First director of UK-PHRST appointed

Public Health England (PHE) has announced that Professor Daniel Bausch has been appointed director of the new UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST).

Funded by the UK government, the UK-PHRST is jointly run by Public Health England (PHE) and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, with Oxford University and King’s College London as academic partners.

The UK-PHRST consists of public health experts, scientists, academics and clinicians ready to respond to urgent requests from countries around the world within 48 hours to support them in preventing local disease outbreaks from becoming global epidemics.

The UK-PHRST conducts rigorous research to improve the response to future epidemics. It will also have a strong focus on helping vulnerable low- and middle-income countries develop their own capacity to identify and control disease outbreaks, working with counterparts in developing countries to train and support their responders.

The team will also assist with training a group of public health reservists to maintain the UK’s capability to rapidly scale up the response to any disease outbreak or health emergency.

Professor Daniel Bausch, a specialist in emerging infectious diseases trained in internal medicine, infectious diseases, tropical medicine, and public health, will take up the position of director of the UK-PHRST in April.

Professor Bausch’s most recent role was as the technical lead for the Epidemic Clinical Management Unit in the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Pandemic and Epidemic Diseases Department.

Public Health and Innovation Minister, Nicola Blackwood said: “Deploying emergency support rapidly overseas to investigate disease outbreaks will help save lives and prevent emergencies like the Ebola crisis happening again.

“Professor Bausch brings a vital background in tackling epidemics with the United Nations and World Health Organisation. I am confident he will continue the UK’s proud tradition of being at the forefront of fighting global threats.”

Duncan Selbie, chief executive at PHE, said: “Professor Bausch brings a wealth of expertise in dealing with international disease outbreaks. The UK-PHRST will work with countries across the globe to stop the spread of deadly diseases, not only protecting the UK but playing a vital role at the forefront of global public health security.”