Dr. Mark Roby named interim Monroe County health officer

Monroe County’s health department kept one of its own at the top when Dr. Mark Roby was appointed interim health officer, replacing Dr. Carla Fry after her move to the Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County. The change leaves day-to-day public health work in the hands of a leader who already knows the agency, the Keys and the demands of running health operations in a county where routine care and disaster response often overlap.

Roby had served as the department’s director of nursing since January 2023. He brought more than 25 years of nursing experience to the job, beginning his career as a cardiac telemetry nurse after earning a bachelor’s degree in nursing from George Mason University. His background also includes a psychology degree from Virginia Tech, an MBA in human resource management from the University of Phoenix, a master’s in nursing education from the University of South Florida and a Doctor of Nursing Practice from Capella University. Before joining DOH-Monroe, he served as dean of sciences and nursing at the College of the Florida Keys, giving him both local ties and experience managing health education and staffing.

The appointment matters in Monroe County because the agency serves a place that is unlike most of Florida. Monroe is the state’s 38th most populous county, it is the southernmost county in the continental United States, and it stretches across the Florida Keys. The county’s tourism engine adds another layer of pressure. Monroe County’s 2024 visitor and trip data showed total trips rose 4.76% last year even as visitor days fell 8.83% from 2023, a sign of heavy movement through the Keys that can strain clinics, public health services and emergency systems. The county’s tourism materials say the Tourist Development Council’s mission is to support long-term economic stability through visitor-related revenues.

Health department preparedness is part of that picture. DOH-Monroe says all staff are trained in emergency management procedures and assigned roles in the Incident Command Structure for disasters affecting the Florida Keys. County visitor emergency information also says the Tourist Development Council coordinates with Monroe County Emergency Management to help visitors evacuate during hurricanes. That coordination is not theoretical: in October 2024, DOH-Monroe said Roby deployed to Hillsborough County to help with overnight managerial duties at a special needs shelter while Fry deployed to Pinellas County. Keeping Roby in Monroe places an experienced administrator in a county where clinic access, hurricane readiness and interagency response all affect both year-round residents and the visitor economy.