Women’s History Month staff spotlight: Behavioral Health and Public Health

*San Bernardino County celebrates Women’s History Month.*

In honor of Women’s History Month, San Bernardino County is spotlighting women who drive innovation, champion community well-being, and shape programs and services throughout various county departments.

Dr. Georgina Yoshioka

For San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health’s director, Dr. Georgina Yoshioka, behavioral health is not just a career – it is a deep personal calling shaped by her own lived experiences.

Due to her mother’s mental illness, Yoshioka spent part of her childhood in the foster care system. When she was reunited with her mother as a teenager, she assumed the role of a caregiver, ensuring her mother attended appointments and took her medication, all before she even understood what behavioral health truly meant.

Initially pursuing a degree in chemistry at California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB), Yoshioka’s career trajectory shifted after she enrolled in a sociology class. This pivotal course led her to change her undergraduate major to sociology, eventually earning her bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master’s degree in social work from CSUSB. With an innate drive to lead and a passion for systems-level change, she later earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Redlands and a doctorate in social work from Capella University, while navigating a challenging period of her life following the passing of her late husband.

Throughout her multifaceted career, Yoshioka has held progressive leadership roles, beginning as an outreach worker at a domestic violence nonprofit and rising to executive leadership positions in the behavioral health departments in both Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, always focusing on advocating for vulnerable populations such as women, children and foster youth.

Beyond her county roles, she has also served as an educator since 2002, teaching sociology and social work to undergraduate students and mentoring the next generation of behavioral health professionals. Yoshioka credits her success and perseverance to the influential women in her life – her mother, stepmother and professional mentors who were pioneering behavioral health professionals – each of whom inspired her passion for lifelong learning, leadership and amplifying the voices of those who often go unheard.

Kinshasa “KC” Hamilton

Kinshasa “KC” Hamilton has a 27-year career with the county that spans across various roles. She now serves as a compliance manager with the San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health.

She began her career as a paralegal and transitioned to a child support officer with the county and later held roles in program integrity, purchasing compliance and risk management for Children and Family Services.

KC holds a master’s in public administration, a bachelor’s degree in business administration, and an associate degree in paralegal studies, which have fueled her ability to navigate complex federal and state regulations, analyze potential risks, and drive operational program efficiency.

Beyond her technical expertise, KC is deeply committed to mentorship and cultivating future leaders. Inspired by a former supervisor who invested in her professional growth, she has made it her personal mission to train, guide and elevate her team members at every opportunity. She believes in leaving a position stronger than she found it, ensuring someone is always ready to step into a leadership role. In her last two positions, KC mentored and prepared colleagues to seamlessly transition into her role upon her departure.

Her greatest inspiration is her mother—a brilliant and resilient woman who, despite not having a college degree, raised her as a single parent and wholeheartedly dedicated herself to KC’s success. Drawing on her mother’s example of building up others, KC believes that collaboration, mentorship and a robust support system are vital to professional success.

Jacqueline Manzo

For Jacqueline Manzo, a clinical therapist with the San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health, the calling to serve others began early. While in middle school, she knew she wanted to pursue a career in social work, despite others encouraging more lucrative paths. Motivated by a deep passion for supporting individuals facing mental health challenges, she remained firm in her belief that care should be accessible to all, regardless of circumstance.

Manzo went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in social work, beginning at a community college before transferring to a university in 2019. However, just one year into her program, she encountered two significant obstacles: the COVID-19 pandemic, which limited in-person internships, and her own diagnosis of lupus, which made completing her studies more difficult.

Despite these challenges, Manzo persevered, graduating on time and eventually pursued a master’s degree in social work with a focus on clinical practice.

She finds the power of human connection to promote healing in both one-on-one and group therapy settings. Beyond her professional endeavors, family remains a central influence in Manzo’s life. She credits her mother and both grandmothers for instilling in her the values of compassion, perseverance and service. Manzo often tells her mother, whom she describes as a “natural therapist,” that her innate ability to listen, guide and uplift has profoundly shaped her own practice of clinical therapy.

Portrait of a smiling person with long dark hair wearing a herringbone vest over a light-colored blouse, in an office setting.

Andrea Sanchez

Andrea Sanchez serves as a staff analyst for the San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) and has dedicated her career to connecting community needs with resources.

During her 11-year tenure at the YMCA of the East Valley, Sanchez was promoted to director of member services, where she helped provide financial assistance and health-focused resources to families in need.

She then transitioned into higher education, serving as a director of career services, where she guided students pursuing non-traditional career paths, helping them develop interview skills, gain work experience and secure employment.

While these roles were fulfilling, she felt drawn to public service. Sanchez holds a bachelor’s degree in health science with a concentration in public health from California State University, San Bernardino and a master’s degree in organizational leadership from the University of Redlands. Driven by her desire to make a larger impact, she applied to work for DBH.

In her current role, she draws on her prior experience to connect DBH programs with the necessary community resources, while providing the budget development, contract management, and administrative support needed to serve residents effectively. Sanchez is currently assisting in budget development and overseeing contract processes, including an upcoming service contract, which will provide critical support for survivors of domestic violence and their families.

Her older sister, a teacher in the San Bernardino City Unified School District, is Sanchez’s personal and professional role model. Working in the heart of San Bernardino, Sanchez’s sister tirelessly supports underserved students and families. Her sister’s tangible impact in the community continues to inspire Sanchez and her steadfast commitment to public service.

Dr. Sharon Wang

San Bernardino County Health Officer Dr. Sharon Wang leverages her extensive background in infectious disease medicine to guide the county’s public health response.

At Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, where she served as the only infectious disease physician, Wang worked tirelessly to improve communication, implement preventive measures and navigate ever-evolving challenges related to federal and state COVID-19 orders. She also served as a core faculty member for the hospital’s internal medicine training program.

Her passion for education and problem-solving naturally led her to a leadership role at the county’s Department of Public Health, where she now oversees disease surveillance and community health initiatives across the region.

Wang’s journey into medicine was deeply influenced by her family, rooted in a strong medical tradition that began with her great-grandfather, who established a rural hospital in Taiwan. Growing up in a multigenerational household, her mother, who—despite having only a high school education—ensured Wang and her four sisters had every educational opportunity.

She personally quizzed Wang on English vocabulary, encouraged her musical and academic pursuits, and even emigrated with her to the United States when Wang was in the seventh grade. Although Wang initially studied nutrition and dietetics in college, completed a dietetic internship, and became a registered dietitian, her father—a physician—urged her to become a physician and leverage her background in nutrition to make an even greater impact in healthcare.

Inspired by his perspective, she shifted her focus to medical school, becoming the fourth generation and second woman physician in her family, specializing in infectious disease. Her studies at the University of California, Davis, fueled her passion for caring for patients living with HIV and other complex conditions, and she admired the brilliant yet humble infectious disease specialists she trained under.

A natural problem-solver and communicator, Wang thrived on synthesizing information from multiple specialists, laboratories and disciplines to craft treatment plans. Today, she continues to draw support from women leaders in the county who mentor and empower one another.

Monique Amis

Monique Amis is the chief of Community and Family Health and interim director of the local Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health (MCAH) Program with San Bernardino County’s Department of Public Health.

Amis started her county career in 2008 as a finance analyst for the San Bernardino County Administrative Office, later promoting to principal analyst, where she managed countywide debt and discretionary revenue.

In 2017, she made a pivotal move to Behavioral Health, a transition that exposed her to the impact of county services. Amis joined Public Health in 2021, where she now oversees programs that seek to improve health outcomes for mothers, children and their families including MCAH, Black Infant Health, California Children’s Services, California Home Visiting, the Fetal and Infant Mortality Review, Nutrition and Wellness, the Perinatal Equity Initiative, and the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Program.

Coming from a large and diverse family, Amis has seen firsthand the challenges and systemic barriers families face in accessing healthcare and behavioral health services, and this has led her to find her passion in advancing health equity through the public health lenses of early-intervention and social justice.

She works to identify and dismantle barriers to healthcare access, with a focus on maternal and infant health in marginalized communities. Amis has participated in San Bernardino County’s racial equity action planning, ensuring that public health interventions are designed to tackle systemic inequities at their root causes. Her growing passion for public health policy and advocacy led her to return to school and pursue a master’s degree in public health. She believes that effective public health leadership requires both strategic policy knowledge and a deep understanding of the lived experiences of those affected by health disparities.

Throughout her journey, Amis has been guided by the “wealth of women” in her life, including her mother, aunts and grandmother. Her mother taught her decorum, poise and how to be fearless. Her grandmother, who was a self-made entrepreneur and landlord, dedicated herself to helping those in need by providing food, shelter and support to strangers who had nowhere else to turn. Her legacy of compassion and service continues to inspire Amis’ passion for improving the health of the community.

Amis also credits influential mentors who have shaped her professional growth. Among them is San Bernardino County Assistant Executive Officer Diana Alexander, whose leadership in the county’s equity efforts have been a guiding force. She also acknowledges CaSonya Thomas, a former director of Behavioral Health and assistant executive officer, and Dena Smith, a former county chief operating officer, both of whom encouraged Monique to step into leadership roles and embrace her potential as a changemaker.

Heather Wellons-Blum

For over 25 years, Heather Wellons-Blum has dedicated her career to improving maternal and child health in the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health’s Community and Family Health Division and currently serves as a program manager.

After initially considering a career in health education at California State University, San Bernardino, Wellons-Blum discovered the transformative power of nutrition and earned her bachelor’s degree in foods and nutrition with a minor in health science.

Prior to and during her dietetic internship at Patton State Hospital, she volunteered with Public Health’s Nutrition and Wellness Services, igniting a passion for public health that guided her career trajectory. Wellons-Blum joined Public Health’s Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, which supports expectant families, new parents, and young children by providing healthy foods, nutrition education, and community resources. She has spent 25 years with the program, serving thousands of mothers, families and children, ultimately advancing to the role of program manager where she helped shape the WIC program through evolutions like virtual services, online classes and telehealth options during the COVID-19 pandemic.

One of the most significant milestones in Wellons-Blum’s career was becoming a mother shortly after joining the WIC team. Breastfeeding education—an area only briefly covered in her formal studies—became central to her work, benefiting her both professionally and personally as she breastfed her own children and became a passionate advocate for maternal and child health.

Wellons-Blum credits much of her success to the influential women in her life, including her mother, who introduced her to nutritious foods growing up; program coordinator Paula De Silva, who guided her into public health; and former WIC director Betsy Cline, who recognized her leadership potential before she did.

Now, she hopes to pay that mentorship forward by uplifting the next generation of public health leaders. Beyond her professional achievements, she takes immense pride in influencing her two sons, who have become outspoken advocates for breastfeeding and nutrition. As she prepares for retirement, Wellons-Blum reflects on the enduring impact of WIC—a program staffed primarily by women that has empowered families in San Bernardino County since 1977.

Susan Philo

For over 40 years, Susan Philo has devoted her career to maternal and child health, community nursing and public health leadership.

She currently serves as a public health nurse manager with the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health, overseeing the Health Care Program for Children in Foster Care (HCPCFC) and managing special health care needs public health nurses and juvenile dependency and probation public health nurses across eight Children and Family Services offices.

Philo began her nursing journey in 1981 after earning an associate degree in nursing from Saddleback College and a registered nursing license. She quickly gained experience as a registered nurse in labor and delivery, neonatal care, and medical surgery at hospitals across Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Over time, she advanced into leadership roles, becoming a charge nurse, supervisor, manager of labor and delivery, and eventually an interim director at Riverside Community Hospital, overseeing maternal child health services.

Her transition to public health was inspired by a former colleague who recognized her expertise and encouraged her to apply with the California Children’s Services program to support children with certain health care needs. Philo later transitioned to Public Health’s HCPCFC program, where she collaborated with social workers, hospitals and state agencies to coordinate crucial healthcare services for foster youth.

Recognizing her leadership abilities, Public Health promoted her to a supervising public health nurse in 2018 and public health nurse manager in 2023. In these administrative positions, Philo wrote policies and procedures and expanded training programs, including certifying additional public health nurses in hearing, vision and scoliosis screenings, ensuring children in rural communities like Trona and Lucerne Valley receive essential healthcare services.

Beyond administration, Philo believes in “working, growing, [and] succeeding together” and has been deeply involved in mentoring and training future nurses. She partners with California Baptist University to facilitate community health rotations, providing nursing students with firsthand public health experience. As an Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) instructor, she has trained nurses in over 18 courses throughout her career, including neonatal resuscitation, fetal monitoring, and inpatient obstetric nursing.

Along the way, Philo found guidance and inspiration from strong mentors, such as Diane Lefebvre, a nurse who participated in a certification training with Philo, and Vanessa Long, PHN, MSN, a previous program manager for Public Health’s Family Health Services (FHS) Division who inspired Philo’s work to update department policies and standard practices, and Grace LaRose, PHN, a previous nurse manager for FHS who encouraged Philo to apply for her current nurse manager role.

As Philo approaches her retirement, she plans to move to Washington state, where she will spend time with her daughter and grandchildren.

Additional County Update News – March 13, 2025