Dr. Rodney Guimont, MD, aspires to create public health excellence for the people of Porter County

Of all the qualities that a person can have, one of the most important is often overlooked: health. While it might be easy for many people to take their health for granted, the Porter County Health Department is constantly working to create the best possible health outcome for its local residents. One person who strives for this result is Dr. Rodney Guimont, MD, who was appointed as the Porter County Health Officer just under a year ago. 

Guimont was selected by the Porter County Board of Commissioners by unanimous vote for this role. In the early months of holding this position, Guimont has been overjoyed to make a difference for the public health of Porter County residents.

“It feels good to serve the people of Porter County,” Guimont said. “Our former health officer, Dr. Maria Stamp, helped ease me into the role because she stayed on for a couple of months during the transition. Learning different components of our nursing division, along with the foods and environmental components, has been a great experience. I feel more comfortable now that I’ve been in the role for almost a year.”

Guimont appreciates the support from the state when it comes to questions that may arise while on the job. He also notes that he’s been helping to integrate the newly appointed Health Administrator, Matt Paul, who has been in this role for a couple of months.

In less than a year, Guimont’s impact has already been felt by the Porter County Board of Health. He has brought a wealth of experience in public health to the team. Guimont has experience in family medicine, sports medicine, and urgent care services. He earned his medical degree from the American University of the Caribbean and completed his residency at St. Vincent Family Medicine in Indianapolis.

While in Indianapolis, he met his wife as an EMT at Riley Hospital. In 2010, he moved to La Porte. For the past eight years, Guimont has lived in Porter County. As a board-certified family medicine physician, Guimont has studied at multiple health facilities and hospitals over the years. However, he attributes one trip in particular that he made outside of the country as his best learning experience for the components of public health.

“Part of my public health experience came prior to medical school, when I did a medical mission to Cameroon,” Guimont said. “I was able to see firsthand public health at its roots when it comes to clean water, sanitation, and their immunizations for polio that were being done, going out into villages on a motorcycle and vaccinating children for polio. That was a huge campaign when I was there. The experience in Cameroon probably had the most impact on my view of public health because I could see a country with limited resources making great strides through general public health knowledge for its residents.”

Connecting with both his team members and partners of the Porter County Health Department has been a point of emphasis for Guimont in his inaugural year.

“The team has been great with getting me acclimated to all the different divisions that are within the Porter County Health Department,” Guimont said. “We have morning meetings where all the supervisors discuss what’s going to happen for the day and who is going where. I’ve met several of our public partners, and I continue to get out there to meet more.”

One of the best health resources available for the people of Porter County are the health fairs. Guimont attended his first Health and Wellness Family Fair on June 16, providing a prime opportunity for him to engage with the community and vendors. The Porter County Health Department prioritizes practices that will bring the healthiest outcome for its residents.

“We’re always impressed by how many community partners show up,” Guimont said. “It’s always an impressive turnout at the health fair. A lot of it is getting the public aware of the services that we provide. We do immunizations, blood testing, and communicable disease tracking. We also do testing in Lake Michigan, public pools, and food inspections multiple times per year.”

Now that he has a year under his belt, Guimont’s biggest goal moving forward is to continue to improve the health and well-being of the residents of Porter County.

“With the Health First Indiana (HFI) funding that we received, we had to opt in and agree to track certain metrics,” Guimont said. “We’re currently trying to reduce the obesity rate in Porter County as well as increase the childhood vaccination rate and decrease pediatric asthma exacerbations. Those are the three biggest things that are being tracked and are required for our HFI funding. Beyond that, we just continue to do our best to get the word out about who we are, what we do, the services that we provide, and the people with whom we partner. We want to make this place as healthy as possible for the residents of Porter County.”

Outside of work, Guimont spends most of his time with his wife and five boys. His kids keep him busy with sports and other school-related activities. He’s a very family-oriented person and loves outdoor recreation like camping, skiing, and fishing.
For more information on the Porter County Government, you can visit portercountyin.gov.