Countywide

San Diego County’s Department of Health Services will be eliminated Nov. 4 and replaced by three smaller departments, Chief Administrative Officer Clifford Graves announced Friday.

Graves said the new departments of Public Health, Physical Health and Mental Health services will be headed temporarily by the same officials who have been directing those divisions within the Health Services Department.

Donald Ramras will be the acting director of public health, Paul Simms will direct physical health, and Kathy Wachter-Poynor will supervise mental health programs. The three will report to David Janssen, assistant chief administrative officer.

James Forde, director of health services, will be reassigned as a consultant on health issues. Forde will work with the three acting directors and a private consultant to be hired by the Board of Supervisors to evaluate the efficiency of the new management structure.

Permanent department directors are to be named by the successor to Graves, who has resigned and will leave county service by Dec. 31.

The changes were prompted by reports of poor patient care at the Edgemoor Geriatric Hospital and Hillcrest mental health hospital. The problems were widely attributed to bad management in the health department.