Laura French is now a consultant in Public Health.  She studied at Hymers College between 1994 and 2004, before attending medical school at HYMS (Hull York Medical School).  Recently, she spoke to our biology students, explaining what Public Health is and how her career has developed since leaving Hymers.

During the session, Laura explained how there was more to Public Health than people often realise, with it encompassing Health Improvement (looking at wider factors affecting health and well-being, inequalities, healthier lifestyles and choices), Health Protection (looking at infectious diseases, emergency responses, and environmental hazards) and Health Services (looking at disease prevention, service improvement and equality of provision).  They also discussed what factors make people healthy and how healthcare can make a difference, with the aim of reducing the need for treatment in hospitals.

Since the Health and Social Care Act 2012, the majority of Public Health functions sit with the local authority.  Laura discussed how her role fitted into this, including her own experience of working during COVID-19.

The students left the session with a much wider knowledge of the area of Public Health.

Thank you, Laura, for supporting the students and volunteering your time to speak to them.

To read more on her career and time studying at Hymers College, please also see our previous article, Laura's Medical Career.