Summary
Chief Medical Officer for England, Professor Chris Whitty visited Worcestershire last Friday (4th October) to look at the great work being carried out by the county's Public Health Team.
Chief Medical Officer for England, Professor Chris Whitty visited Worcestershire earlier this month (4th October) to look at the great work being carried out by the county’s Public Health Team.
He was invited by Professor Mike Wade, Regional Director of Public Health, to see firsthand how Worcestershire is delivering public health interventions across the county.
Lisa explained: “Our approach to public health is rooted in both asset-based and deficit-based strategies. We believe in balancing traditional interventions with community-driven solutions. Rather than treating communities as problems to fix, we empower them to share their ideas on what works best for them, and we help make those ideas a reality.”
A prime example of this is the Healthy Worcestershire group sessions, which blend professionally-led interventions in areas of high need with community involvement. Residents play an active role in shaping the content of group sessions, with funding available to support their ideas.
The morning session of Professor Whitty’s visit took place at the Worcester Warriors Foundation, where he engaged with representatives from Public Health, Worcestershire County Council, and NHS Worcestershire.
In the afternoon, he was invited to visit a Healthy Worcestershire session in Perdiswell, Worcester. Around 20 participants took part in group exercises, received a talk on community safety and scams, and had the chance to discuss their experiences with Professor Whitty.
Following the visit, Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer for England said: “I learned a lot and was impressed by the range of actions and their outcomes, including several that many other parts of the country would learn from. It was also great to see some of the work in action at Healthy Worcestershire in the afternoon, which was clearly very well run and appreciated by the people there.”
You can find out more about Healthy Worcestershire on our website www.worcestershire.gov.uk/healthyworcestershire
Left to right: Natalie Hickman, Private Secretary to the Chief Medical Officer – Professor Chris Whitty, Leila Cannon, Health and Justice Partnership Coordinator, West Mercia Probation, Andrew Boote, Head of Service for Safer Communities, Worcestershire County Council, Lisa McNally, Director of Public Health for Worcestershire, Elizabeth Griffiths, Public Health Consultant, Empowering People, Worcestershire County Council, Matt Fung, Public Health Consultant, Producing Evidence, Worcestershire County Council, Steve Brewster, Active Herefordshire and Worcestershire, Lucy Chick, Senior Public Health Practitioner, Empowering People, Worcestershire County Council, Claire Mitchell, Public Health Practitioner, Empowering People, Worcestershire County Council, Sarah Dutson, Public Health Administration Manager, Worcestershire County Council, Mike Wade, Regional Director Public Health, Tanya Richardson, Public Health Consultant, Keeping People Safe, Worcestershire County Council, Katie Deeley, Senior Public Health Practitioner, Worcestershire County Council, and Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer for England.