Gov. John deJongh, Jr. Saturday announced the nomination of candidates to head the Virgin Islands Department of Health and the Virgin Islands Bureau of Information Technology.

“Reuben Molloy as BIT director and Darise Plaskett as Health commissioner are ideally suited to serve the people of the Virgin Islands as our territory expands and improves its systems of health care delivery, focusing on efficiency and technological development,” de Jongh said in a statement issued by Government House.

According to the statement, the governor nominated Plaskett to serve as commissioner of the Department of Health primarily due to her long history as a senior executive in health care management. She last served as principal of Integration of Systems and Services at the Juan F. Luis Memorial Hospital, responsible for regulatory affairs, accreditation, and other management duties.

Plaskett was the hospital’s interim chief executive officer from 2009 to 2011, and the chief operating officer from 2006 to 2009. She spent nearly a decade as vice president of Patient Care Services, and has a nursing background. She is an adjunct professor of nursing management and leadership at the University of the Virgin Islands.

Molloy, the nominee for BIT director, previously served as chief information officer at the hospital, responsible for the design and maintenance of Luis' IT systems and environment, from 1995 to last year. Between 2005 and 2011, Molloy also held the position of vice president for Ancillary Services at the hospital, according to Government House.

DeJongh wrote Senate President Ronald Russell that the 29th Legislature’s “prompt and favorable confirmation” will enhance the Health Department’s and BIT’s “ability to meet its demanding mandates and continued service to the people of the Virgin Islands.”