Wine Country Times

Citing her tireless efforts to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus in Napa County, Dr. Karen Relucio has been named “Woman of the Year” by State Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa).

“Karen has been instrumental in guiding the people of Napa County through this unprecedented public health crisis,” Dodd said on his website. “She rose to the challenge of keeping us safe and more recently, to vaccinate the public. A year later, as the pandemic wanes and our state begins to reopen, we owe her a debt of gratitude for her unswerving devotion to public health.”

Relucio, health officer and deputy director of the Napa County Health and Human Services Agency since 2015, oversaw efforts to coordinate virus testing, perform case and spread investigations, and contact tracing. In addition she analyzed and published data on the virus, worked to provide housing for patients, planned for outbreaks and served as an advisor to business on safely reopening.

Prior to this, Relucio was medical director of public clinics for the Sam Mateo County Health System from 2006 to 2015 and a clinical instructor at Stanford University Medical Center from 2003 to 2006.

Relucio said she was humbled and honored to be recognized with the award.

“Our successful response would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of many unnamed women in Napa County, from our agency and emergency operations center leadership to the line staff and volunteers who have supported our operations for vaccinations, testing, case investigation, contact tracing and wrap-around services for our clients,” she said.

Relucio has served on a number of health boards as president of the California Conference of Local Health Officers and the Health Officers Association of California. In addition she is a member of the County Health Executives Association and the Napa/Solano Medical Society.

Former Gov. Jerry Brown appointed Relucio to the State Commission on Emergency Medical Services in 2019.

She lives in Napa with her husband.