Nwanne Agada graduated from the Environmental Health Sciences Program and earned her MS Environmental Health degree in 2017. Below is a blog written by her about what she currently does as an environmental health professional:

I moved to London in April 2019 to start working with Public Health England as an Environmental Public Health Scientist for 2 years. I work specifically with their Extreme Events and Health Protection team. Public Health England is an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) of England. We provide research, advice, support and more for the government, local authorities, and the National Health Services (NHS) in protecting and improving the overall health of England and other United Kingdom countries (such as Wales and Scotland).

My team concentrates on extreme events that impact England and neighbouring countries in the United Kingdom such as heatwaves, extreme cold temperatures, flooding (which happens quite often here), and emerging events, specifically, drought and thunderstorm asthma (which is a very interesting subject to read about by the way!). Our work mainly supports Public Health England’s commitments under the National Adaptation Programme, which is the government’s and other’s strategy for adapting to climate change for the next 5 years under the Climate Change Act of 2008.

My team works on developing the evidence base for the public health impacts of extreme weather events; co-coordinating the Heatwave and Cold Weather Plans for England (which provide actions and plans for healthcare professionals, local governments, and the general public to minimise the effects of heat and cold on health) and providing public health guidance with regards to flooding.

My work varies from day to day… from research, writing, answering questions that come in from the general public, healthcare professionals, or even Parliament, to contributing to emergency response. My team was responsible for sending out hot weather alerts and public health messages when we experienced two heatwaves this summer (in July and August). There is no A/C in the buildings or most homes, so when it’s hot, its HOT! I’m also currently doing a systematic literature review on the “minimum home temperature thresholds for health in winter”. It brings me back to the grad school days but I’m enjoying it and its preparing me for a possible PhD program, which I am planning on doing in the near future… hopefully.

-Nwanne Agada (MSEH ’17), London, England, September 2019