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Article IV Department of Community Health and Medical Care Section 4.120. The director of the department of community health and medical care shall be either a licensed physician or shall be the holder of at least a master's degree in public health or hospital administration and shall have at least five years of progressively responsible executive or administrative experience. If a physician, the director shall be board certified or board eligible in preventive medicine or a related specialty and shall have had at least five years' executive experience in the field of public or community health.Section 4.130. The director of community health and medical care shall exercise those powers and perform those duties required by law to be performed by a county hospital commissioner and by any county hospital officer and shall possess the powers and duties conferred upon deputy state health commissioners and county health officers by law and such other powers and duties as may be required by ordinance. The director shall have the power, without limiting the foregoing general powers, to: 1. Manage, control or contract for the operation of all county hospitals, sanitariums, hospital facilities, and institutions operated primarily for the medical care of patients therein; 2. Manage, control or contract for the operation of all county medical clinics; 3. Arrange with public or private hospitals and medical institutions for the care of patients who are in need of and eligible for free care at county expense, but for whom there are no available facilities at the county hospital; 4. Recommend to the county executive from time to time proposals governing the admission of patients and the operation of county hospital facilities; 5. See that laws and ordinances relating to public health are observed and enforced; 6. Establish and maintain such activities and clinics as are needed to promote the public health of the county; 7. Administer the programs for the control of rabies in the county; 8. Inspect the water supply and water supply facilities and sewers and sewer treatment facilities and plumbing facilities to see that they conform with established principles of public health; 9. Recommend to the county executive from time to time such proposals as will in his judgment tend to preserve or promote the public health of the county; 10. Administer those programs authorized by ordinance for the control of weeds, rats and mosquitoes; 11. Promote cooperative relationships relating to public health between the county and the City of St. Louis and between the county and other cities and counties and between the county and the municipalities and other political subdivisions in the county. Section 4.140. 1. The director of community health and medical care shall appoint a chief medical examiner and as many assistant medical examiners and professional specialists as may be provided for by ordinance. The chief and each assistant medical examiner shall be a licensed physician experienced in forensic pathology, or shall be eligible to be so licensed, and who shall become licensed within one year after his appointment. 2. Whenever in the opinion of the chief medical examiner, after a full investigation of the circumstances and cause of death, there is reasonable suspicion of a violation of the criminal or civil law of the state, a full copy of all evidence and opinion of the investigating examiner shall be promptly filed with the prosecuting attorney and the department of police. 3. The chief medical examiner shall keep full and complete records in his office, properly indexed, giving the name, if known, of deceased persons whose deaths have been investigated by him or any of his assistants, the place where the body was found, date and cause of death, and all other information that may be required by law or by ordinance or that the chief examiner deems pertinent. All such records shall be available for inspection by the prosecuting attorney, the attorney general, the superintendent of the state highway patrol, the department of police and by any party or his attorney having a justifiable interest therein. 4. The chief medical examiner and each assistant shall have power to administer oaths and affirmations, take affidavits, and make examinations as to any matter within their jurisdiction but they shall not be required to summon a jury of inquisition. 5. In addition to the duties prescribed by this charter, the chief medical examiner, either directly or through assistants, shall perform those duties and functions prescribed by law for coroners except as otherwise provided in this charter or by ordinance. 6. The prosecuting attorney, the department of police and all interested or affected officers and employees of the county shall cooperate fully with and assist the chief medical examiner in the performance of his duties. Section 4.150. There shall be a county health and hospital advisory board composed of nine residents of the county holding no other county office, appointed by the county executive subject to confirmation by the council. Members shall serve overlapping terms of three years except any appointed to fill a vacancy occurring during the term of a member. At least two but no more than four of the members shall be regularly licensed practitioners of medicine. One member shall be a regularly licensed practitioner of dentistry. The advisory board shall advise the director of community health and medical care relative to the functions and affairs of that department. |
