The National Council on Interpreting in Health Care Announces First Executive Director

PR Log (Press Release) – Oct 13, 2009 – Washington, D.C.  – Gem P. Daus, M.A. has been named as the first Executive Director of the National Council on Interpreting in Health Care (NCIHC).  Mr. Daus will lead the organization and work to implement a strategic plan that secures the NCIHC as the expert national resource on language access issues in health care.  Daus’ presence will provide an important and unique opportunity to work more closely with NCIHC members and stakeholders in meeting their diverse needs.

Daus brings to the NCIHC his 20 years experience in health policy, cultural competence and community-based organization development.  He has worked in collaboration with various health, immigrant and multicultural coalitions around the country.  Daus is also currently the Filipino American Studies professor for the University of Maryland-College Park, Asian American Studies Program. In September 2006, Gem received the National Leadership Award from the Center for the Study of Asian American Health, and in April 2003 Daus was honored as a healthcare hero by the Congressional Black, Hispanic, Native American, and Asian and Pacific American Caucuses.

From 2000-2007, Daus staffed the Washington, D.C. office of the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF).   He has regularly testified at Congressional briefings and federal advisory committees, including Unequal Treatment, the Institute of Medicine’s landmark study on racial and ethnic disparities in health.  Daus has also worked at the National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC), the American Red Cross, and also, as a volunteer, served as president of the Asian and Pacific Islander Partnership for Health, a local health promotion and advocacy organization.  

According to Joy Connell, NCIHC Board Co-Chair, “This is an exciting milestone in the history of the NCIHC.  Going from an all volunteer organization to having our first Executive Director says that we have taken the right steps and made the right decisions to get us to this point – it is a remarkable acknowledgement of the work the Council has achieved and the importance of our mission.  Gem’s background and experience is a great match for us, and we’re thrilled that he is on board.”

Daus earned a Master of Arts in Organization Development from Marymount University and a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Virginia.  He was born in the Philippines, grew up in Norfolk, Virginia and currently resides in Arlington, Virginia.  

The NCIHC has an impressive portfolio of accomplishments built on the strength and commitment of numerous volunteers who have supported and worked with the organization over the last ten years. With the addition of an Executive Director, NCIHC is now poised to provide the administrative and management supports necessary to capitalize on broad based awareness of the need for quality healthcare interpreting in the United States.