City of Worcester, MA

WORCESTER, Mass. – City Manager Eric D. Batista announced Friday the retirement of Worcester Division of Public Health (WDPH) Medical Director Dr. Michael Hirsh. His last day with the municipality is Dec. 12, 2025. 

Dr. Hirsh was appointed medical director in 2012 when he had already established a strong working relationship with the municipality as Division Chief of Pediatric Surgery and Trauma at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Memorial Medical Center. During his tenure, Dr. Hirsh experienced several historic moments, from WDPH becoming the first nationally accredited public health division in Massachusetts to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“My proudest moment at WDPH was serving as a Public Information Officer during the pandemic, leading over 200 press conferences with the City Manager and Mayor and helping to train the Vaccine Corps of medical students who helped administer the COVID vaccine beginning in January 2021,” said Dr. Hirsh. 

While serving the municipality as medical director, Dr. Hirsh also served as Acting Commissioner of the then Department of Public Health from 2012 to 2014. As medical director, he has overseen all aspects of local infection control policy, which involved decisions regarding school closures, health care work regulations, and COVID-19 vaccine distribution. 

“Dr. Hirsh has been a champion for the health of Worcester residents in all aspects of his life, from his role as medical director to his career at UMass to his charity work,” said Batista. “He dedicated his career to not just helping people when they found themselves sick or injured but trying to prevent them from ending up in the hospital in the first place. I want to thank Dr. Hirsh for his commitment to Worcester residents and in particular for the work he did to carry us through the pandemic.” 

Dr. Hirsh grew up in New York City, the only son of Holocaust survivors. His medical career began at Harvard University, where he graduated in 1979, and continued with surgical residencies at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and Temple University’s St. Christopher Hospital for Children. 

That time would go on to shape the rest of his career. In 1981, one of Dr. Hirsh’s best friends in residency at Columbia was killed in an act of gun violence. That, along with the example of a Columbia University surgeon that led data-driven injury prevention interventions in Harlem, inspired Dr. Hirsh to dedicate his time to the prevention of gun violence. In 1994, he cofounded the Goods for Guns Buyback program in Pittsburgh and in 2002, he founded a similar program in Worcester, both of which are still active to this day. 

“UMass Memorial Health deeply appreciates Dr. Michael Hirsh’s service as Medical Director for the Worcester Division of Public Health and the positive impact his leadership has had on the community over the last 13 years,” said Eric Dickson, MD, President and CEO of UMass Memorial Health. “We are working closely with the WDPH to identify a successor and remain fully committed to supporting the health and wellness of Worcester residents through our continued partnership.”

In 1986, Dr. Hirsh became an attending physician at UMass Memorial and spent the rest of his career there aside from a nine-year stint in Pittsburgh. 

While no longer an active surgeon, Dr. Hirsh still serves as the Assistant Vice Provost for Health and Wellness and the Chief Quality Officer for the Department of Surgery at the UMass Chan School of Medicine.

The administration is currently working with UMass to identify the right candidate to fill the position. 

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