Dr Shade Agboola, Director of Public Health at Warwickshire County Council, has been recognised for her efforts to manage the Covid-19 pandemic as part of West Midlands Employers (WME) #EverydayHer...
Dr Shade Agboola, Director of Public Health at Warwickshire County Council, has been recognised for her efforts to manage the Covid-19 pandemic as part of West Midlands Employers (WME) #EverydayHeroes campaign.*
Her passion for treating preventable diseases started in Nigeria while working to help prevent children dying from malaria and malnutrition. She started her role as Director of Public Health, at Warwickshire County Council, in October 2019 doing the job that is arguably the most critical to local government’s response to the pandemic right now, as it’s the link between the NHS and councils.
Dr Shade Agboola says: “It’s been a baptism of fire. When I got the call from Public Health England in late March 2020 informing me about the first case of Covid-19 case in Warwickshire, I never imagined that things would be where they are now. That was the beginning of an unbelievable experience for me; I’ve never been so busy and I’m still working every weekend along with Public Health colleagues to ensure that we are providing a round the clock response to the pandemic. No amount of training could have prepared me for what was to come, but it’s worth it, especially when you can see the number of cases falling and you know that you are making a difference.”
Even before the start of lockdown Shade and the top level of emergency planning group in the Council were meeting daily to decide the actions required to implement the Government’s Coronavirus Action Plan. She spent a lot of time working with partners across Warwickshire – especially the district and borough councils to ensure everyone was kept up to date.
Some things in the early days of the pandemic were very practical like talking to all Faith Leaders about closing Mosques and other places of worship – some didn’t want to do that initially, but were persuaded – before the Government lockdown.
Part of the challenge was the speed at which things were happening. Dr Agboola says, “At the peak of the pandemic there was so much guidance, it was hard to keep up. For example the guidance on the use of PPE changed over time – and was very different in different settings such as care homes, schools or the workplace and this had to be carefully managed.”
It was down to Dr Agboola and her team to translate the government guidance and get it to people who needed it quickly. They provided a lot of support to care homes 24/7 and brought in testing when it was clear it was essential. They also set up an out of hours rota of support to care homes.
Much of Shade’s time now is spent on Test and Trace. She said: “Traditional contact tracing can be very effective and essential to contain local outbreaks. We are one of the 11 national Beacon projects, with Coventry and Solihull Councils and the West Midlands Combined Authority, to pilot how we work together on our Outbreak Control Plan. Our Plan has now been launched and sets out how we will quickly identify and isolate cases to help us stop and manage outbreaks.”
Commenting on the recent easing of lockdown Dr Agboola said: “I have mixed feelings. The risk is still very much with us. But I’m also concerned about the mental health impact on those people who have been shielding for three months now, often with very little human contact. I know we’ve had an increase in calls about mental health. So while I do welcome easing of the lockdown, I don’t want anyone to think that this is over – that’s not the case.”
When asked about the PHE findings about people from BAME backgrounds being at higher risk of dying from Covid-19 she commented: “My Director of Public Health Annual Report will certainly be focused on health inequalities. We also still have an NHS that remains a treatment service – more emphasis needs to go into prevention and the entire system needs to change.”
Cllr Les Caborn, Portfolio Holder for Adult Social Care & Health said:
“It has been a very challenging time for our employees at the council and a steep learning curve for many. As Director of Public Health, Shade has led a fantastic team of colleagues who have taken on a huge responsibility and have worked tirelessly to keep Warwickshire’s residents safe and informed during the pandemic.
“Shade and her team are a brilliant example of doing the best that they can for the community during this difficult time and we are very proud that she has been nominated as a West Midlands Hero, it is truly deserved.”
Rebecca Davis, Chief Executive of West Midlands Employers, said:
“It has been an extremely testing time for Public Health professionals in particular throughout the pandemic. It has been amazing to hear how Shade has worked together with partners at speed to provide support to the community, and see the efforts that have been made to provide accurate coronavirus messages for residents.”
*Local authority improvement body WME, owned by 33 councils across the West Midlands, launched the campaign to recognise #EverydayHeroes – council workers who are working around the clock to keep essential services running and keep us safe through the coronavirus crisis.
Anyone can nominate one or more local council heroes here. West Midlands Employers will review nominations in partnership with the relevant council and we will share their stories via https://wmheroes.co.uk/meet-your-heroes/.
Find out more about working for Warwickshire County Council.