UmairA.ShahMDMPH

Internal Medicine • Olympia, WA

Preventive Medicine, Health and Culture, Infectious Disease

Secretary, WA Dept of Health

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Office
111 Israel Road SE
Olympia, WA 98501
Phone+1 800-525-0127

Summary

Dr. Umair A. Shah is an internist by training who has had a long, storied career as an emergency department physician and public health practitioner. He is currently Secretary of Health for the State of Washington.

His agency’s headquarters are in the Olympia, WA area but with locations across Seattle and eastern/central Washington. He is on faculty at University of Texas Health Sciences Center, Baylor College of Medicine, and the University of Washington. He served a distinguished career as an ED physician with Michael E. DeBakey Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and in Public Health Service in Houston, before moving to Washington in the height of the pandemic.

He received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University and his medical degree from the University of Toledo Health Sciences Center and was in practice for well over twenty years. He completed internship, residency, fellowship and attained his MPH all at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center.

He is experienced in emergency response both as a clinician as well as in leading or responding to both domestic and global emergencies. He espouses cornerstone values of equity, innovation, and engagement, and is sought far and wide for his thoughts and leadership.

He has more than 20 publications and over 100 citings.

Education & Training

University of Texas Health Science Center at HoustonFellowship, General Medicine/Public Health, 1999 - 2001
University of Texas School of Public HealthMPH, Management / Health Service Organizations, 1999 - 2001
University of Texas School of Public HealthMPH, Management and Policy, 2001
University of Texas Health Science Center at HoustonResidency, Internal Medicine, 1996 - 1999
The University of Toledo College of MedicineClass of 1996
Vanderbilt UniversityBA, Philosophy, 1988 - 1992
Vanderbilt UniversityBA, Philosophy, 1992

Certifications & Licensure

TX State Medical License 1998 - 2026
WA State Medical License 2021 - 2025

Awards, Honors, & Recognition

Excellence in Patient Care Award for Hurricane Harvey Response National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) Foundation, 2017
Media Recognition, Top 17 Tweeters in Harris County Government (listed as #15) Houston Chronicle, 2016
Recognition for Response Efforts in Hurricane Katrina Operations - Ten Year Commemoration Harris County Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, 2015
Leadership Recognition Asian-American Health Coalition, 2014
Recognition for Outstanding Community Leadership Texas State Representative Gene Wu, 2013
Recognition for Emergency Response Efforts for Hurricane Katrina Dome Operations Harris County Judge Robert A. Eckels, 2005
Outstanding Medicine Resident Award Department of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas-Houston, 1999
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Publications & Presentations

PubMed

7 citations
Influenza A (H3) Outbreak at a Hurricane Harvey Megashelter in Harris County, Texas: Successes and Challenges in Disease Identification and Control Measure Implementation
Leann Liu, Aisha Haynie, Sherry Jin, Ana Zangeneh, Eric Bakota
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness. 2019-02-01
47 citations
Mass casualty triage: an evaluation of the science and refinement of a national guideline.
E. Brooke Lerner, David C. Cone, Eric S. Weinstein, Richard B. Schwartz, Phillip L. Coule
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness. 2011-06-01
30 citations
Emerging disease syndromic surveillance for Hurricane Katrina evacuees seeking shelter in Houston's Astrodome and Reliant Park Complex.
Kristy O. Murray, C. Kilborn, Mary desVignes-Kendrick, Erin M. Koers, Valda Page
Public Health Reports. 2009-05-01

Journal Articles

The 2014 West Nile Virus Outbreak in Houston/Harris County, Texas
Martinez D, Murray, KO, Reyna M, Arafat RR, Gorena R, Shah UA, Debboun M, Emerging Infectious Diseases, 1/1/2017
Local Health Department�s Journey Toward Health Equity
Shah UA, Hadayia JM, Forys LE, Health Equity, 1/1/2017

Abstracts/Posters

Working Together to Create a Culture of Health: Local and State Perspectives
Shah U, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), Washington, DC, 1/1/2017
Hurricane Harvey Response
Shah U, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), Washington, DC, 1/1/2017
Climate and Health: A Local Perspective
Shah U, American Public Health Association (APHA), Atlanta, GA, 1/1/2017
Community Health and Health Equity
Shah U, AETNA Foundation and National Association of Counties, Atlanta, GA, 1/1/2017
The Changing HHS Landscape and Leading Forward through Uncertainty
Shah U, Governing Magazine Health Summit, Arlington, VA, 1/1/2017
Achieving Optimal Health and Well-Being
Shah U, National Association of Counties Annual Conference, Columbus, OH, 1/1/2017
Advancing Health Equity at the Community Level
Shah U, NACCHO Annual Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, 1/1/2017
Disaster Medicine and Emergency Response in Texas
Shah U, Texas Medical Association (TMA), TexMed 2017, Houston, TX, 1/1/2017
Zika Virus - Preparing for 2017: CDC, State, and Local Response
Shah U, NACCHO Public Health and Emergency Preparedness Summit, Atlanta, GA, 1/1/2017
Emergency Legal Preparedness
Shah U, Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, DC, 1/1/2017
Global Health and Impact on Communities
Shah U, Workshop on Examining Opportunities for Future of Healthcare/Public Health Preparedness, NASEM, Washington, DC, 1/1/2017
Healthy Communities - Healthy Rankings 2017
Shah U, Texas Public Health Association Annual Conference, Fort Worth, TX, 1/1/2017
Building Healthy Communities: Counties as Partners
Shah U, National Association of Counties Legislative Conference, Washington, DC, 1/1/2017
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Other

The Role of Public Health and Healthcare in Responses to Hurricane Harvey and Irma
Shah U, Congressional Briefing Webinar, Trust for America�s Health (TFAH)
Washington, DC - 1/1/2017

Press Mentions

WA Secretary of Health, Dr. Umair Shah, Stepping down in 2025November 19th, 2024
Washington Investigating First-Ever Presumptive Human Bird Flu CasesOctober 21st, 2024
Free COVID, Flu Tests Available in 24/7 Kiosks Across WAOctober 3rd, 2024
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