Fourth Street Clinic’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Janida Emerson has been appointed as the community health center’s next Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Emerson has served in the role of Interim CEO since mid-January.
“When Janida assumed the role of Interim CEO, no one imagined the tumultuous year ahead,” Kim Wirthlin, Fourth Street Clinic Board Chair, said. “Her smart, strategic and collaborative approach to operating a community health center during a global pandemic proved her capabilities as an exceptionally strong and effective leader. The Board of Directors is confident that under her leadership, Fourth Street Clinic will weather this uncertain and extremely difficult time and move forward long into the future with even greater unity and strength in fulfilling its mission to provide high-quality health care to individuals experiencing homelessness.”
Prior to Emerson’s interim leadership, she was the Chief Operating Officer at Fourth Street Clinic, where she increased Medicaid eligibility, transitioned staff to a new electronic medical record, and helped create a culture of teamwork and integrity. As COO, Emerson also spearheaded the clinic’s Integrated Behavioral and Medical Health program, which provides patients with coordinated, holistic health care services that are patient-centered and trauma-informed.
Janida Emerson received her Master of Science in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. After graduating, she moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked for the US Government Accountability Office on their Health Care team. In 2011 she began working with community health centers in Utah as the Government Affairs Manager with the Association for Utah Community Health (AUCH). As an advocate for health centers, she worked on issues related to implementation of the Affordable Care Act, workforce loan repayments, and Medicaid. Through her work with AUCH, she also began working with the public behavioral health system and developed a passion for working with individuals with addiction and mental health disorders.
“Over the past six months, Fourth Street Clinic has seen incredible difficulties working on the frontline during this global crisis,” said Emerson. “The adaptability of our staff to respond to a widespread crisis in complete synergy has been remarkable. I have been so impressed with the compassion I see our providers and staff display on a daily basis, not just with our patients but with each other. I am proud our patients are treated with dignity and respect—regardless of their background—when they come to Fourth Street Clinic. I am honored to officially accept this role and am eager to take on new challenges and move this organization into the future.”