City of Melrose Renames Health Department

The City of Melrose has announced its Health Department has been renamed the Health and Human Services Department. The name change comes as the department expands and reorganizes to increase its mental health services and staff as part of Mayor Paul Brodeur’s initiative to better support the social, mental, and physical health of residents of all ages.

Community members can discover more City of Melose updates by tuning into Mayor Paul Brodeur's 2022 State of the City Address. Watch it here.

“The health department’s mission has always been to promote the personal and environmental health of the Melrose community through education, policy development, and collaboration with individuals and organizations,” said Anthony Chui, Director of the Melrose Health & Human Services Department. “This name change will better represent the current and adaptive services the Health and Human Services department is providing to the community and emphasizes that the importance of community wellness.”

In alignment with Mayor Brodeur’s designation of 2022 as the Year of Community Health and Wellness in Melrose, the renaming of the Health and Human Services Department is connected to the City’s filling of its Public Health Specialist role – formerly known as the Substance Use Coordinator position - last month.

“I am thrilled to announce the formation of a new Health and Human Services Department for the City of Melrose,” said Mayor Brodeur. “In the year ahead, in consultation with our Director of Health and Human Services, we will continue to evaluate the need to deploy additional City resources and respond to the increased demand for access to social services and substance use prevention.”

The City’s Public Health Specialist, Emily Hatchouel, will provide substance use prevention support and resources to Melrose youth along with health and wellness support to community members of all ages. 

The City of Melrose is also preparing to hire its first full-time community social worker to complement the efforts of the City’s part-time social workers, Rachael Cordella, who joined the Council on Aging in 2021 to server older residents, and Toni Corcoran, who joined the Police Department earlier this year as an on-call clinician through the City’s partnership with Eliot Community Human Services. Corcoran has a background in substance use prevention.