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If you’ve watched any of the mayor’s COVID-19 press conferences you’re familiar with Dr. Jahangir.
An orthopedic trauma surgeon, the Director of Orthopedic Trauma and associate professor of orthopedic surgery at Vanderbilt was asked to join the Davidson County Board of Health by then-Mayor Megan Barry in 2017. In September of 2019 he was elected Board Chair, and in March Mayor John Cooper appointed him head of Nashville’s Metro Coronavirus Task Force. Not to mention he’s the father of three little girls. The busy doctor took time to chat with Nashville Lifestyles about growing up in Music City, working with local government, and what he has in common with Dr. Dre.
Dr. Alex Jahangir
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Mayoral Meeting: I really appreciate that the mayor was a part of our discussion on that first Friday. "What's your expectations? And then in return here are my expectations." One of them has always been, listen, I'll advise you on the data, the best practices and I'm asking that you please follow it. From that day and every day subsequently that's been the case and I really appreciate it. It's been really cool seeing that. From somebody who I'd never met prior to that first day of COVID, it's really fascinating. It’s been really enjoyable working with him because the science and the data have driven everything to this point.
Giving Back to the Town That Built Him: My family and I moved here from Iran when I was six years old. We moved from Tehran to Nashville in the '80s. This community gave me and my family—I have cousins and aunts and uncles and grandparents who moved here after the revolution—so much. That was what was so cool: to be able to come back as a trauma surgeon [in 2009] in the city in which I grew up in, because this community had given me so much and my desire to give back to the community, as I became older and older, it became very important to me. And one of the cool things about becoming the chair of the Board of Health is that for a while, as a kid, a new immigrant who didn't speak the language, I got my services from the health department. It’s a really cool full circle for me.
Science Project: I joined the board of the Adventure Science Center in 2010—my first board ever. I was so excited. I am currently the chair, and that was the pinnacle of my public service up until a few months ago. My first job was at the Science Center—then called the Cumberland Science Museum. Combined, that’s been 18 years with them. From volunteering at 13 to my first minimum wage job, went back in college and no 10-plus years of service on the board. And it’s so cool to take my kids there when I went there as a kid! There's so much stuff that I did growing up that now I'm doing [with my family]. I love this city. I couldn't imagine living anywhere else.
A Sudden Spotlight: It's very humbling [to be recognized], but it's wild. I went to Whole Foods this weekend and I had my mask on and I was following the little lines, following the rules. The cashier looked at me and I met her eyes and I was like, "Oh no! What am I doing wrong?" And then she recognized me. She said the kindest things, and it was heartfelt. This wonderful cashier at Whole Foods who literally is exposed to people… I don't think it's overstated to say that we’ve really got to give them a debt of gratitude. She interacts with all these people. I signed up to be in medicine. I've been stuck with needles, I've been exposed to stuff and it scares me, but that's part of the gig. And my wife, she knew that when we got married, but this cashier at Whole Foods, I mean, are you kidding me? She didn't sign up to potentially be exposed to a deadly virus.
Family First: I have an amazing family, and the rock that allows all of this to happen. They’re the foundation. There was a great documentary called The Defiant Ones about Dr. Dre and he had this great line about his wife. Essentially, he said, “My entire life I’ve been like a kite. And she’s like the rock that keeps me from flying away.” That’s how I am. I didn’t think I’d ever do any of this, but my wife, Helen, is the foundation of all that is happening. Otherwise I’d be the kite that flies away.