Public Health England is to be replaced by the National Institute for Health Protection; this came as a shock to those working in public health, and to observers with long experience of the service. Valerie Bevan provides an individual assessment.
Dr Valerie Bevan is chair of the British Society for Microbial Technology (BSMT), whose Annual Scientific Conference has been postponed until May 2021. The article below is written in a personal capacity and not on behalf of the BSMT. The views expressed are hers alone and are in no way critical of the hundreds of laboratory staff who are working extremely hard to deliver a good service to the NHS and communities. Dr Bevan previous wrote an article entitled Microbiology testing networks: are they of value and fit for purpose? published in the June issue of this magazine.1
So, the government is creating a new agency, the National Institute for Health Protection (NIHP) incorporating some of the responsibilities of Public Health England (PHE) with NHS Test and Trace, and the Joint Biosecurity Centre (see Table 1). Although the formal start will be April 2021, the new Institute took immediate responsibility for responding to the current pandemic. Initial indications six weeks after the new management has taken over suggest that it is faring no better than PHE, as testing has again become a burgeoning issue.
Personal impact
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