FPH Officer and Board Elections 2024-25

Professor Tracy Daszkiewicz FFPH
Executive Director of Public Health & Strategic Partnerships, Aneurin Bevan University Health Board

It’s been an honour to serve as Vice President of the FPH since 2022.

Alongside the Board, FPH staff and many inspirational colleagues from across the membership, I have delivered tangible progress across FPH priorities, enabling vital work on preparing for the future.

Central to this future is a thriving workforce, informed by far-reaching insight and energy of colleagues and our incredible Registrars, who will shape the workforce of the future.

My focus on members wellbeing, parity of esteem and greater opportunities to benefit from our membership’s diversity of background and talents, has led to key policies and position statements supporting our wide and diverse membership to be heard and seen and through them provided impetus to the national, regional and local health improvement and protection of our communities.

As a proud FPH Fellow I reflect on 30 years’ working across the health and social care system - with 18 years in PH and current Executive DPH - and consider ”What next for the FPH and the health of the places, communities, and the people we serve?”

The need for the FPH has never been clearer as we deal with the long tail of the pandemic, a renewed focus on preventive and protective foundations for population health and need for healthier places. I will continue to ensure the FPH is recognised and relied upon as a credible source of insight and solutions in local and national debates over the future of Public Health.

Our times call for commitment courage and collaboration.

From the crisis across health and social care accessibility and outcomes, to the urgent need for action on climate change.

If elected as your President, I would continue to support the membership and encourage the wider system to see shared challenges and solutions through a Public Health Lens.

Dr David Walker FFPH
Recently retired as Chief Medical Officer for Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust

In my career I have been a CCDC, a local DPH, a regional DPH and Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England. I have worked in five UK regions and on four continents including as a visiting scientist at CDC Atlanta. I have held many senior roles including Chair of the UK National Screening Committee and National Lead for Rare Diseases. Most recently I have been the Chief Medical Officer for one of the largest NHS Trusts. I have been lucky enough to work with many inspirational public health leaders.

I am concerned that public health in the UK is in peril. Health outcomes and health inequality are not improving. The UK is in great need of an effective public health system. In the past, national support for public health has fluctuated cyclically but crises have usually resulted in a renewal of focus and an improvement in support. It is notable this time that in the greatest public health crisis in our lifetime, our national public health body was abolished and one of its successor bodies dismantled. Public health funding and remuneration levels have decreased and the influence of public health experts has become more limited at local and national level. Morale is low and the challenge to us is great.

If elected, I want to encourage the renewal of the public health system and help to create an environment where our Directors of Public Health and their teams can flourish and attract the heroes of the future to their ranks. I want closer working with innovation, technology and digital leaders who are already more influential in some health systems than they are in the UK and I want to realise the expectation that public health expertise should always be in the room when key decisions affecting health are made.

Ms Rachel Flowers FFPH
Public Health Specialist / Visiting Fellow, London Southbank University

I am standing for the Faculty of Public Health Vice President as I believe that my skills and experience would enable me to proactively support the President and our members over the next three years. Like all our members, I am passionate and enthusiastic about tackling health inequity, and feel strongly that we need a united, competent, supported, and valued workforce with good career pathways to effectively and efficiently enable this to happen.

In my 40-year career in public health I have worked in paid and voluntary roles across the public health system within the NHS, local, regional, and national government. This includes being a Director of Public Health in two different areas for a total of over 12 years and also includes informing policy across the four countries of the UK. As a result. I feel like I have a clear grip on the public health challenges.

Throughout my career I have actively volunteered for public health charities and have also been voted into a range of roles. One of my proudest moments was when I was elected for the first term as a general board member of the Faculty of Public Health, I was humbled to be voted in for a second term. In this time, I have seen the last two Presidents and the wider faculty nurture and grow our organisation into one not only with a high profile advocating around things that matter for public health, but also refining and renewing public health training and competencies for us all.

I want the faculty and our members to continue to grow in strength and influence and believe that if I were voted into the vice president role, I would be able to play a key part in that journey.

Professor Zafar Iqbal FFPH
Associate Medical Director Public Health, Midlands Partnership NHS University Foundation Trust

I have senior level experience in the FPH and UKPHR. I have been a Local Authority DPH and a Medical Director in the NHS. I currently chair the national NHS Public Health Provider Network, and we are working closely with NHSE to promote prevention in the NHS.

In the last decade, I played an active role in the FPH as a Local Board Member and Assistant Registrar. I led the development of the FPH Workforce Strategy and ensured the integrity of the AAC process whilst transfer of the public health function to local authorities. I have also been a member of the Global Health Committee and chaired the Pakistan SIG. As Registrar of the UKPHR, I provided oversight for the new portfolio assessment route.

The growing health inequalities, an undermined health and social care system and impending consequences of global warming are alarming. Organisations like the ADPH and UKHSA have their limitations within which they can operate. Is the Faculty’s voice effective enough?

This is a critical time to influence the new Government to tackle social and economic/commercial determinants of health. We need to hard bake prevention into the NHS.

My priorities would be to:

• Mobilise the expertise within our SIGs to influence national policy to make tangible progress in reducing health inequalities.
• Advocate for more posts in the NHS for Public Health specialists.
• Ensure the spotlight on increasing BAME appointments to executive positions in the public sector is maintained.
• Ensure that the FPH plays a more active role in supporting portfolio and CESR candidates.

I think the FPH pre-election visioning document was brilliant. I will support the President and the Board in putting the FPH at the heart of leading the public health agenda in the four nations and provide global leadership for public health.