Health Equity Fellowship class of 2022
In 2022 we launched the Health Equity Fellowship Programme for our Partnership and appointed 32 fellows to join us.
Addressing health inequalities requires a whole system approach from strategic planning and leadership to community level service delivery. The fellowship is part of the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership Health Inequalities Academy, working towards the ambition to equip all staff with an understanding of the individual and collective action we can take to create a more equitable health and care system.
The Health Equity Fellowship ran between March 2022 and November 2022. Fellows dedicated one day a week of their time to attend health equity training and work on a health equity project. Fellows delivered projects in their usual place of work or contributed to wider joined up or system approaches taking place across the area.
On this page you can meet the fellows for 2022 and find out more about the projects they carried out. In January 2023, we appointed the next cohort of fellows to join a wider Improving Population Health Fellowship.
Meet the class of 2022
The Partnership's first cohort of Health Equity Fellows for 2022 carried out projects to support our work to tackle health inequalities and make West Yorkshire an equity-informed system.
Each fellow linked with a local public health mentor to help embed learning and generate cross-sector relationships.
We held a ceremony on 15 December 2022 to award 28 fellows with their certificates and give them an opportunity to present their project findings.
Those projects are now being adapted and making a difference across other areas of West Yorkshire and beyond. They include a range of subjects helping to build more equitable systems covering everything from maternity, faith, mental health, oral cancer and heart failure to learning disabilities, lung checks, paediatrics, breast cancer, kidney health and cervical cancer.
On these pages you can meet the fellows for the class of 2022 and find out more about the projects carried out during the year.
Abdul Hashimi
"My name is Abdul Hashimi. My professional background is a lawyer with a master’s degree in International Law. I have worked for many years in project management, advocacy, asylum guide and volunteer management. Currently I work with Third Sector Leaders Kirklees as Volunteer and Engagement Officer, supporting individuals and third sector organisations. I was previously Volunteer Coordinator with DASH a local charity supporting asylum seekers and refugees. Besides training and managing the volunteers I was also signposting and referring the clients for welfare support including to the GP, Solace for their mental health and helping them to fill in HC2 forms.
Through my current job I help to manage a pilot volunteer programme in partnership with Social Prescribing Link Workers in North Kirklees. We are recruiting, training, and supporting volunteers to support individuals to re-engage in local community activities for their wellbeing and accompanying people on a short walk from their home to improve their confidence. I have also volunteered as a Welcome Mentor Volunteer with TSL Kirklees Migration Team, translating COVID19 public awareness messages from English to Farsi/Dari language for asylum seekers and refugees. I also assisted at COVID Vaccination clinics by translating and ensuring patients understood all the information and made them feel at ease."
Abdul's project: exploring the health benefits and barriers to volunteering for newcomers
Aziz Rehman
Aziz is currently a Health Equity Fellow with the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership and works as an Equality, Diversity & Inclusion and Wellbeing Facilitator in a Yorkshire NHS Acute Trust.
He has worked in a few local NHS Trusts and the South Yorkshire Integrated care System as a Diabetes Transformation Commissioner.
Apart from the NHS, Aziz has had his own business and worked in local communities across West Yorkshire in areas such as community development, employment readiness, housing, education, racial equality. His recent work experience involves working with vulnerable, challenging complex needs young people leaving the care system.
A graduate in Islamic Theology, Aziz is also an Islamic Psychotherapist and qualified as a clinical hypnotherapist with a keen interest in spirituality, faith and health inequalities. He has been involved in helping faith institutions with their governance and leadership structures.
Aziz led an innovative project called Spirit in Mind (South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust). The project recognises and seeks to draw upon the possibilities opened up by working with locally-based spiritual, faith, and humanist organisations (Spiritual Partners) to significantly enhance the diversity and quality of support available to users of services. Aziz led a successful conference in 2017 which was titled Supporting people’s mental wellbeing through the development of collaborative partnerships.
With a breadth of working experience in public, private, and third sectors, Aziz has been in business for at least half of his working life and is currently a trustee for the National Spirituality and Mental Health Forum. He has sat on many third sector leader organisations and community group boards including the West Yorkshire Office of Police Crime Commissioners Third Sector Advisory Group, VAC Calderdale and Kirklees Third Sector Leaders and Vice Chair of Bradford Council for Voluntary Services.
He is keen to see local people participate in processes to add value and a sense of realism.
Aziz's project: improving healthcare provision for the Muslim community in West and South Yorkshire
Bill Graham
After 3 years working with the Modality GP partnership connecting community and health resources, Bill has recently been appointed the Health Inequalities lead (non-medical) for the Modality GP partnership and PCN based in Airedale, Wharefdale and Craven. Bill is also an associate of Leeds Community Foundation/ Give Bradford and volunteers as a trustee with Leeds Community Spaces and The VCS Alliance in Bradford.
Previous roles include leading a charity in Leeds, New Wortley Community Association and trustee/ treasurer of Bramley Baths. He is an advocate for community businesses and charities, a Fellow of the RSA and tweets under the handle @systemanarchist.
In his spare time Bill enjoys running, socializing, family life and trying to make a difference!
Bill's project: examples of good practice when working with communities
Catherine Chadwick-Rayner
"I recently joined Breaking Down Barriers Outreach Team, Alstrom Syndrome UK, as Networks and Outreach Coordinator, with the aim of bridging the gaps between health service providers and diverse, under-represented communities with regards to genetic conditions. The current focus of work is with diverse communities and healthcare service providers predominately within Leeds and Bradford. I have personal experience of supporting a family member with Russell-Silver Syndrome (RSS), a rare genetic condition. Consultants have explained that little is known about RSS and there is a 50% chance of passing on the condition down the genetic line. I have extensive working experience of developing links and partnerships with diverse communities, physical and sensory impaired groups and Learning Disability groups, in relation to safeguarding and improving mental health. I also have a BA (Hons) Degree in Community Studies and was a founding volunteer to set up summer-camps for children in Romania.
In my previous role (5 years) I worked with communities and frontline workers across West Yorkshire raising awareness about scams and financial exploitation, the mental and physical impacts on individuals, and promoting empowering, prevention methods. Community groups engaged with spanned ages from young people aged 12yrs+ to older people groups, vulnerable adult groups with physical and sensory impairments, and Learning Disabilities groups, whilst focussing on communities within the LSOAs (Lower Super Output Areas) priority neighbourhoods. During this time I ran over 275 community workshops creating a safe space to share experiences of scams and financial exploitation, empowering individuals to protect themselves with safety techniques and tips, signposting to support networks and safeguarding where necessary. I also ran 110+ training sessions with frontline workers, (including WY Police, Fire Service, Health and Social Care Providers, Housing Departments and Care Homes, Carers and third sector volunteers), informing them how to spot signs of individuals being financially exploited, how to support and safeguard, as well as where to signpost. In 2019 I was awarded a WY Police Service Commendation for working in partnership with WY Fire and Rescue Service – that saw a two-way referral process implemented with the whole of WY Fire Service trained on spotting signs of financial exploitation and our workshop participants given the opportunity for a free fire service Health and Wellbeing home visit. I am passionate about improving lives.
I have a son of 19 years who is currently studying Economics at UCL and he is constantly updating my thinking. I love to travel and meet people from different cultures and generally learn more about this wonderful world. I also love to paint, write, garden and swim."
Catherine's project: genes, family history and your health
Cathy Elliott
Cathy is the Chair of West Yorkshire’s Integrated Care Board. Cathy also has a Ministerial appointment with the Department for Transport as the independent Chair of a funding programme for the Government’s High Speed 2 (HS2) project. Cathy is a social policy, philanthropy and social economic investment advisor, and has worked with a range of not-for-profit organisations, particularly the national Power to Change Trust and the international Savannah Wisdom Foundation.
Cathy’s previous experience includes: Non-Executive Director (NED) for Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust in the Greater Manchester ICS; Chief Executive of Community Foundations for Lancashire and Merseyside, alongside being a trustee of the national UK Community Foundations (2009 – 2016); and interim Chief Executive of the national Cohesion and Integration Network charity, working with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, in 2018/19. She is a Senior International Fellow of the City University of New York’s Centre on Philanthropy & Civil Society; a Clore Social Leadership Fellow; a post-graduate of Bayes Business School; and a graduate of the University of Manchester.
Cathy's research, which included a framework for health and care leaders looking at unlocking the NHS’s social and economic potential, featured in a national NHS Confederation report. The framework aims to be a practical tool for systems to gauge and track their progress in the coming years.
Christopher Harvey
"I am currently the Advanced Paramedic Urgent Care for West Yorkshire responsible for developing specialist and advanced practice in the ambulance service. I have been a paramedic for 13 years and have interests in frailty and end of life care. I recently published a research paper on the role of advanced practice in the ambulance service supporting care homes to reduce unnecessary hospital admissions and the benefits this brings for residents. Outside of work I’m a Harrogate Town fan desperately dragging my daughter to matches to pass on my love of football."
Chris's project: how can the ambulance service reduce health inequalities, in care homes?
Duncan Cooper
Duncan Cooper is an information analyst in West Yorkshire Integrated Care System where he supports the region's Planned Care & Maternity programmes. Collaborating with the wider health system Duncan combines health and public health data to inform decision making within the NHS and improve the system’s understanding of its information. He is particularly interested in the evaluation of health inequalities and developing how the effective use of information can drive system change.
Duncan's project: West Yorkshire maternity health inequalities dashboard
Darren Dooler
"My name is Darren Dooler but everyone calls me Daz, I was born and bred in Wakefield and have always called it home - even when I lived away, I always wanted to come home. Having seen my City and District go from 'the Merry City' where people used come from the whole country to do the Westgate Run, it has deteriorated to a shell of its former glory.
Sadly, many people across the place which formerly held so much hope have been reduced to poverty, deprivation, and being without. Many live in poverty, and has been highlighted as a place that needs 'levelling up'. Part of the issue in our District though is that there are those who have and those who haven't, and that is what I would like to work on addressing, and why I was so delighted to be able to take part in this process.
Equity across the Wakefield place is at a minimum and to enable the place, the communities and the people to be re-born we need to ensure that there is equity across the District. Particularly with access to the internet, and data poverty. Many people in our district are on Pay As You Go mobile phones, this makes access to the internet expensive, to the point that the world is closed to many people in our communities. I would like to support a change in that so everyone has equal access.
My passion is my City, the people around me, and supporting mental health all things that access to data and the internet would improve upon, oh, and I love reading and Leeds Rhinos."
Emma Pears
Emma is the Founder and CEO of SELFA Children's Charity, based in Skipton. She was previously the Extended Schools Co-ordinator for North Yorkshire County Council and set up SELFA through the Skipton Extended Schools Clusters after identifying a gap in provision for vulnerable, disadvantaged and disabled young people in Craven over 15 years ago. The charity supports over 400 children and young people each year.
Emma is the voluntary sector representative on the North Yorkshire Children and Young People’s Whole Pathway Commissioning Group and Craven Communities Together Leadership Group, as well as Chairing the multi-agency Craven Emotional Wellbeing Strategy Group for Children and Young People.
She has extensive experience across the public and third sector, having previously worked for the Yorkshire Regional Development Agency as European Officer and the national charity Mencap as Education and Employment Manager.
Over the years Emma has become well-known for her campaigning on children and young people's mental health in rural communities. She has two teenage children: Hannah and Aidan.
As a result of Emma's project, children's charity SELFA were successful in an application to a charitable trust to set up peer support groups for children and young people who are experiencing mental health issues and their parents/carers. These projects started in early 2023. See the press release for more information.
Emma's report: children and young people's mental health in rural Craven
Isabelle Simmons
"My name is Issy and I'm a cardiology nurse in Leeds. I'm keen to help people identify the barriers and challenges to healthy living, and find new ways to support them to overcome these. In particular, I have an interest in nutrition and the impact of socio-economic status on health outcomes."
Isabelle's project: improving health equity in Leeds Heart Failure Service
Emmanuelle Blondiaux-Ding
"My name is Emmanuelle; I am currently working at the Leeds Dental Institute as an IT & Systems Trainer.
Previously I worked in Libraries and Education for many years in France and in England, mainly on social inclusion and life-long learning projects.
Affected by a profound hearing loss for 20 years now, I am also heavily involved with various charities to support people who are facing the challenges of such condition.
Through my own experience and my voluntary work, I have witnessed the consequences, sometimes dramatic and irremediable, of health inequity.
The COVID pandemic revealed the magnitude of this inequity and convinced me even further of the necessity to address it collaboratively, across all sectors and all levels of society, and as a matter of urgency."
Emmanuelle's project: equal access to healthcare for D/deaf and hard of hearing persons
Jack Lewis
"I’ve worked in a variety of Clinical Education & Training roles within the NHS including a significant period of time working for Health Education England.
I currently work as Professional Development Manager for Airedale NHS Foundation Trust, leading a team of clinical professionals responsible for supporting undergraduate education, apprenticeships & continuing professional development.
Working collaboratively with NHS, social care and education providers is an important part of the role, and I’m passionate about promoting health equity across these providers and their stakeholders."
Helen Thompson
"I’m a community facilitator who loves learning and has an eye to further develop qualitative and quantitative health services research skills.
I returned to the NHS in 2018, after some years working in community education, for Housing Associations and to support place-based community partnerships. Often my roles involved teaching volunteers and people with complex needs to develop skills and confidence to drive projects forward.
Now, I work for Leeds and York Partnership Foundation Trust as Patient Experience Co-ordinator. There are great opportunities in my role to work with a range of people with lived experience of mental health or learning disability to see how their stories, views and perspectives can influence and improve services. I have been able to use my community education background when co-designing and co-delivering two courses for Leeds Recovery College, with a co-facilitator team. In April 2020, I worked alongside Leeds Involving People to co-produce an event, “Your Voice: Mental Health” which was very informative, showcasing the amazing work volunteers and third sector groups do, to provide mental health support in the community and influence health services provision.
Enabling people to have more voice to influence service providers is very important to me. Engaging with under-represented communities; including black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, working class communities and people with disabilities has been prominent in many of my roles. I aim to always work with people in a respectful, equal and non-judgemental way and I want to keep improving my practice.
I`m interested in the data as well as people. Earlier in my career with Public Health, I co-ordinated a 3 year research project exploring how economic and social factors impacted on the health and well-being of Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities in Smethwick. Through this I completed a Masters in Public and Environmental Health, by research. The project used a community development approach and participative research techniques which I have continued to use to inform further work to support neighbourhood projects.
On a personal note, I have two wonderful daughters who myself and my female partner adopted in 2004. I live in Sheffield and I regularly enjoy exploring the Peak District either walking or on a bike."
Jessica Lockley
"My name is Jessica and I am a dietitian working in a Community Learning Disability Team in Leeds. The majority of my role involves working with service users and their carers to provide nutritional advice for a range of health needs. I am passionate about reducing health inequalities in the learning disability population, therefore, the Health Equity Fellowship seemed like a perfect opportunity to have a wider impact in this area."
Julie Hoole
"I started my nursing career in Oct 1988, I have spent most of my 30 years in oncology and Specialist Cancer Nursing positions within Yorkshire.
My background from being an oncology ward sister in Leeds in late 90’s ,has been as a Specialist Palliative care nurse (Dual role: community and Acute care ), Lead Head and neck cancer Specialist Nurse (Developing and transforming services in coproduction with patients and speaking internationally about the services we developed) Latterly , Lead cancer nurse for Calderdale and Huddersfield Foundation Trust (CHFT), where I was very humbled to be the winner of RCNI Research Cancer Nurse of the year( 2017) for my research with patients in developing a screening tool for sexual function and intimacy after cancer. In 2017, I moved into the charity sector, working for Macmillan Cancer Support as a Strategic Partnership Manager for North of England. (Influencing key regional stakeholders and redesign of whole systems and services to create and develop improved cancer services)
During the pandemic I came back into the NHS, I am the Rapid Diagnostic Cancer services, Programme Manager, within CHFT working with primary and secondary care to improve pathways for earlier and faster cancer diagnosis.
I am passionate about improving cancer services and ultimately the experience of patients and their families."
Kate Parmenter
"My name is Kate Parmenter, I am a paediatric doctor working on the wards of the hospitals within the West Yorkshire and Humber region.
As part of my training programme, I regularly rotate throughout our children’s hospitals, which allows me to acquire real-time experience and knowledge pertaining to the health needs of our population of children and young adults.
A big part of a paediatrician’s role is understanding why trends appear in our patient cohorts and thus how we can mobilise resources to tackle them. This fellowship will help me to acquire the key skills needed to operate more systematically and utilise better available resources.
I aim to learn how best to advocate for longstanding effective changes to care provision throughout our region. We do not yet have a full grasp on the scope to which the COVID 19 pandemic has affected our children but it has become ever apparent that this is an area of focus."
Kelly Atack
"I have been a qualified pharmacist for over ten years and have worked at Leeds Teaching Hospitals during that time. I completed my postgraduate diploma in Pharmacy Practice in 2015 and also completed the Independent Prescribing course as part of this.
For the last six years I have worked in Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine and am involved in the care of patients with lots of different types of infections. I work in the HIV clinic, reviewing people living with HIV and provide some of their routine outpatient care as well as supporting them through drug changes and adherence issues. I also work for the Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) service and am passionate about admission avoidance and excellent antimicrobial stewardship when giving intravenous antimicrobials to people in their own homes or care facilities. I work in the infectious diseases ward, providing pharmaceutical care for patients with a range of infections, including tropical infections such as malaria, advanced HIV, tuberculosis and multi-drug resistant infections."
Kerrie Channer
Kerrie Channer is a Principal Clinical Psychologist who works at the Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in the Child Psychology Team. Additionally she is a Clinical Tutor in Clinical Psychology at the University of Leeds. She has a wide range of research interests and she is passionate about finding creative ways to overcome health inequalities in the sectors that she works within.
Lindsay McFarlane
"I’m Head of Pathway Integration for Long-Term Conditions in the Leeds office of the ICS. I’ve worked with Leeds CCG for four years. Through my role in Leeds, I have the opportunity to share knowledge, expertise and facilitate change working with our passionate providers, clinicians, and partners to enhance our offer of long term conditions care and treatment in Leeds.
We know, that on average, people in disadvantaged areas have multiple long-term conditions, 10-15 years earlier than those in better off neighborhoods and over half of the equality gap is from deaths from heart disease, stroke and cancers. To have the opportunity to develop my understanding of health equity and inequalities in this area is exciting. I have a keen interest in Public Health, and for many years alongside my commissioning experience in health services have wanted to undertake a formal Public Health qualification. I am therefore delighted to be a health equity fellow to gain my first formal Public Health qualification."
Lucy Beckingham
"I am a Project Manager, working for the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance. My role involves working with clinicians, managers, commissioners, primary care, patient representatives, and voluntary sector colleagues, to ensure a holistic approach to improvement. Previous NHS experience includes project management of health and social care transformation in Oldham.
A majority, of my career has been in the voluntary and community sector, working at a local level for Citizens Advice Westminster, a regional level through the West Yorkshire Finding Independence Project and a national level as part of Shelter’s development team. Within my local community I am actively involved in scouts, established Marsden Meet and Eat group and was the Chair of the local Playgroup for three years.
We are in a position today where society has become more unequal and health inequalities more evident. I have seen first head the effects of growing inequalities in our communities, the pressure on NHS services and I am eager to do what I can to address.
To keep the work life balance, I teach and practice yoga and have recently discovered the joys of keeping chickens!"
Lucy's project: an exploration to identify opportunities to improve oral cancer outcomes
Lydia Robson
"I have recently joined Leeds Public Health as a Health Improvement Specialist supporting the programme of work on personalised care, ensuring that health and care services are person-centred. I am currently leading workstreams on self-management and health literacy, with a focus on addressing health inequalities. I am committed to expanding the person-centred care agenda to support mental health services in Leeds."
Lydia's project: embedding shared decision making in mental health services in Leeds
Polly Mason
Polly is a Senior Head of Population Health & Wellbeing in Bradford District and Craven CCG.
She has been interested in reducing inequalities since 2019, when she became lead for the Reducing Inequalities in Communities (RIC) programme. Her work in this programme has given her the opportunity to work with system partners to test new approaches to care delivery, and trialling services which are designed with specific cohorts in mind.
Her background is in improvement and clinical effectiveness. Prior to joining the NHS in 2007, she worked in life assurance.
She is excited to join the Health Equity Fellowship and to have the opportunity to increase awareness of the need to reduce health equity across our place
Dr Raabia Satta (PHD)
"I am a Research Fellow within the NIHR Yorkshire and Humber Patient Safety Translational Research Centre based at Bradford Institute for Health Research. I graduated from the University of Bradford with a BSc (Hons) in Psychology in 2015.
Following my undergraduate programme, I went on to study an MSc in Psychological approaches to Health at the University of Leeds (2016).
I have recently completed my PhD which focused on supporting healthcare professionals with the disclosure of adverse events to patients.
I have a general interest in improving the quality and safety of care within the NHS, with a specific focus on improving the delivery of service to patients and enhancing the wellbeing of healthcare professionals."
Rachel Ainscough
Rachel works within the Local Care Partnerships Development Team in Leeds, a small team of people tasked with working with communities to integrate care and address health inequalities at a neighbourhood level. Working with a broad range of statutory and Third Sector partners and local communities to bring about person centred change, considering the wider social determinants of health, is the exclusive focus of her work.
Rachel previously worked for Marie Curie, a UK wide charity where her role involved working in partnership with a wide range of stakeholders in locations across ‘the North’ to co-design and implement high quality integrated end of life care. Previous to that she worked in the NHS in service transformation, planning and general management. Rachel is passionate about taking action to tackle health inequalities and bringing people together to make it easier to do the right thing when supporting the wellbeing of people in their community.
Saiuqa Raney
"Currently working for Trust Primary Care as an Operations Manager, I have extensive experience of working within health and social care most recently working for GP federations delivering on a portfolio of projects and services for the patients in the Bradford District. From service design to the delivery of direct patient care services within primary, secondary care and the VCS, I have delivered successful partnership working and conceptualised new services addressing inequalities as well as negotiating access to services for vulnerable groups and patients in order to support better health and well-being outcomes for individuals.
Presently, I am working with secondary care partners on a joined-up approach to achieve better patient outcomes, especially for the most vulnerable patient cohorts. Confident in establishing positive and effective relationships with colleagues, partners and other stakeholders and securing their alignment to a vision, purpose and objectives. I am looking forward to completing the fellowship in order to expand on the skills and knowledge I have already gained and to make a positive impact on the health equity agenda within primary care by influencing strategy and future direction of services for patients and service users. Passionate about reducing inequalities and achieving better health outcomes for the patients in Bradford by delivering a more sustainable local healthcare system."
Sarah Mackenzie-Cooper
"Having spent a decade in the voluntary sector working in domestic violence and supporting homeless women and children I moved to the public sector in 2004, bringing my practical experience and understanding to the equality agenda. After 5 years with Calderdale Council in Health and Social Care and Children’s services I joined the NHS delivering the equality, diversity and inclusion agenda in commissioning, working to ensure our services meet the needs of our diverse communities. I have a keen interest in workforce implementing the Workforce Race Equality and Disability Standards and have established a Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield CCG staff network for disabled staff and am a member of the CKW Race Equality Network."
Sarah's project: health inequality and equality impact assessment
Sarah Shand
"Hello, my name is Sarah and I work as a Clinical Psychologist within the Clinical Health Psychology department at BTHFT. Whilst working within both the public and third sector, it has been important to me that my values align with my work; with strong values and principles regarding social justice and opportunity for all. I believe as a psychologist, I should not only support those in distress but also think about the systemic influences which can lead to/perpetuate difficulties and distress.
My role within BTHFT focuses on ensuring that the Clinical Health Psychology service is as accessible, appropriate and beneficial as it can be for vulnerable migrants (in particular those seeking sanctuary in Bradford). I believe that there is no such thing as ‘hard to reach’ communities, rather services can be difficult to reach for a number of reasons, despite the best efforts and well-meaning intentions of professionals. I hope, by sharing best practice reflections with other members of the fellowship, we can support each other to think of ideas to implement meaningful change, as well as ways to share findings more widely and ensure sustainability."
Simone Stephenson Bellwood
"I’m an accredited Psychotherapist with over 15 years of experience. For the past 12 years I have worked for Touchstone, a Times Top 100 Mental Health charity. Initially as a mental health support worker and then as a CBT therapist, within the Leeds Mental Wellbeing Service.
In October 2021, I started in a new role as Strategic Equalities Lead within the same service. Now, managing my own team and being a leader within the service, this role brings together my deep understanding of the service user journey / staff experience and passion for equality, diversity & inclusion. It is both challenging and exciting. More generally I have a particular interest in intergenerational trauma, belonging and using creativity as a vehicle for healing and recovery.
Outside of the professional realm, I am mother to three little humans, a career in and of itself. I am also a budding podcast maker and closet song singer. My focus now is to work alongside others with aligned vision and purpose to become more effective in applying my voice, skills, knowledge and experience to create a more equal society for our future generations."
Steven Edwards
Project Lead for Rapid Diagnostics at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
As Project Lead for Rapid Diagnostics, Steven is responsible for developing and delivering a range of quality improvement activities and projects across cancer services. Steven is keen to ensure that these projects deliver improvements in outcomes and patient experience.
Steven has worked in cancer care for over 30years. He started work in the NHS as a Therapy Radiographer, and then worked for Macmillan Cancer Support in a number of roles, including Services Programme Manager for the North (2016 to 2020). In this role Steven managed a portfolio of transformational programmes, and provided expertise to the regional team around system redesign methodology.
Throughout his career, Steven has been passionate about ensuring that services are accessible, relevant, and appropriate for the populations that they are developed for, and where services are not accessible or appropriate, taking steps to address this. Steven believes that addressing health inequality, is both the right thing to do, and makes good business sense. Steven has found that quality data and meaningful user insight is key to providing excellent services for all.
Steven's project: non-attendance for 2 week wait breast appointments in Leeds
Dr Sunil Daga
Dr Sunil Daga is a highly skilled and experienced consultant nephrologist and kidney transplant physician at St James’s University Hospital at Leeds, West Yorkshire. He is a deputy lead - Renal theme at NIHR Leeds MIC and an advisor to academic foundation doctors at Health Education Yorkshire and Humber deanery.
Additionally, he’s a honorary medical advisor for NHSBT Living Transplant Imitative scheme, South Asian Health Action Charity, member of Jain, Hindu Organ Donation Charity and Kidney Research Yorkshire charity. He is actively involved in community education in East Midlands and Yorkshire around kidney disease and organ donation. His research interest is to reduce health inequalities in research participation and access to kidney transplantation in underserved communities.
Tabia Afsar
With a career spanning primary and secondary care, working with independent and voluntary sector organisations, a commissioning support organisation and currently within a Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), Tabia has worked in the NHS for over 20 years. With an MSc in Leadership, Management and Change in Health Care Tabia relishes working to improve health services, through the application of improvement methodologies in the development of services.
While overseeing Bradford’s reducing inequalities in communities projects and working with the district’s Community Partnerships, Tabia has developed a keen interest in reducing inequalities, including the impact of the wider determinants of health. The engagement of communities, especially those from the most deprived areas, is pivotal in tackling long-standing challenges in improving the health and wellbeing of local people. Tabia is working on understanding and responding to what tools and opportunities will enable people to live longer in good health, creating a more balanced and fair society.
Tabia's project: cervical cancer screening in women, predominately South Asian women
Toni Larter
"Hello, my name is Toni and I have worked in Health and Wellbeing in a variety of different fields throughout my career across the private sector, third sector and now in the NHS. Over the past 20 years I have mentored children and young people at an inner city school in Manchester; children at risk of dropping out of education. I then wen on to supporting Homeless young people moving in their first supported living accommodation. Since those early roles I have gone on to Manage a team of Social Prescribers in conjunction with Mind the mental health charity, and then joined the NHS is 2018 working alongside the Leeds CCG and Macmillan as an Engagement Lead for the Leeds Cancer Programme.
In all my roles I have been active in supporting and advocating for people that have had very difficult and challenging life experiences due to poverty, ill health or a combination of many factors. I am looking forward to taking part in the Health Equity Fellowship, and hopefully to making improvements for people to access health opportunities that they may otherwise have struggled to access."