Washington D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty today appointed Dr. Shannon Lee Hader as the head of the district’s HIV/AIDS Administration—a tricky job with the challenge of grappling with the highest HIV rate in the country.

Dr. Hader has worked with children and adults living with HIV in Brazil, Jamaica and Zimbabwe and was senior scientific advisor for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

The position has been open since January, when Mayor Fenty replaced then director Marsha Martin, after problems with disorganization and the discovery of a box of unprocessed HIV tests.