Team Profile
Torfaen Local Public Health Team
Block A, 2nd Floor
Mamhilad House
Mamhilad Park Estate
Mamhilad
Pontypool
Torfaen
NP4 0YP
Telephone: 01495 332154
Fax: 01495 759783
Public Health Director
Dr Subu Iyer
Employed by the National Public Health Service for Wales. The post of Public Health Director contributes to securing robust local health protection arrangements for Torfaen Local Health Board. It ensures that any service proposals are supported by evidence of effectiveness. The role also involves the co-ordination of the development of the Torfaen Health Social Care and Well-being Needs Assessment and engaging partners through development of the Health Social Care and Well-being Needs Assessment.
Principal Health Promotion Specialist/Public Health Practitioner
Virginia Morgan and Jonathan West
Employed by the National Public Health Service for Wales and reporting to the Director of Public Health, the post holders have joint lead for a team of ten staff, five of whom are appointed through Torfaen Local Health Board. This is a strategic role that requires the integration of the Torfaen Local Public Health Team’s work to provide health promotion and public health support to our local partners.
Required to deputise for the Public Health Director, post holders’ responsibilities are at the level of Local Health Board Senior Management Team. Involved in developing and maintaining strategic partnerships across the statutory, voluntary, private and independent sectors, Principals are responsible for providing leadership, specialised advice and expertise on the development of public health/health promotion strategy, policy and practice, to promote health and wellbeing in Torfaen.
Health Promotion Practitioner – Substance Misuse
Jackie Williams
Employed by the National Public Health Service for Wales. This post contributes to the effective delivery of the Public Health Team agenda (in partnership with all sectors) and contributes to the development and implementation of strategies and initiatives. Focussing specifically on substance misuse, the post holder plans, implements and evaluate programmes to promote health and well being. Current priorities for 2006/07 include i) co-ordinating the Torfaen Substance Misuse Education Review; ii) identifying and disseminating best practice in substance misuse education; iii) supporting the community and professionals; and iv) supporting the WAG working group on substance misuse information and resources.
Health Promotion Practitioner – Adolescent Smoking Cessation
Kathryn Cross
Employed by Torfaen Local Health Board. One of the main aims of this post is to design, implement and evaluate an adolescent smoking cessation workshop programme for young people under the age of 18. This will be achieved by facilitating training courses for health and social care professionals and volunteers who work with young people and developing a pilot project for school Nurses to deliver nicotine replacement treatment as part of a comprehensive smoking cessation initiative in the school setting. As well as smoking cessation interventions, the post aims to implement smoking prevention projects within Torfaen schools.
Health Promotion Practitioner – Emotional/Mental Health
Lorna Coombes
Employed by Torfaen Local Health Board. This post aims to work with a range of individuals and organisations to develop a variety of mental health promotion initiatives for children and young people. This includes the delivery of mental health training programmes for those working with children and young people as well as the provision of accurate and appropriate information and educational resources to support effective practice in mental health promotion. Current initiatives include Torfaen Pyramid Project, the development of Peer Support in Schools and training events for professionals.
Health Promotion Practitioner – Food for Health
Teresa Filipponi
Employed by Torfaen Local Health Board. This post aims to work at a strategic and local level with a range of partners from the statutory and voluntary sector with the objective to implement a range of healthy eating/nutrition programmes as a response to the local needs. This includes developing and facilitating training courses for professionals and volunteers in the borough, developing resources that reflect local and national needs and monitoring and evaluating the different programmes.
Current initiatives include Food for Health and Much, Much More and Mamma’s Cooking projects in close partnership with Sure Start. Weaning workshops and the Open College Network (OCN) course in nutrition aimed to Health Professionals. Future initiative will be establishing and leading a Torfaen Nutrition Group from which the Nutrition Strategy and Action Plan for the borough will be developed.
Acting Torfaen C-CARD & EHC Scheme Project Worker & Project Support Officer
Rachel Jones
Employed by Torfaen Local Health Board. The post of Project Support Officer aims to support the delivery of health promotion projects within the team. In addition, as acting C-Card & Emergency Hormonal Contraception (EHC) Project Worker, the post-holder currently facilitates free condoms for the c-card scheme for 14 – 25 year olds, as part of the strategy to lower teenage pregnancy rates and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted infections. Linked with this is the Emergency Hormonal Contraceptive Scheme, which is provided by community pharmacists.
Administration Support Officer
Pamela Harris-Murton
Employed by the National Public Health Service for Wales. The post of Administration Support Officer aims to undertake general office duties ensuring appropriate response to queries and visitors to the department. Also contributing support to the team at local and national conferences, seminars and presentations.
Smoking Cessation Specialist
Andrea Dickens
Employed by the National Public Health Service for Wales. The role of the Smoking Cessation Specialist is to provide a range of services to the public and health professionals in Torfaen. Smoking Cessation groups are run in venues across the county along with one to one sessions where these are required.
Brief Intervention Training is available to all health professionals in primary and secondary care to increase their knowledge of smoking cessation issues and the effectiveness of their interventions with patients who smoke.