Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick, a dentist, is stepping down from the Board of Health after 12 years of service to the town.

During his tenure, Fitzpatrick, at left, was involved in various efforts to protect the health of the public, including adopting six new regulations, most notably those governing biotech and the sale of tobacco.

Fitzpatrick has served as the chair of the board at various times since 2004. During those years, the Health Department provided more than 30,000 flu vaccinations, conducted more than 2,000 disease investigations, performed just under 1,400 housing inspections, more than 900 tobacco-compliance checks and almost 6,000 inspections of food establishments.

In addition, Fitzpatrick participated in nearly 100 Board of Health meetings and heard testimony from various individuals concerning restaurants and housing-code violations, tobacco-sales violations, variance requests, as well as permit suspension and revocations.

The Board of Health is a three-member appointed board, each of whom serves three-year terms. The board serves in a quasi-judicial manner, serving to adjudicate appeals of actions taken by the Health Department or to issue such orders as permit suspension or revocation.

The board also adopts health regulations to protect the health and safety of residents.

This announcement was published Thursday, June 23, 2016.