Environmental health practitioners (EHPs) play a vital role in protecting and improving the health and wellbeing of our communities. Working at the intersection of health, the environment and regulation, EHPs form a crucial part of the public health workforce, providing the first line of defence against threats to our health and safety. 

When most people think of public health, they picture doctors, nurses or hospitals. However, the EHPs are the people who work to make sure our food is safe to eat, our homes are fit to live in, our air is clean to breathe and our workplaces don’t put us at risk. We are the ones investigating outbreaks, following up on complaints and making sure businesses play their part in protecting the public. We deal with the everyday environments that shape our health long before anyone needs to see a doctor. 

What makes us so important is our mix of science, problem-solving and people skills. Those holistic, transferable skills drummed into us from the early days are key to what we do. 

One day, we might be tackling damp and mould that’s making a child unwell, the next, tracing the source of a food poisoning incident or advising on how to reduce air pollution in a busy town centre. Our work is practical, preventive and connected to the realities of people’s lives – even if, as is often the case, our work goes unseen. This aspect was explored during our recent Housing Roundtable, with guest Paul Oatt, CEnvH FCIEH, where we discussed workforce challenges and how environmental health continues to be the invisible profession. 

The pandemic exemplified this. EHPs played a vital role in helping to control outbreaks, advising local businesses, resourcing vaccination clinics and supporting vulnerable residents, which, in the most part, went unnoticed by the wider population.  

And as challenges emerge, from climate change to the cost-of-living crisis, we will continue to do our vital work of protecting community health, albeit behind the scenes.  

So, let’s take this week to celebrate public health professionals, including EHPs, and take a moment to think about all the incredible work we do to keep people safe, through focusing on prevention, not cure. And next time you think about public health, remember, it’s not just about hospitals and healthcare – it’s also about the work EHPs do every day to make our surroundings safer and healthier places to live.