ext. 391